How to Bring Minimalism to Your Kitchen

10 Simple Ways to Declutter the Appearance of Your Kitchen.

I have a minimal kitchen and I love it more than ever. When the afternoon light comes through our bay window and hits just right, I'm staggered. I'm amazed at the simple beauty that shadows and light can play with one another.

It also reminds me that I've made my kitchen a respite. 

So if I want to go out for a cup of coffee, I can. But most of the time, I don't want to go out for coffee unless I'm out running errands. 

Why would I want to go out when I could stay here and look at this minimal happiness thing of beauty?

Instead, I want to stay right here, pour myself a cup of joe (heavy on the cream), and sit back and relax while I stare out the window watching the hummingbirds flit back and forth.

Here's the thing: Even though I've been minimalist since 2017, my kitchen didn't look as minimal as this just a year ago. I was hung up on a few things.

Here's what I did to change my kitchen to exactly how I wanted it and why it works perfectly now.

Eliminated a coffee machine.

For ten years - ten years!- I had both a regular coffee machine and a Keurig machine sitting on our counters. One takes up space, and the other takes up space.  But the both of them together take out a chunk of our counter and it's been silently driving me crazy. After all, all four of us in my household use both machines. How could we survive without them?

Well, we didn't have to go that far. I moved the Keurig to a kitchen cabinet that has an electrical outlet in the wall. The shelf rolls in and out and with it plugged in, it's now an invisible part of our kitchen that works well. I'm kicking myself for not thinking of it, oh say, ten years ago.

Took all but one plant out of the bay window.

I love plants. But, the amount that was accumulating in the kitchen was choking my freedom. I moved most of my plants to other rooms with adequate light and left one. It looks beautiful still.

Minimized the utensil bouquet.

As useful as those bouquets are, I didn't use half of the items in there. I sorted through it, kept what I used, discarded some, donated some, and put other items in drawers. It looks far less cluttered now. and is pleasant on the eyes.

Moved the napkin holder.

It's convenient to have the napkin holder out, but it took up precious counter space. I moved the napkin holder into a drawer just below where we used to keep it on the counter. Just as easy to use, and now hidden from view.

Decluttered the curio cabinet.

I have one cabinet, out of all of my kitchen cabinets, that has glass windows. I hold a vase and pottery bowl collection in it. But, it was far too crowded. I went through it, donated a few I didn't like, put some in the house in places that could use a bowl, and sold a few through my Etsy shop. Easy enough.

Took the key catch-all bowl off the counter.

This catch-all bowl we use daily to collect our loose change, keys, and the like. But it was on the counter. I moved it to a little side table adjacent to the kitchen counter instead, freeing up more space. The problem is solved and the counter is cleared.

Took the thermometer off the counter.

This too is something I love. Having a thermometer reader that tells me the inside and outside temperature. But, it was again just one more thing on the counter. I moved it also to the little side table next to the kitchen counter and it sits like it always should've been there.

Put fruit in a bowl on the table.

For the fruit we buy, instead of putting the bananas or apples on the counter, I use a bowl and place it on the kitchen table. It's off the counter and doubles as a pleasant centerpiece.

Put the butter back in the fridge.

We leave the butter on the counter to keep it softened throughout the year. But, it also clutters our kitchen. I've returned to putting it in the refrigerator and if necessary, leave it out only a few hours at a time for a meal or two I'm prepping.

Paper towels are off the counter.

This one is easy to displace counter space. But, they're just as easily removed and put under the kitchen sink cupboard, or for our kitchen, we installed a holder underneath one of our upper cabinets. The towels are off the counter, but still accessible.

Most everything on our counters has an equally simple place to live inside our cabinets and drawers. If you're looking for a streamlined and less cluttered kitchen, it's all about simply finding new places to put the things you use.

If this is too rigid for you, keep a few things on the counter. If it's still too busy for you, find cabinets and drawers that can house all of your things, but still remain convenient to get to. Minimal living is about living with less but also about living with what works for you.

If you're looking for more resources for decluttering your kitchen, minimalist Joshua Becker has a great book called, The Minimalist Home which goes over every room of the house, the kitchen included. I highly recommend it. It helped me pare down what I had and come to terms with what I truly used and what I didn't.

You might think that after this list I have nothing left on the counters. It's not true. We still have our coffee maker, we have our phone charger, our utensil bouquet is still there, and so are our water glasses. (There is a spot for each of us to have a water glass on the counter that we reuse throughout the day, then wash when the day is done - this cuts down on waste and is very convenient.)

So, it's not spartan, but it is sparse. And it's exactly the way I want it as a minimalist who loves drinking her coffee in her beautiful minimalist kitchen.