How to Organize Your Cupboards in 3 easy steps

One of my favorite deisgn details in our home is our built-in shelving in our formal Living Room. The open shelving on the top is styled with pretty home decor pieces and the bottom has closed cupboards for storage. I added additional storage with 4 pretty linen boxes on the bottom row of the open shelves.

Since we moved into this home almost 4 years ago, I have used the built-in storage spaces to house my home decor and styling collection - things like candles, candle holders, planters and faux plants and flowers. I also had some overflow styling items in a closet in our basement. There was no order or organization happening in this area and it was becoming a little unruly. When I was searching for styling items it was hard to make sense of what I had or where things were. I finally dedicated some time to give my built-in cupboards some organization and I thought I would share my 3 step organizing process and how I used it to transform my built-in cupboards!

Step One:

Edit/Purge

The first step in any organization project is to take everything out and group it into piles: keep, garbage, donation, maybe. Have a garbage bag and donation box on hand to make this step easier. I just happened to have some boxes on hand from a recent Instacart Costco order and they were perfect to collect donations in.

costco box beside cupboards for donations

The" keep" and "maybe" piles can go onto the floor or a nearby surface, I was able to use my dining room table.

Dining Room Table used for the "keep" and "maybe" piles

I try and be ruthless during this step and get rid of items that I don't need or want anymore. It's so easy to accumulate clutter these days, and I am guilty of keeping more than I should. Having a box on hand to put donations into it right away is a good strategy, and then put it in your car and drop it off as soon as possible. The other sugestion I have to mange this purging and editing phase is to do this with a buddy! Having someone on hand to hold you accountable and keep you moving through the process is super helpful.

Step Two:

Organize & Contain

After completing step one, you will have hopefully paired down your items to just your "keep" pile. Look at the items you are keeping, and group them together in like categories. Think about whether you need storage containers such as baskets, bins, turntables. This will make sense for some items but not for others. For example I decided my candle collection (tapers, tealights, pillars) would best be grouped together inside a bin or basket. My hurricane candle holders were fine placed directly on a shelf.

Come up with a shopping list of storage items you need for your cupboards. Before heading out to the store, shop your home to see if you might already have anything on hand that could work for your project. In my case, I had some trays that worked really well to group my tealight holders together.

Another thing to do before heading out on a shopping trip? Take note of your shelves - how many do you have, what are the dimesnsions? Width, Depth, Height. I use the notes app on my phone for this so I have it with me when I go shopping.

When it's time to hit the stores, bring along a measuring tape! My favourite places to shop for storage accessories? Homesense, Canadian Tire, Superstore and of course, IKEA (the organizing mother ship).

I found these clear plastic bins while grocery shopping at Superstore:

I made a dedicated trip to Homesense for baskets or bins, I wasn't sure what I was going to find - the thrill of the hunt, am I right?

I always love a turn table style organizer (also called a lazy Susan) and I was drawn to this one with tall sides for only 19.99 at Homesense. I felt like it would be a great way to store my candles and because I had measured my shelves, I knew it would fit...add to cart! As you can see, it is perfect for my candle collection.

The other item I was happy to find at Homesense were these sets of gray plastic bins. I needed something to contain my faux florals and small greenery and these were perfect!

Step Three:

Put Away & Label

Once you have placed your items into like categories and bought storage containers where necessary, you are ready to start putting things back into the cupboards. In the case of my built-ins, I used the taller linen storage boxes to store vases and Christmas candles.

On one side, I put my extensive candle and candle holder collection all together. On the other side I put my planters, faux stems and plants together.

Labeling is not necessary, but for me, it helps to keep my organization systems in place and serve as a visual cue for what goes where. I just used my little label maker, nothing fancy.

I am so happy with this small transformation. Already this week I have needed to pull some items for styling and it was so great knowing exactly what I have and where it is! I used this little vessel (it used to be a candle!) with a faux air plant for a flat lay shot I was making to showcase my new gift certificates!

While grocery shopping this week, I couldn't resist some tulips and when I got home I knew exactly where the perfect vase was stored.

Having things organized saves time and money - you know what you have on hand (and what you might need to buy or replace) and you know where it is! Win Win!

So in review, I use this 3-step process anytime I tackle an organizing project: