Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Kitchen Cabinets and Pantry
You’ve finally realized spring cleaning is not only good for the health of your home, but it’s good for you too. You’ve deep cleaned the fridge and organized the kitchen drawers. But before you call it a day, don’t forget to spring clean your kitchen cabinets and pantry.
How to spring clean your kitchen
1. Clear kitchen cabinets and pantry shelves
First, clear out all of your kitchen cabinets and pantry shelves. Designate some floor space, then start at the top of each shelf and work your way down to the bottom. Once everything is cleared out, take this opportunity to grab your favorite eco-friendly cleaning products and give all of those kitchen cabinets and pantry shelves a thorough scrub down.
If you use any shelf organizers, clean those off too. If you use shelf liners, look for any that are tattered and torn and replace them while you have the cabinets completely emptied.
2. Evaluate dishes
Next, sort through your dishes and inspect your kitchenware. Are there any broken dishes or things that don’t match or function with your new kitchen vibes? Donate any items you no longer use, fix items that can be fixed and repurpose anything else that can be used for something else. Cracked ceramic coffee mug that you absolutely love? Upcycle it into a pen or pencil holder for your WFH office.
Find ways to properly dispose of any items that are broken or unused and cannot be donated. Amy Bloomer, professional organizer at Let Your Space Bloom, recommends checking your local Best Buy to see which old or outdated kitchen appliances they will accept for recycling.
Before you restock your kitchen cabinets, dust off any kitchen appliances and wash all of your dishes so dirty items aren’t being placed back in a clean space.
3. Inspect pantry items
Then, take an inventory of all of your pantry items. If you have foods that are expired, old or stale, toss them. If there are items you won’t eat, donate them to a local church, food pantry or shelter.
You should also throw away any questionable cans that are bulged, dented or rusty. Who knows what science experiments are taking place inside? You don’t want to eat anything that could potentially be harmful to your health.
Wipe the outside of cans and jars and combine half containers together. Transfer open items into clear reusable jars, then display them in an organized fashion in the kitchen cabinets or pantry. These glass jars will help you see the beauty and simplicity of your food. Plus, it’s a good way to gauge when you are running low on pantry staples so you can easily restock.
4. Strategically organize
Now that everything is clean and you have an accurate inventory of dishware and food items, it’s time to organize. Take this time to have some fun and find baskets and shelf organizers that can help make your kitchen cooking experiences a lot easier. You can even create categories in your pantry. Common categories may include baking items, cereals and snacks.
Label shelves in your pantry by category to help keep your kitchen organized all year long. You can even do the same in your kitchen cabinets. Categories may include baking tools, entertaining platters and reusable storage containers.
5. Take a closer look at cabinet and pantry doors
Before you close those cabinet doors and celebrate a job well done, take a closer look at your kitchen cabinet doors. Nick Wilkesmann, owner of a small professional cleaning company and operator of Cleaning-King, recommends checking cabinet and pantry doors. (Ummm I never would have even thought of this, but it’s brilliant).
It’s simple: “Use a Phillips-head screwdriver to tighten up the screws on your hinges. It’s normal for these screws to become loose–especially in cupboards, which are used frequently–and left unattended, they can end up not hanging correctly and bending your hinges. This is a very simple task, which requires no handyman/handywoman experience.”
While you’re at it, add a few small hooks inside kitchen cabinet doors to hang smaller kitchen tools like ladles, measuring spoons and potholders. Gotta get creative and take advantage of every nook and cranny, especially if you live in a small space!
Show your kitchen some extra love this season by spring cleaning your kitchen cabinets and pantry with these simple, yet effective kitchen organization tips to help keep your kitchen organized and your cooking streamlined all year long.
