Summer Project #1

Summer has traditionally been the time when I work on projects and get things done. Most of them are home-improvement-type endeavors where I'm organizing or repairing or updating or simply making something work better around the house.  My first project was out of necessity.  The drain hose for the dishwasher cracked and was leaking.  So, one day there was a puddle in the kitchen floor.  I mopped up and did some investigating under the kitchen sink only to find water standing under there as well.  First, I cleared everything out from under the kitchen sink and mopped up all the water.  I left it to dry overnight and called a plumber.  

In the meantime I went online and ordered some clear plastic bins that would organize the cleaners, jars, etc. that I store down there.  I was inspired by Ann at On Sutton Place.  She talked about how the handle made it easier to pull out the items that were in the back.  So, I found these nice see-through bins and ordered these as well.  After weeding out the junk and throwing some things out, this is how my tidy under-the-sink cabinet looks:

• The left-hand cabinet has a trash can and a container that holds dishwasher pods. (You can see the pod container there on the left with the green label.)  
• That is one of my scrubbing brushes sitting on a clear plastic coaster right in front.  
• The clear bin right behind it is 14.5" long and just fits in that space with only about a hand's width to spare.  In the front, it has a tub that contains silver polish, brass polish, tooth paste for cleaning spots on silver, and that sort of thing.  In the back of that bin are oils for my butcher block counter top and cutting boards and front porch rockers.  
• On the right, I have two of the bins with handles.  The one in the back holds some empty jars and a couple of empty cans that can be used to discard something like bacon grease when I need something of that sort.  The front bin holds extras of dish soap and hand soap to refill the containers on the counter by the sink as well as window cleaner and the gloves I use for hand-washing pots and pans.  I also have an empty spray bottle in it for when I mix dish soap and vinegar to clean things.

The next project turned out to be sort of a consolation prize.  I had hoped to redo and update our kitchen this summer but we decided that our budget just wasn't ready for that, yet.  Plus, there is the Coronavirus and we just didn't feel good about having folks coming in and out of our house.  So, I decided that I would just make the things we had work better for us!

I had gotten frustrated with spices and things falling out of the cabinet every time I tried to get something out for cooking.  It seemed that every time I reached for one thing, another couple of things fell out as well.  So, again, I decided it was time to organize and followed Ann's advice! I ordered more of the clear bins with handles that stick out, a couple of these turntables, and large jars and small jars.  I hate I didn't take a before picture but these two will give you an idea of some of the jumbled up conglomeration that I had up there:

I threw out things that were out-of-date or simply looked yucky.  I combined a couple of containers into one jar when I had more than one opened.  It was really quite rewarding to get this spiffed up! I wiped down the cabinet and shelves and placed the turntables inside and filled them up!

• The bottom shelf has spices that we tend to use most on the turntable.  The jars behind the black pepper container are baking soda, baking powder, and corn starch.  There are a couple of bottles of flavored oils and a bottle of vegetable oil along with salt for refilling the shaker and some vegetable spray.  All tidy and within quick reach when cooking.
• On the middle shelf, the turntable holds spices that we use less frequently.  On the right are jars with tea bags, cocoa mix, lemonade mix, and bottles of different extracts and flavorings such as vanilla, almond, maple, etc. 
• I followed the advice that I read online in several places and put the items on the top shelf in clear bins with handles to make them easier to take down.  One bin holds bar-b-que rubs and it is in the middle because it is most frequently used by Mike as well as me. 
  
  The one on the right holds sprinkles and sugars for baking with/for the Grands.
  

The one on the left holds extras for refilling the jars.

I smile every time I open this cabinet now!  Everything is easy to find, easy to access, and easy to return to it's rightful place.  

I still hope to update and revamp my kitchen someday and when we do I will still be able to use these bins and turntables and jars.  For now, making our kitchen work efficiently for us and tidying it up are good enough.