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How To Organize Kitchen Cabinets

The most important thing to focus on when organizing your kitchen cabinets is maximizing space. That just means making the most of the space that you have, because no matter how big your cabinets are, if they're filled to the brim with items that don't have a dedicated spot, it's going to feel cluttered.

Focus on keeping similar items together, using up vertical space by stacking where you're able (like with bowls or glasses) and making sure that every object has a dedicated space.

Kitchen Cabinet Organization Ideas

Use your cabinets to hold more than just kitchenware — display books and plants to bring some personality into your kitchen. You don't have to save all the fun for your bedroom and living room!

If you live in a small apartment, or just don't have cabinets, you can still take part in the fun. Use the space above your sink or your countertop to add your own shelves. This is a great option because when you're doing it yourself, you can customize the storage to your needs.

If you don't want to stack your plates (or you don't have the room for all the designs to have their own stacks), set them upright instead with a DIY plate rack. (via PMQ For Two)

Okay, so this one isn't technically cabinet organization, but it will definitely save you room in your cabinets. DIY this wine rack that will move your wine bottles from your cabinets onto the wall and add color to your room at the same time.

The Home Edit's organization tips are totally inspiring thanks to their efficiency and their color. Grabbing bins from somewhere like The Container Store or Target can help you contain your products so they don't end up spread across your shelf, and they also make it easier to stack your items since they won't fall over.

Don't underestimate the power of labels. When you buy your bins, tubs, and other organizers, write what you intend to store inside on all the containers and make sure that the corresponding product is always inside. That way, you'll have one bin of flour instead of multiple half-empty bags. Plus, it just looks prettier!

For a quick update on the system you already have, stack your plates so that like plates are together, with the biggest plates are on the bottom — this will ensure they sit together in a way that takes up the least amount of room.

Make sure all the rims of your glasses are touching when storing them in your cabinets, and when you're organizing mugs, face the handles toward each other so there's less empty space and more room for new mugs. Because let's be honest, we can always buy new mugs.

Don't forget to use up the space on top of your cabinets too! Grab some baskets to organize new bottles of olive oil, bags of coffee, or cleaning supplies that you get from the store. (via A Beautiful Mess)

Kitchen Cabinet Organizers

If you love to stay hydrated (ie: you have nine water bottles in your cabinet), then you should grab a product like this YouCopia UpSpace Bottle Organizer ($25+). It'll keep all your water bottle snug together so that you have more room for all your mugs. Speaking of...

The great thing about these Better Houseware Undershelf Cup & Mug Hooks ($10 for two) is that since they hook around the top of a shelf, they don't take up any room at the base.

One way to make sure you save room is to use up vertical space instead of horizontal space. That's why we love the Chrome Roll-Out Bakeware Organizer ($66), which stacks all your muffin tins and cookie sheets on their end. Trust us: this will save you tons of room.

Your fruit deserves a comfy spot to hang out in, so grab a Macrame Fruit Hammock ($30) that will keep fruit off the counter. Cute!

The great thing about a container like the Everything Organ Cabinet Depth Pantry Bin ($101+) is that it's clear because you know what you have at all times. You won't have to pull out the bins to see what's inside!

Use an Expandable Countertop Organizer ($38) in your cabinets — or use it on your counter to clear out your cabinets). We love that this pick's expandable because that means you can move it around to different areas, no matter how big the area is.

A pot organizer like this one from MUDEELA ($22) will keep all your pots and pans together, and you won't have to put up with the noise of when they're stacked on top of each other.

You can't forget about the spices! A rack like this Spice Rack($25) will keep all your spices together and make accessing them a whole lot easier.

Some mDesign Metal Pull-Out Baskets ($21) will create organization within your cabinet the way that cubes do. It's like a two-in-one storage space!

Hack 1: Keep your staples front and center

“People always ask me, ‘what’s your system?’ But it’s different for everyone,” Pollack says. “Do you think a skirt is casual? Do you wear more color or neutrals? For many people, their work and going out attire overlap.” Pollack recommends that instead of sectioning your closet into work clothes, going-out clothes and the like, think in simple terms and keep your staple items in front so they are easy to find. “Black tie clothes are for a rare occasion, so stick them in the back of your closet or a whole other closet all together.”

Hack 2: Don't be overly sentimental

You must learn to let go of those items you are never going to wear, like the jeans you keep thinking you’ll fit into someday or the t-shirt that you wouldn’t be caught dead in but reminds you of freshman year of college. “If you haven’t worn it in over a year and your weight and lifestyle have stayed pretty much the same, pass on it,” Pollack says. Other items Pollack says you need to chuck — anything irrevocably stained, not worth repairing, clothes you’ve tried on at least three times this year and rejected and items that make you feel unattractive.

Hack 3: Store seasonal items cleanly and neatly

Pollack says the best way to keep your clothes in good shape when you are going to go months without wearing them is by first making sure they are clean, neatly folding them and sticking them in a cedar chest.

Hack 4: Create a system for shoes based on your closet size

Unless you have a shoe organization system set in place, your shoes are going to end up in a big heap on your closet floor. “If you have room for shelves, I like putting shoes there, at eye level,” Pollack says. “If you have a lot of closet floor space, I like double and triple shoe racks. But a hanging shoe rack works too.”

Shop Closet Organization Items

Amazon Basics Non-Slip Suit Clothes Hangers

Space-Saving Pants Hangers

Novogratz Closet System

Clothes Rack With Shelves And Drawers

Modular Storage Shelving Unit

Canvas Comforter Bags

Closet Storage Box With Front Window

Underbed Folding Box

Shelf Dividers

Follow us on Pinterest for more design inspo!

This post has been updated.

Main image by Anastasia Shuraeva

1. Color Can Work In Your Favor

The colors you wear and use in your home are energetically connected to you and your own personal qi, or what is defined as your lifeforce energy. Black, navy and charcoal with a mix of whites and grays were particularly good colors for my zodiac animal (the rat), which is funny because my home is predominantly those colors.

While every zodiac animal has favorable colors, Cho and Morris discovered a combo of two colors to be the best colors for everyone in the Year of the Snake. "We think a vermillion persimmon color, a really fiery color that's connected to the wood snake, will be the best color for everyone for the Year of the Snake," says Cho. I happen to love this Persimmon Birds wallpaper by Nathan Turner and both Cho and Morris encouraged me to bring in this complementary color to all my blues and neutrals.

Of course, this doesn't mean you have to paint your space an orange or fiery red or buy a pricey sofa in that color. Maybe you always use a pen or notebook in that color or wear something in the vermillion persimmon family and start to notice how it makes you feel this year.

2. Crystals Can Impact Your Goals

Apparently, I have a lot of water in my Chinese zodiac, which can mean I’m very creative and intuitive. The crystal that's connected to all that water is labradorite, which has a bluish, watery quality to it. It’s also said to be supportive of wisdom and intellect. "Water is considered an element with a lot of depth," says Cho. "When you think about the ocean, there's so much life happening underneath. Water is really a connector, a communicator, and with a lot of depth of wisdom." That's the kind of energy I'm cultivating? I'll take it!

3. Know Your Bagua

Bagua in feng shui is like a grid or a mandala that you can overlay on your home. It can reveal obstacles and patterns in your home that you might want to unlock or rearrange. You place this grid over your bed or starting at your entry and it shows things like Abundance, Wisdom, Growth, etc. Morris and Cho overlayed the bagua over my bed and shared where I can place the labradorite to activate my career, communication and connection this year.

Mindful Living offers five floor plans to teach you how to read your mandala's home layout.

4. Plants Can Enhance Your Qi

Plant choice and placement can impact your home's qi too. For example, jade succulents are best placed in your Wisdom bagua area while the snake plant, which cuts through negative energy and signifies strength, is best placed in your Alignment area.

5. Timing Is Everything

There are auspicious hours/days/months and more challenging hours/days/months in the lunar new year. My best months are January, April, and August, while my challenging months are June and July. My best hours are 7AM to 9:00 AM to 3PM to 5:00 PM and 1AM to 3:00 AM, as well as a slew of days where I can make sure to align with important meetings, or plan an event, or even talk to someone about a difficult topic. I can be strategic with this time.

"My most challenging months are always the months that I overwork and I'm totally burnt out," says Cho. "So I look ahead and I definitely say no to the things that aren't the most important in those months."

Turns out, January 8th is a really great day for zodiac rats, so I'll be putting my labradorite stone underneath my bed then with the intention that I'm bringing in more wisdom, more resources, more support for my career and for my communication and connecting to others.

This is where your zodiac animal plays a part too. “Snakes have this magnetism and this charm and there's an attractive quality about them, but they're also really wise and thoughtful and clever, and that's actually a good thing for the rat,” says Morris. Those born in the year of the Tiger and Pig may find the 2025 lunar year more challenging, but that doesn't mean it's going to be a terrible year. (My challenging year is coming up in 2026, the Year of the Horse).

"It's not the year to push yourself," adds Cho. "It's the year to take care of yourself. It's the year to say no when you're going to be stretched thin. And it also reminds us you can't have your left side of your body without your right side of your body. There's a natural shift to things, and it reminds us there's times to be quieter. There's times to be more internal, and there's times where we'll have more challenges, but with the greatest challenge also comes the greatest rewards."

Mindful Living: A Guide to the Everyday Magic of Feng Shui

Learn more about your monthly forecast for 2025 and mindful rituals to get you through the year in peace and harmony in Mindful Living: A Guide to the Everyday Magic of Feng Shui!