Decluttering your kitchen regularly has multiple advantages, from reducing anxiety and improving your mood, to increasing productivity and making light work of entertaining. As we speed towards the festive season, now is the time to clear-down surfaces, sort out the ‘everything’ drawer and do an inventory of your pantry stores. At Roundhouse, clutter control is designed into every luxury kitchen we conceive, it’s the key to achieving a relaxed atmosphere and maintain a streamlined aesthetic. Read on for our kitchen designers’ top decluttering tips. 

Pare back

The more you have in your designer kitchen, the higher the potential for chaos. Buying a new bespoke kitchen is an ideal opportunity to do an audit of cupboard contents and cut out the ‘dead wood’. We’re looking at you Tupperware cupboard, out of date spices and spiralizer! If you’re undecided on something, try storing it elsewhere for a while – if you haven’t looked for it in six months, there’s a high chance it can be gifted or recycled.

‘We always encourage clients to have a thorough clear-out when upgrading their kitchen design. The aim is to ensure every item being moved into their new drawers or cupboards is necessary and will be used regularly,’ says senior designer, Paul Welburn. ‘Not only does this prevent wasting storage on items that are essentially dust-magnets, but it also helps ensure that the items you do use can be positioned close to where they are needed, which is essential to any efficiently run kitchen.’

Think before you buy

This might sound a little patronising, but bear with us. One of the simplest ways to avoid a clutter-filled kitchen is to not buy too much in the first place. Exercising restraint when it comes to shopping for gadgets, pans, storage containers and even ingredients can all help take the pressure off kitchen storage. Before you purchase something new, really think about where it will go and how often it will be used. When shopping online, experts recommend leaving items in your shopping cart for 24 hours before you hit buy to reduce impulse purchasing. It is also easy to accidentally buy too much of something if your storage is in disarray, especially when planning new recipes. Decanting herbs and spices into easily visible and clearly labelled containers will help avoid unnecessary repeat purchases.

Outsource your storage

It may sound counterintuitive to relocate your storage issues elsewhere, but there are some things that every smooth-running home needs – just not necessarily in your beautifully designed custom made kitchen! The effectiveness of this approach has resulted in a huge trend for creating secondary support kitchens. These spaces are usually directly behind or adjacent to the main kitchen and are effectively walk-in kitchen pantry cupboards/utility rooms. They provide a dedicated place for cleaning products, bulk buy and dried/tinned foods, out-sized platters and pans, and perhaps a large double bowl kitchen sink, second dishwasher or glasswasher. ‘Back-up or support kitchens are particularly effective in open-plan homes, allowing the kitchen you live and entertain in to remain calm and orderly, while all the messy work gets done behind the scenes,’ explains senior designer, Ben Hawkswell.

Create a decluttering checklist

While decluttering your kitchen pantry cabinet before the Christmas chaos sets in is never a bad idea, scheduling regular clear-outs is a much more effective way to keep your luxury kitchen design tidy into the New Year and beyond. Few of us have the time to declutter every day, but freeing up an hour or two once a month can really help you keep on top of kitchen clutter and make the process more manageable. Creating a decluttering checklist will help you stay focused and encourage you to be a good kitchen cupboard organiser long-term.

Each kitchen is different, but common clutter hot spots to target on your checklist are:

• Out of date food (including frozen and fridge condiments)
• Cracked, chipped or stained crockery and glassware
• Plastic containers and jars (especially those missing lids)
• Drinks bottles and travel mugs
• Bags for life and carrier bags
• Paperwork/schoolwork/bills and receipts
• Small appliances and utensils that never get used
• Stained/scratched chopping boards
• Anything that doesn’t belong in the kitchen at all!

How do I start decluttering my kitchen?

First, carve out time in your schedule to initiate a brutal clear out. It needs to be a time that you can focus all your attention on the job in hand and not be distracted. Be brutal about what needs to go, and then reorganise with visibility in mind. For example, when stacking pantry shelves, bring any items that have migrated to the back forwards, which will help avoid doubling-up when food shopping. Investing in a kitchen with well-organised internal storage will ensure everything remaining is easy to keep neat and tidy. You’ll be able to see exactly what you’ve got, and everything will have a natural place that makes it intuitive to find. 

Our expert kitchen designers can help you make the best choices for your Roundhouse bespoke kitchen, furniture or wardrobes. Visit any of our seven Roundhouse showrooms; Wigmore St, Clapham, Fulham, Richmond, Cambridge, Guildford & Cheltenham and get planning!