Could you live this way? (completely cleaned kitchen countertops)

[DawnM]

Here is the article:

 

http://www.liverenewed.com/2014/07/clear-off-your-kitchen-counters.html

 

The premise is to keep NOTHING on your kitchen countertops.  Everything goes in a cupboard and is pulled out as needed.  

 

Could you do it?

 

I could almost do it and would like to try as I put my kitchen back together.  I am majorly purging though.

 

Dawn

[Carrie12345]

I *want* to do it! But I already lack enough cabinet space for pots and pans, forget everything else!

[SKL]

I could, but I don't.  :)

[skimomma]

I would love to.  I don't have versitile-enough cabinet space to store everything away.  I have the space, but some of my kitchen items are too large to fit into the cabinets I have (stand mixer and dehydrator).  But other than those items and a basket of washcloths, mine are generally empty.  Nothing better than having a blank slate to work with.

[J-rap]

I think that would be more of a nuisance.  I'd rather have the things I use daily right there on my counter.

 

 

[foxbridgeacademy]

I probably have enough space, I already store the stand mixer, hand mixer, processor, mini-processor, sandwich maker, popcorn maker, and fryer in a cupboard(big deep with small door).  The problem is that I have to move everything to get to 1 thing(mixer is always up front).  If my toaster or toaster oven were down there I'd be shifting stuff so often I'd get real tired of it.  I couldn't imagine not having my cooking utensils, spices, or french press close at hand. So as nice as it looks it wouldn't be functional (for me, YMMV). Function always wins over form.

[zoobie]

I'd love to try. My kitchen storage sucks though, so I'd be able to store about 1 bowl and a fork which wouldn't work.

[momto10blessings]

I would love to, but it's not going to happen until the kids are gone.

[DawnM]

The article states that she had to clear our her cabinets before hand as well.  Stuff she didn't use often got put in other places (garage, basement, laundry room, etc...) and the stuff she used more often got put in cabinets.

 

Pulling things out takes seconds, as does putting it back.  

[fairfarmhand]

In theory, I could live like that. But my family couldn't; we school in the kitchen and clearing away EVERYTHING eavery day just to get it out again tomorrow is foolish.

 

Also, there's always some kind of produce like tomatoes from the garden or something on the counter.

[LuvToRead]

I have a tiny kitchen, so I just don't have enough cabinets to store stuff.  She keeps her mixer above the fridge, which would mean (for me) getting out a step stool every time I wanted to use it.  I guess I'm confused why she said it was inconvenient to have stuff on the counter.   I just don't see what is so inconvenient of keeping my knife block and mixer tucked away in an unused corner on my counter.  I do prefer a clean work space, I just don't have the option to put my toaster in a cabinet.

[marbel]

I think that would be more of a nuisance.  I'd rather have the things I use daily right there on my counter.

 

I agree with this. 

 

I do have cluttered counters and I don't like that.  I could do a better job of keeping random stuff off the counters, that's for sure.  But I don't consider appliances and other items that I use every day (in some cases multiple times) to be clutter:  coffeemaker, toaster oven, dish drainer, knife block.  That's all I can think of without going to look.

 

But I also don't have cupboard space to put everything away.  The space simply does not exist.  As it is, I have to store the Kitchenaid and food processor in the laundry room, which is down a flight of stairs from the kitchen.  Not a huge hassle, but not as simple as pulling them out of a kitchen cupboard!

[DawnM]

The only things I really use daily are my toaster oven, my microwave, and my French Press.  The French Press could go in a cupboard easily, in a basket with coffee and the grinder).  

 

Right now I would like to take OFF the countertop:  KitchenAid (don't use it much), Utensils (they can go in a drawer), Vitamix (will keep it very easy to pull out), and we will see what else.

 

I am trying VERY hard to minimize right now as we are moving soon.

[prairiewindmomma]

We live that way a fair chunk of the time. I keep fresh fruit on the dining room table and have awesome cabinet space for the rest. I keep the toaster on the bottom shelf of our pantry next to the bread and nutella so that the kids can easily make themselves toast.

[ThisIsTheDay]

I do it. We've live that way for about 15 years.  Right now, there is a plant, a small fish bowl (with a fish), a coffeemaker, a filled fruit bowl, and a paper towel holder.  I have a lot of counter space, 13' in an L shape, not counting where my sink and stove are.  I have a lot of cabinet space, but even when I didn't, we stored kitchen stuff in a china cabinet, in a hallway linen closet, and in the basement.

 

We never put anything on the fridge either.   At this house, we've finally relaxed a bit (lol) and have a grocery list and dd's graduation announcement on the fridge, but they are on the side which no one can see when looking at the kitchen.

 

Dh has always wanted our house to be entirely clutter free and look like something out of a magazine.  Real life has been hard for him, haha, but I've tried to accommodate.

[Paige]

I couldn't. My kitchen is much too small. I already have things stored in my laundry room, dining room, and garage. I am out of space. 

 

When he had a bigger kitchen, I did like to keep most things off the counter but I think she's going too far. I use my coffee maker multiple times a day and it's heavy. I have a couple other things I like to keep out because they are used multiple times a week and are large and heavy. If I could clear out space for them in my cabinets, I'd lose the ability to store a dozen things in there vs the one thing I'd put away, and I'd give myself the hassle of dragging something big, bulky, and heavy out almost every day. I also wonder how good it is for some appliances to be jostled in and out every day.

[MiMi 4under3]

Yes! 

 

I love this... I'm going to do it this week.  :thumbup:

[DawnM]

As soon as my garbage is picked up today (if you read my last week's fiasco, you know we have a LOT of garbage and will need to refill at least one bin after today's pick up!), I plan to get back to tossing.

[magnificent_baby]

I would love that, and I try to keep mine cleared as much as possible. Clutter makes overwhelmed and I have very, very little counter space. DH does not understand that and tries to store miscellaneous items on my counters and I continually cram them back in the cupboard.

[Ellie]

Yes. Or mostly yes. Most of the kitchens in the homes I've lived in have not had excessive counter tops, so I've learned not to keep things on them. This house has some room for decorative items that are also useful, but I also have room to store smaller appliances and whatnot in cabinets and drawers (all my base cabinets are actually deep drawers) and in the pantry.  

 

We used to have a 4-slice toaster that hung from an upper cabinet, and a coffee maker that did the same. Loved those. The toaster would have been the only appliance that my children would have used on a regular basis.

 

Our microwave oven used to be on the counter, but this house has one over the cooktop, and I love that. In another house, I would try very hard to find a way to install the microwave on a shelf or in an upper cabinet or something so it wouldn't take up counter space.

 

I once had a kitchen that had only one drawer. Yes. So I had to keep cooking utensils on a crock on the counter, and I did NOT like that. Way too visually cluttered. Towels and dishcloths were kept around the corner down the hall in the linen closet. There was just not room in the kitchen to keep them, not enough counter space for cute baskets or anything.

 

Right now, my Vitamix is on the counter, because there is just not room in the cabinets, and it hurts me, lol. I'm going to ponder some of the small appliances I have underneath to see if some of them are used less frequently enough to move them upstairs to my storage room (a whole other story, lol). I talked about doing that when I brought the machine home, but Mr. Ellie said if I wanted him to use it, it needed to be more convenient (like he couldn't bend down and pull the thing out, lol), but he has not touched the machine in the month we've had it, so...

 

I've never had room for canisters on the counter; flour and sugar go in Tupperware in the fridge, other things in Tupperware in the cabinets. The best investment I've ever made is in Tupperware Modular Mates. :001_wub:

 

I have never used the fridge as a filing cabinet. :-)

[AimeeM]

No way. It would drive me nuts to have to root through cabinets for every spice needed while cooking. Well, part of that is because I'm short and need a step ladder to reach any of my spice cabinets, lol.

Beyond that, though, I want to keep fruit and goodies on the counter and accessible to the family. 

[elegantlion]

Okay, no one wants me dragging out the coffee pot first thing in the morning before coffee has been made. For me, that would be a recipe for disaster. I have a toaster oven that would be a pain to put away all the time. The blender stays out seasonally. I keep knives and utensils out too. And two vitamins sit on the counter that if I don't see, we forget to take them. I don't have enough space to put away all the appliances. I don't own a huge amount of stuff, but I don't have a huge kitchen anyway. 

 

My dream kitchen would have two drawer dishwashers, one for dirty one for clean dishes, that would be more helpful than trying to keep the countertops bare. 

[kewb]

I do keep the things on my counter to a minimum but to always have to take things out when I need them when it is something I use daily would make me nuts. Plus, I don't have the cabinet space to store my frequently used small appliances.

[redsquirrel]

l used to, but then we got a coffee maker. And then we got a vitamix.  And does the microwave count, because that thing is huge!

 

But until we got the coffee maker, the microwave was the only thing on the countertop. We had been using a french press but dh convinced me to switch to a coffee maker with a timer. We still have the press, but it only makes about 3 cups.  I use the vitamix at least once a day and it is too tall to put away. But if I had the space under a counter I totally would put it away.

 

But, my food processor, toaster, bread machine, everything else is put away. I much prefer clear counters.

[Reefgazer]

No, I couldn't - I don't have enough cabinet space.  And even if I did, I wouldn't want to; it looks dull and sterile.

[Hikin' Mama]

I think a kitchen with nothing on the counters looks bare. My canisters are old blue glass ball jars, which I love. So they serve two purposes: they hold stuff and they are decoration. I also have a couple of old red and white enamel pans that hold bananas, avacados, etc. I love old farmhouse type stuff. Again, these pans are practical and decorative. The other stuff on the counter is practical, such as the toaster, food processor, microwave, and can opener. If I put these things away and other certain people in my house got them out to use them, they would never put them back. I know this from many years of experience ðŸ˜, so it would just create more work for me. I actually have an entire empty cabinet, due to repeated decluttering and having only one child left at home, so I could put lots of stuff in there, but I'd rather not. The only thing I would like to get rid of is the microwave, but my husband insists we "need" it. If I got rid of that, I would put my cookbooks in it's spot.

[Elisabet1]

I wouldn't want to. That kitchen does not have tons of counter space. And we make toast every single day. Toasters collect crumbs. I would not the crumbs in my cupboards.

[AK_Mom4]

I have one clear countertop and one full countertop, so I guess I am half way there? 

 

The full counter top has the bread maker, coffee pot, knife block and dish rack - most of which are used daily.  It is nice having one counter always clear and available tor setting down groceries and food prep when needed.

[JFSinIL]

Lack of cupboard space here - also, I am short and use a step stool as it is to reach beyond the lowest level of the cabinets I do have.  I simply NEED the stuff on the counter to be where it is!

 

Anyway, the kitchen is for living daily life, not impressing anyone else with how pristine and unused it can look.

[Cinder]

I tried the clear counters thing many years ago--before we had dc. Dh didn't like it at all. And we didn't even have that much on the counters back then--toaster, coffee pot. He thought it most annoying to get the toaster out and put it back every day.

[PrairieSong]

I suppose I *could* do this but I don't want to or need to. The toaster and crock for utensils are staying where they are. And the fruit bowl? I'm not putting that in a cabinet.

[happi duck]

Two things I wouldn't stash away:

My knife block being on the counter is the safest place for it.

My dish drainer is in use most of the day. I don't have a dishwasher.

[KungFuPanda]

I leave out my utensil crocks, dish soap, mixer, toaster, and water boiler. It's close enough for me and I aspire to have a kitchen set up completely for function and not aesthetics. I'm over caring what other people think.

 

I did get rid of my dish drainer years ago because I'd leave stuff in it for days.

[Storygirl]

I would prefer to have perfectly clear counters. But we use the coffee maker and toaster daily, and it's too much trouble to haul them in and out of the cupboards (and I agree with the crumb issue). I also have a fruit bowl and a very small knife block. Most knives live in a drawer. When I moved to this house, I decided to put all utensils in a drawer instead of in a crock on the counter. Although I prefer that visually, I'm contemplating going back to using a crock just for the main utensils I use at the stove, for convenience.

 

I do have plenty of cupboard space, but I try to balance out convenience and visual appeal. Unfortunately, I often have paper clutter on my counters, which is our biggest unsightly problem.

 

Dawn, if you can get used to having minimal things out, it will make it easier for you when your house is on the market, so I say go for it!

[Laura Corin]

I no longer have cluttered counters since the redesign, but I still have frequently-used things out on the counters.  They are attractive, and I can't see a reason why they shouldn't be there.  I have out: jars of cooking utensils; bread bin; toaster; coffee maker; coffee grinder; electric kettle; two trivets (one by stove, one near oven); fruit bowl; butter dish.  The second 'west side' photo in this post shows most of it.

 

L

[Pawz4me]

I could do it, but I can't figure out any reason that I'd want to.  Unless maybe I had my house up for sale?

 

For ease of living -- no.  I'd much rather have the toaster sitting out on the counter than have to get it in/out of a cabinet six or eight times a day.

 

And the Keurig?  Goodness.  I can't imagine moving that thing in and out of a cabinet every time I want a cup of coffee.  It would kind of defeat the purpose of having one, wouldn't it?

 

I'm not a fan of clutter, but I think a few things out on cleaned, tidy counters is part of what makes a house a home.  What's cozy about a kitchen w/o a cookie jar or a fruit bowl or a coffee maker?  I want to live in a home, not some sterile picture out of House Beautiful.

[itsheresomewhere]

It would drive me nuts going in and out for things that I use several times a day. But the bare look feels so cold to me.

[elegantlion]

I looked at those pictures again. I prefer a clean cupboard too and those look more cluttered than mine. Those knives sitting up on a third shelf look like an accident waiting to happen and the toaster oven sitting next to what looks like a plastic lunchbox could be a hazard if you put the toaster oven away hot. Who wants to wait for a toaster oven to cool off and then put it away? 

 

And yes this person must be taller. I'm 5'4" and I have a hard time getting things off the second shelf in our upper cabinet. 

[Arcadia]

I have the cabinet space but I don't see the point in taking my rice cooker and kettle out for three times a day from the cabinet. The first thing we look at when renting or house hunting was kitchen space. I have plenty of below the countertop cabinets. The top shelf of my cabinets which I can't reach without a stool has my stationary spares.

 

My mum has only a hot water dispenser kind of kettle out. However her two burner gas stove sits on a rectangular metal rack and she rarely cooks so her pots are in the rack.

 

ETA:

Just measured, I have 510cm/17ft of countertop space excluding sink and stove.

[Pawz4me]

Well . . . if the picture near the bottom of the post really is her "before" picture . . . she probably is much better off keeping her counters entirely clear.

 

I think for most of us there's a happy medium between those two extremes.

[Mimm]

Yes! I love love love clean clear counter tops. I saw that post come across facebook earlier this morning and I'm already mentally going through my cupboards to make space for my coffee pot and a few other things I've always kept on the counter.

[Lolly]

So, I am the only one who absolutely abhors the look of empty countertops in a kitchen? It looks so...barren. Like no one actually lives there. I prefer a more lived in look. I would never want to live in that kitchen! I like the middle ground!!!

 

[SproutMamaK]

No, I wouldn't. I'd have a MOSTLY clean countertop (if I had the cupboard space, which I don't), but I'd still keep out my knife block and a big bowl of fruit, and probably a few glass cannisters full of baking supplies like flour, oatmeal, chocolate chips, etc. Otherwise it would look a little sterile to me. I'd like to keep CLUTTER off my counter, but not everything on a counter is ugly; some of it can be part of the aesthetic.

[sassenach]

That doesn't even look nice to me. It looks stale. Like living in a pre-furnished apartment.

[JustEm]

Why on earth would I put my coffee maker away every single day just to get it out again in the morning?!?!  The things on my counter are used everyday.  My coffeemaker, my microwave, cooking oils, huge contained of flour, dishsoap, and sponges. Nothing else stays on my counter overnight so I see no reason to clear it of the things I use daily since those spots on the counter are more practical than having them in a cabinet to have to reach for daily.

[JustEm]

That doesn't even look nice to me. It looks stale. Like living in a pre-furnished apartment.

 

Yeah that was another thought I had.  I like having no clutter but that kitchen just looks like no one lives there

[LucyStoner]

We have shelves up for most of our small appliances (toaster, electric kettle, iron, pasta maker) and baking stuff. I prefer that to having that stuff hog up my limited counter space. We even have drying racks mounted above the sink to clear that off of the counter (and free up cupboard space since we keep our everyday dishes there all the time). That said, coffeemaker stays out on the counter. And the mixer and espresso maker stay tucked away on a piece of counter that is out of reach because of the refrigerator.

 

We don't have a cabinet tall enough to accommodate our grind n brew coffeemaker. And even if we did, I wouldn't be inclined to put it away. It's programmable and has a thermal carafe. That thing is in some stage of use basically all day, every day.

 

Mixer on top of fridge wouldn't work here- it would block the cabinet up there that we use for cereals and large containers (vinegar, molasses) and also, we store our bread box up there. There is no cabinet here that thing would fit in. I see hers is in the cabinet above the fridge but mine is too tall for that. I think the professional series is a fair bit taller than the classic one.

 

I might try and move the espresso maker to the shelves but I am worried about the weight of it. Um.

 

I keep a bunch of less used heavier small appliances- crockpot, food processor, ice cream maker- on the heavy duty shelf above my laundry machines in the hall closet.

 

Apartment living has its oddities.

[The Girls' Mom]

pshaw....we actually USE my kitchen! For one, I don't have the cabinet space to tuck every thing away.  For another, we use things like the coffee pot, toaster, breadbox, spices, cast iron pans, etc. multiple times a day.  That is a lot of hauling things out of cabinets!  Not to mention the fruit and such that can't fit any where else.  My MIL does clear everything off over her counters except the coffee pot.  But, she doesn't have anyone at home except FIL, and they eat out a lot.

I do keep my kitchen aid on a cart that lives in the dining room.  My knives are on a metal strip, not in a block.  My cast iron lives on my stove top or on the counter beside it.  

 

And, does everyone that moves their toaster in and out of a cabinet have toasters that don't leave a trail of crumbs every time you move it?  I dump that thing out regularly, but it is forever stringing about crumbs.  

[Guest]

It would be wonderful if I had a garage, basement, or a large laundry room, but we're still a long way from that yet.

 

I cook and eat in the schoolroom and have since '98 so you'd think I'd be better about keeping yucky food mess from getting on our stuff and distracting the extremely distractable little from his lessons.

[shawthorne44]

That is a goal of mine.  In the kitchen in the new house I have specified that will be no shelves in the base cabinets, only drawers.  If I have to kneel and dig, I will leave stuff out.  So I need the drawers.  I've also asked my husband to install outlets on the back of certain deep drawers, and one skinny base cabinet has been designated for the stand mixer and the lifting shelf that holds it.  The toaster oven big enough for a pizza will probably stay on the counter but where it will be mostly hidden by the tall cabinets.

 

My DH is very much of a "leave everything on the counter" person, so it will be a battle.  

 

I did accidentally apply the Zone idea to one area, and it has been wonderful.  When I redid the cabinets in my existing house, I added in a 15" upper cabinet that hadn't been there before.  Which left the problem, what do I out with a 15" wide cabinet?  I put all baking stuff in there that wasn't pans and it has been wonderful.  Sugar, yeast, baking soda, vanilla, flour sifter, chocolate chips, cocoa, etc are all right there!  Only flour had to put somewhere else because my oxo container is too big.  I also posted my favorite baking recipes on the inside of the door.  Before we married, DH promised to mow my lawn if I always had cookies in the freezer for him.  So, I've been a motivated baker.