This Is Martha Stewart's Ideal Way To Organize A Kitchen

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The way you organize your kitchen plays a huge role in how easy it is to use and how much you enjoy spending time there. Martha Stewart, the undisputed original Queen of Lifestyle Influencing, is always a wealth of knowledge in home decor, cooking, and entertaining. She has regularly blessed us with information ranging from the benefits of splurging on a quality oven to how to make an onion sandwich. And in a 2020 interview with Frederic magazine, she dropped another life-changing nugget of design inspiration, her secrets for the best ways to organize a kitchen. According to Stewart, the most important things to consider for optimal kitchen organization are creating open spaces, setting up distinct work areas, and focusing on accessibility and function over all else. 

One of the best kitchen organization hacks Stewart recommended is to create different zones to make the best use of kitchen space. As she said in her Frederic interview, "All my kitchens have the same basic design — I call it the subway kitchen or the railroad kitchen. The workspace is divided with an island, there is a wall of stoves, a washup area and then a seating area." You can definitely see her techniques in action when you look at photos of her 1970s kitchen, which seamlessly blends an earthy, laid-back vibe with highly functional design. Here are some other great tips she gave us in her interview.

In order to achieve optimal kitchen organization, Stewart says in her interview with Frederic, "First of all, take as much space as you can from the rest of the house. Space is important, no matter what." When you find a way to free up space in your kitchen by borrowing it from other areas of your home, you create a more functional workspace and more harmonious flow. One of the best ways to do this is to store large or rarely used kitchen appliances in your dining room or a closet or pantry near the kitchen so that you open up countertop space and cabinet space. You can also store seasonal kitchen items like holiday dish sets in your garage or shed. 

Even a small kitchen can appear more spacious and comfortable when you use the right organizational hacks and space-saving kitchen design techniques. In fact, among Stewart's 13 best tips for organizing your kitchen, we rank having a clean countertop and making good use of vertical space high on the list. Once you free up valuable space, you can use it to accomplish Stewart's next tip: Dividing your kitchen into task-specific zones. 

Rather than filling your kitchen with items you rarely use or unnecessary decor, Stewart recommends focusing on accessibility and functionality. Creating zones for different kitchen activities will help you tailor each area to its specific purpose and make sure that everything is in its rightful place. Zones are used in many commercial kitchens, where efficiency and organization are paramount. One of the best ways to do this is to really pare down the items stored on countertops and open shelving so that you have all of the bare necessities at an arm's reach. Next, create dedicated areas for the kitchen tools and gadgets you'll use most often in each zone. For instance, Stewart recommends organizing your rolling pins and wooden kitchen tools together in one place. And if you want to keep a kitchen drawer dedicated just to chocolate, she certainly isn't going to judge.

Another great tip that Stewart offers in her interview is to use a ceiling-mounted pot rack, like this one from KES, so that you always know where your pots are and can grab them easily. Hanging your pots, rather than stacking and storing them, will protect them from damage and make it easier to find the exact one you need when you're in the middle of cooking.