This weekend, we had just one goal:
Set up the new place.
…with the aid of a couple beverages. =)
First up, in today’s post: the kitchen pictures. If you recall, it looked like this last week:
Saturday morning, I got my organization on after a trip to Solutions – a huge home organization store similar to The Container Store in the US.
Eric took one look at my loot and laughed.
“Since when did you turn into an organizer?”
I tried to tell him with a straight face that I’ve always been organized, but I just couldn’t.
People can change!
I also couldn’t bring myself to take our old, gross plastic cutlery tray with us, so I took this opportunity to start fresh with a bamboo cutlery tray.
So easy…so rewarding…
Ugly, bagged spices now hide on the side of the fridge to free up a drawer:
What do we have here? St Patrick’s Day stickers, Valentine’s Day cupcake liners, candy molds, and onion goggles.
Sounds about right.
After:
Ok, I could probably do better than that…but I won’t.
Spice cabinet before:
and After…with mini turn tables for easier locating spices:
Thanks for the ideas on the turntables, by the way. Love them!
I put a shelf extender in the dish cabinet to fit an extra row of dishes. Now there is just enough space.
I also picked up this container to store my measuring cups and small kitchen things.
Yes, that’s a lot of measuring cups! You’d be surprised though…some days I easily dirty all of them.
Eric also had this great idea to store my “rarely used” dishes on top of the cabinets, saving me a ton of cabinet space. In addition to my casserole dishes, I put a wok, huge salad bowl, and empty mason jars on top.
You can see the storage in this photo below:
We also set up Grundtal Ikea shelves for my mason jar storage, so they didn’t have to be crammed in the cupboard anymore (thanks to Emily for the idea!!).
They come in 120 cm and 80 cm lengths and we opted for the 80cm. I grabbed matching hooks for the bottom so I could hang my apron and other things. Apparently, Eric is using it for his sunglasses and keys too….you’re on my turf, Liddon. ;)
I was so nervous that the shelves were going to break, but they are very sturdy. I just hope Sketchie doesn’t try to jump up…
Top shelf (left to right): Rolled oats, millet, walnuts, pecans, raw buckwheat groats, speltberries
Bottom shelf: Pearled barley, dried chickpeas, raw almonds, short grain brown rice, red lentils, raw cashews, and hemp seed.
I have a few more jars stored in the cupboard, but it has opened up a lot of cupboard space. Two thumbs up!
You know, initially I was worried about transitioning into a smaller kitchen (I was spoiled with the size and storage space in our old house), but with a few adjustments I’ve cozied right into this space and love it more each day.
I ended Day #1 with Sketchie cuddles on his favourite “blankie” (Eric’s sweater), and he was a happy cat once again.
Coming up: Living/dining area, laundry, and hallways.
Kitchen looks great! I love the mason jar/shelf storage thing too. And I LOVE the spices on turntables… but I don’t think our cupboard is deep enough for it unless I can find much smaller turntables than what used to be available. Anyway, enjoy – a place feels so much more like home when the kitchen is set up the way you want it!
Our cupboards arent very deep either, but these smaller turntables were only 9 inches I think. Might be worth looking into!
Love the shelf and the mason jars. I need to look at putting something like that up to store my grains, flours, etc. You kitchen is looking fabulous…such a great feeling to get organized!
Oh, I have a question: WHY is it that plastic utensil holders get so gross? Our white one is awful. I seriously don’t know how it happens – dark smudges, crumbs, etc. – how is it possible, when we only put clean utensils in it? Your bamboo holder looks great.
haha omg I know…ours was scary! I was so grossed out.
Congrats on making your new house a home and by starting off with the kitchen. When my kitchen (and then bathroom) is organized and ready to go, I feel so relieved…like ahhhh, now I can breathe. And get ready to cook. Have fun! :)
looks fabulous, you got a lot accomplished already! Love that drawer with the odds and ends- only a foodblogger!
Way to get organized!!! Love the ikea shelving for your mason jars.
I love what you did with everything!! I’m pretty organized in my kitchen, but you’ve given me a few ideas to make some spots less cluttered. Thank you!
And Sketchie is so adorable! :D
Your kitchen looks adorable…great job on utilizing the space so well!!!
ohhh la la! How amazing, what a dream! Can I hire you to do the same over here. :) that actually is one of my goals this coming month.
Looks great!
AMAZING…thank you for the inspirational stuff here in this great post! I’m fired up, baby!!! :)
Oh, and you and Sketchie…best…pic…EVER!!! :) <3
Looks great – nice job! You’ve gotten a ton accomplished already!
Hello Angela,
Love your kitchen! very nice and I so love the small containers for the spices that get to stuck on the fridge’s door to optimize space. Great idea! Can’s wait to see what you did to the rest of your place.
Organizing makes me so happy and I love seeing these new home posts. I hope to see more of them in the future.
When Sean and I moved in together last fall I tried to get everything done in one weekend (we’re in a condo in the city). Merging our stuff together wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be but we did amass quite the load of spices between the two of us. We don’t have a lot of cabinet space but we do have a very large front closet; a third of it has become our pantry.
I think our cat, Mischief, is pretty but Sketchie’s looks are far superior (don’t tell Mischief I said that!)
Oh so cute!! Congrats on getting your kitchen organized and settled. It feels soo good to feel more moved in, doesn’t it? It looks great!! Your kitty is absolutely adorable!!
I love what you did with the kitchen! My faves are the spice boxes and the shelves with the mason jars on.
Were the shelves easy to put up? I have dry wall in my (rental) apartment so I’m a bit hesitant to put something on the walls but I’d love the extra space.
Eric used his stud finder (lol) and put it in the studs, otherwise Im not sure it would stay up in just drywall alone.
hm… studs =P lol, just kidding. Yes, that might work, I’ll see if I can find a stud finder (ha!)
Thanks!
I love the kitchen! Looks great. I moved to a smaller kitchen recently and it was tough but organization is key! Great ideas!
Love the new kitchen! I love the fridge magnet spice holders! I really need to work on organizing my own…>.<
Love the organization tips! Where do you get those huge mason jars from?
Canadian Tire :)
Amazing!! I actually love organizing (addicted to it is more like it) so this post really speaks to my heart. ;)
xo
cortnie
We have the EXACT same kitchen layout, ange! I may have to steal some of your ideas!
Congrats on the new home – I think oakville is a perfect spot for you and eric!