The kitchen is a magnet for clutter. Try these tips for regaining control:

• Stash pot lids vertically in a cabinet with partitions, if you can’t keep lids with their pots. Use a similar rack for cookie sheets and muffin tins, too.
• Get rid of duplicates. Most people need just one set of everything: enough cake tins for a three-layer dessert, one pie plate, and one size of every pan.
• Clear out what you no longer need. Are your babies teenagers? Donate all those sippy cups.
• Give yourself room to grow. Don’t fill every shelf and drawer to capacity. Allow your dishes room to breathe.
• Remove any cookbooks or magazines that you don’t use on a regular basis. For example, store holiday cookbooks in a dry location outside of the kitchen.
• Store dishes close to the dishwasher so they’re easy to put away, or close to the table so it’s a snap to set.
• Choose drawers over cupboards; they slide out and provide easier access.
• Add a rolling cart for added counter space that provides extra room to organize.
• Mount a magnetic strip to the wall for cutlery; just make sure it is out of reach of little hands.
• Keep your junk drawer under control. An old cutlery tray or plastic silverware divider works well to organize small items.

Food Organization
• Empty every drawer and shelf in the pantry and refrigerator. Thoroughly clean from top to bottom, including the doors.
• Sort items. If the food is past its expiration date, old, or unlikely to be consumed, toss it.
• Plastic bags create clutter inside a fridge or pantry. Instead, store loose items in square plastic containers, which waste less space than round ones. Flip-top lids work particularly well. Each pantry container should be labeled.
• Sort everything that goes back into the pantry and fridge by category, such as baking supplies, crackers, canned goods, vegetables, oils, and spices. Consolidate any duplicates, and store taller items in the back and shorter items in the front.
• To take maximum advantage of storage space, use turntables or stepped organizers to keep all items in view. Undershelf stemmed glass holders and wire baskets work well, too.