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Food storage containers
Open up that messy Tupperware drawer and pull everything out. Match up the containers with their lids (check the dishwasher too) and toss or recycle. Stack everything up neatly and return it to the drawer or cabinet. Use the dimensions of this space as a physical limit. Make some cookies or treats for your grand mom and give away containers that won’t fit.
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Refrigerator
Deep breath. You can do this. Empty out the entire refrigerator onto the kitchen counter. Throw out anything past the expiration dates — as well as any condiments you bought but did not like. Face it, it will expire before you try it again! Clean off everything you put back. Place condiments on the doors, nothing falls over. Check your shelving too. One side for the bigger items and the other side, more shelves?
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Utensils
Check out that crock of utensils near the stove… Yes we all have one. Mine is a rust-orange flower pot… Are all tools getting daily use? Do you really need all those spatulas? Take everything out of the jar and put back only the items you reach for often. If there are tools you want to keep but don’t need to access daily, move them to a drawer or storage. Nearest your stove should be reserved only for true essentials.
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Pots and pans
Unless you are keeping them as threatening devices for that honey-do list, let’s take a look. Pull everything out. Match pots with their lids. Organize pots by size and how often you use them! Put them back in their spot. Ones that get used frequently should be by the stove, under it in a drawer or in a cabinet. The other pots used less frequently need to find a storage cabinet that is out of the way.
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Cook Books
How many do we really need I wonder? Well, I have too many I know but I just can’t part with them! I have a space for the ones I use most often. The rest get coveted closet space or in with my china. They collect serious dust whether you use them weekly or a few times a month. Pull them out, dust them off. Clean the shelf. Add that to your kid’s chore list, easy to do and nothing will break! Maybe you can even tell them to find a great cookie recipe and after, you bake together.
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That Kitchen Drop Spot
We all have the dreaded JUNK drawer or spot where people just drop things off. I always say to my kids if stays there for over a day, it might never be found again. Unless of course it’s money, then it’s my tip. Put pocket change in a cup, recycle junk mail, hang up coats and put away any items that have migrated here from other areas of the house. Set a rule –even for the adults!
Tell us: What would you declutter in 15 minutes or less? Share your thoughts in the Comments!