Thursday, December 23, 2010

Snacember 23

Do you love your kitchen?  Or do you hate your kitchen? 

I have a love/hate relationship with my kitchen.

On the one hand, for an old building, my kitchen is a decent size, and even rarer, it has an awesome dishwasher.  Charming Suitor and I can cook easily in it together, even for dinner parties and the massive Thanksgiving feast we did this year.  And while the layout is a little weird, and there isn't enough storage (my fault for volume, not the kitchen's for size), and the counter space is limited...it mostly works for me. 

On the other hand, the stove is electric, not gas, the refrigerator is around the corner, and the limited counters are formica.  And the floor is ghasly 1976 linoleum in a harvest gold fake brick pattern that always looks a little dirty.  And don't get me started on the tiles.

I gave up a while back on making big cosmetic changes, and have focused on making functional changes.  I have been slowly reorganizing drawers, purging unused equipment, streamlining processes.  One of the projects I have wanted to do forever is to figure out how to work with the lower cabinets that flank the stove.  They are roomy, but very deep, turning them into a black hole for gear, and requiring that you pull everything out every time you need something.

Deadly black hole of Tupperware!

YIKES!


Seriously.

Then a rescue!  Shelves that Slide sent me shelves on rails that work like shallow drawers, so that the cabinets become a billion times more useful!  No more shoving everything in and pulling everything out every minute.

SHUT UP!  How pretty is this????

So much easier!


Ahhh.


Even better, they were really easy to install, and when I looked on their website, VERY reasonably priced. They work like a dream.  Makes me wish I had more cabinets so I could get more of them!  They are all custom made, so you will get the perfect thing for your cabinet, and they have a variety of styles.  Five stars!

What do you love about your kitchen?  What do you want to change?  What kitchen organization tool has made the biggest improvement? 

Yours in Good Taste,
The Polymath

3 comments:

  1. I love that I have so much counter space. I have enough that I'm able to leave some things out on the counters plus still have room to work.

    If I could make a change, I'd basically change my whole kitchen to s semi-professional one with better appliances and work stations, etc. Because I love to be in my kitchen cooking.

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  2. My kitchen is functional, but I too have some storage issues. I'm in a townhouse, and it is pretty clear this kitchen wasn't designed for a cook. I do have 42" uppers (can't reach the top shelf without my step ladder), and sliders in the bottoms, but just not enough of them. I'm all about things that compress, stack, nest, etc. I am also forced to store rarely used small appliances on shelves in the *gasp* garage!

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  3. A week does not pass without a tantrum, the cause? my hatred for our kitchen. I love to cook and when I being to make some great meal from scratch, that require 349587394 ingredients and multiple preperation bowls I get so frustrated I could cry.
    SERIOUSLY.
    Our 1 bedroom apartment is over 1000 sq. ft. all the rooms are HUGE except the kitchen and the bathroom. The kitchen provides about 3 feet of counterspace, MAX. We have minimal cabinet space and had to purchase a stand alone pantry type item from target in order to have any food storage apart from the fridge. No dishwasher. We were married in August and with that came lots of lovely gifts. We recieved all those wonderful kitchen related gifts I've always wanted but could never justify splurging to purchase (i.e. kitchenaide stand mixer, buffet slow cooker/server, vacuum sealer) We now have a stack of kitchen appliances (still in boxes) in the corner of our dining room. There is simply no cabinet space or countertop storage to be found. Even our stand alone pantry is topped with a mini-rotisserie and a bread machine.
    We'll be moving this summer. The husband has convinced me to move to the 'burbs with the promise of a glorious kitchen with storage galore and counter space that goes on for miles. Until then, I'll continue to have my weekly tantrum and whine like a 3 year old over my horrid kitchen.

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