If you have been following along on Instagram you probably saw that my husband and I just finished building a new home. One of the things that was really important to me from the start was only having stuff in the house we really needed and loved. We lived in our last house for a year and a half and we accumulated so much stuff that we did not need within the short time span that we lived there.
The thing is when your space is cluttered, it makes you avoid the space! I especially noticed this in our kitchen of our apartment. As someone who really values the fuel I put into my body, making my kitchen warm and a fun place to be is essential.
I was so excited to partner with Happy Lark Home Organizing this time around with our move. They came to help me purge a bunch of stuff in our apartment prior to the big day. They are a local to Pittsburgh organizational company that not only will organize your space, but also help you purge and unpack when moving! They are offering our blog readers a free initial consultation when you mention this post. They were a dream to work with. When we purged, I made a point to get rid of anything that I had not used in a whole year. It felt so good donating so much stuff! This lifted such a mental weight when we were preparing to move into our home by getting rid of so much stuff.
The day we moved in, Amber & Kara from Happy Lark Home Organizing came and helped me unpack. Our builder ended up getting us in our home 3 weeks early in time for Thanksgiving and my husband already had a meeting scheduled for the day of our move that he could not change. If it wasn’t for Kara and Amber, I definitely would not have survived! By the time my husband came home, the whole house was unpacked! He was just as shocked as I was.
Unpacking the stuff from our apartment was easy given we had already purged so much. Unpacking the stuff from storage that was in there for two years was far more difficult. We had so much stuff. I hadn’t used any of the stuff for over two years so I kinda forgot we had it. We donated a lot but it was also really nice to find some of my old favorites. We thoroughly went through everything as we unpacked.
As we unpacked everything we were really strategic about where things went. I also was really strategic about how I designed our kitchen making sure everything would have a place. We kept all of the things we used daily or often down low and reachable. Everything that we used on occasion or for the holidays got put higher in cabinets.
My main two focuses in the kitchen with Happy Lark Home Organization were my pantry and utensil drawers. I was so tired of my utensil drawer getting caught every time I opened it. We use these clear cleanable drawer dividers to divide things up. What I love most about them is that they are super easy to pull out and clean. They are also clear so they have a clean look to them. Traditional custom drawer separators typically don’t fully come out which means it is easy for crumbs to pile up. If something spills, it is nearly impossible to clean without cleaning out the whole drawer. With the clear drawer dividers it makes it really easy to clean. They carry all shapes and sizes so you can really find a perfect arrangement for your drawer.
I knew I wanted a pretty pantry, but most importantly I wanted it to be functional. Having large woven baskets at the bottom really helped me hide things but still keep everything together. We used the larger baskets for paper plates, pastas, chips, nuts and other snacks.
On the counter of the pantry we put all of our essential small kitchen appliances. I am obsessed with my 11 in 1 Instant Pot. It has 11 different functions from crockpot to air fryer, yet it only takes up one spot. We also have a microwave on the shelf. We do not use it much for food but like to have it in there to heat up a heating pad on occasion. Last but not least, our Ninja food processor. We use it for smoothies and chopping things like onions. It makes life a lot easier!
On the upper shelves, we used clear jars with wooden tops that matched the wood in our home. It added warmth to the space and it was nice to be able to see in the jars. Kara labeled all of the jars in a pretty font so I knew what was in each one.
I feel like we are spending less on groceries having everything clearly labeled and organized. In the past I would just submit a quick Instant Cart order when I couldn’t find something. I also believe when you have a more organized and clean space, it makes you want to use it!
Xo
Allianna
