Making My Kitchen a More Efficient & Joyful Space 🍋
Plus 8 kitchen items I obsess over no matter the layout of my kitchen.
For fourteen years we’ve moved every 2-3 years which means I have lived in homes with a variety of kitchens.
My favorite kitchen actually had paint peeling off the cabinets and a refrigerator that I think was from the early 90s. New does not always equal joy. And it turns out it’s how many people I can fit into my kitchen that I love the best, not how much room there is for appliances.
Here are scenes from our kitchens over the years:
California, South Carolina, Florida
Washington DC, Missouri
Current: Maryland
(This is our current kitchen, we still have to get curtains for this house…installing new lights and making this a smart home was the higher priority … WHO NEEDS PRIVACY ANYWAY?! Jkjkjkj. But seriously I am waiting for the neighbors to ask me why I am talking to a camera in my kitchen of all hours of the day because I know they can see me.)
Anyway, as it comes to kitchens, we’ve seen it all:
✔️Barely any countertop space (so we we turned the dining room into an extended kitchen)
✔️Limited cabinets (so we used the linen closet as a place to store wine and drinks)
✔️No windows in the kitchen (so we replaced all the lights with daylight lights)
✔️No dishwasher (so I found the best dishwashing gloves out there)
No matter where we are I’ve realized there are some items I MUST have in our kitchen no matter the shape or size or condition so that it works for me.
I’d love to one day have a dream kitchen that I gut and completely renovate to my every need and whimsy but for right now, it’s just taken a mindset shift, a few creative ideas and a few simple kitchen items that have made every single one of my kitchens functional.
For me, I care about functionality but I also care a lot about finding joy in my kitchen. Sometimes I’ll buy something because it is insanely practical and something I’ll use on repeat. Sometimes I buy something because it will be helpful but it also brings me immense joy (like my straw drying wrack or my dish towel with oranges on it🥹).
Below are eight of my must haves!
Eight Must Have Kitchen Items
Stone Faucet Mat: This is new to me but in our current kitchen, every time I did the dishes there was so much water splashing up by the faucet and I was constantly wiping it down. Then I saw this stone drying mat and it IS A MUST FOR ME! The water lands on the stone and it dries within seconds. I love it. No more wiping up around the faucet. Do be sure to look at the specifications on the product page to see if you have the right faucet for this design.
Magnetic Wood Knife Stand: In every kitchen we have used a magnetic knife strip that hangs on our wall because we have had such limited counter space. Not in our current kitchen! Counter space abounds. Wall space is yet to be seen. SO I found this magnetic knife block to put on our island. It is so much prettier in person than I thought it would be and it is STURDY! It is also double sided so I have all my knives and kitchen sheers on this one block.
Roll Up Drying Rack: In our last kitchen we did not have a ton of counter top space so I found this roll up drying rack. It fits perfectly under the sink and when I need it for drying dishes I roll it out over my sink. It can also hold hot pots and pans right out of the oven or I place my colander with my freshly washed veggies on top while the veggies dry. Even though we have more counter space in this kitchen I still use this rack daily.
Straw Drying Rack: We put our straws on the top rack of our dishwasher and while I know they get clean they are still a little wet inside after the dishwasher finishes. I was laying them out on my drying rack to dry but really I needed something to stand them up on so the water could trickle down and out of the straw. You all a straw drying rack does exist 😅 I love this, it is compact and does just what I need it to!
Quick Dry Microfiber Dish Towel: If you are not using the Geometry brand microfiber dish towel, let me change that for you! These towels are made with recycled products and the designs are so fun! I found these at our local boutique shop (both in Baltimore and also in St. Louis) so be sure to check out your local store! These add such a fun pop of color to our kitchen and DRY LIKE A DREAM. I’ve thrown out all my other drying dish towels.
Dishwashing Gloves: As per mentioned the home we’ve lived in the longest (almost 4 years) did NOT have a dishwasher. So I needed to find dishwashing gloves that actually fit my hands and did not make my hands all sweaty after a lot dishwashing. Enter these gloves. They actually have sizes (the size small fits my hand perfectly) and they have a nice cloth inside which keeps your hand from getting wet or sticky. I’ve been using these for 5 years and will never look back.
Reusable Paper Towels: One of my besties sent me a reusable paper towel with other fun goodies for my birthday last year and I loved it so much I went and found more! I love these ones because they have so many fun designs. They are dishwasher safe, they quickly absorb spills and messes and they come with a cute little hook to hang them on!
Cedarwood + Fresh Greens Hand Lotion: Because I spend so much time in the kitchen and at the sink it is easy for my hands to get very dry. The dishwashing gloves help immensely with this but I also wanted some hand lotion at our sink. The scent of this is so fresh but also a little woodsy. The bottle is so pretty at our sink and it lasts FOREVER!
Orange Microfiber Dish Towel: If you want the exact microfiber towel I have in my kitchen you can get it here on the company’s website (or look at their other designs)!
Icon Juice Glasses: I’m going to post a video on Instagram later today showing how I use all these items and I know some people will ask about this glass that is featured. These glasses from Anthropologie are so fun and bring me so much joy. One big let down, they are not dishwasher safe 😭 But that’s why I have my dishwashing gloves 🧤
Bonus, I use these white magnetic hooks all over my kitchen to hang my gloves, dish towel and reusable paper towels!
Wait.... i NEEEDDDDDD that stone drying mat situation in my life. It is the bane of my existence wiping up that extra water that I apparently cannot control myself enough to not get all over that space. I'll always be partial to your DC kitchen as that's the kitchen I "met" you in! I admire the way you've gone with the flow in all the kitchens you've been in since and made them your own space!!! It inspires me to be flexible and embrace the kitchen I have in the moment :)
I am a recent convert to kitchen gloves, and I'm never looking back. Mine also have a cloth interior, and the inside is starting to develop a light odor. Is this something you've encountered? Any tips to deodorize?