Cluttered Countertops No More — Repurpose This Ikea Find To Tame Messy Cutting Boards

Cutting boards are essential — in fact, you likely have a handful. Pros color-code cutting boards for meat, fish, veggies, and so on to avoid cross-contamination; it's a wise strategy for anyone to follow at home, too, which means multiple different boards. You might even have a collection of splurge-worthy wooden cutting boards, as they're not only durable, but double as rustic-chic platters for cheese and charcuterie. There's just one problem with a versatile cutting board collection: Where do you keep them all?

Even bigger kitchens can get cluttered with the sheer volume of things we need, and clutter makes it hard to cook, work, and unwind. That's why we're always open to fresh ideas to create more countertop space, and there happens to be a specific storage strategy that's perfect for all those boards. The Variera pot lid organizer is an affordable Ikea solution for countertop clutter. Is it made and labeled as a rack for pot and pan lids? Yes. Is that the extent of its ability? Absolutely not.

The rack is stainless steel and designed in an accordion style so you can adjust it to be shorter or longer. This means you can fit it into any sized space, and that you can keep its pegs closer together so cutting boards remain neatly standing. The pegs also ensure boards are still spaced far enough apart so they're not hitting and damaging one another. Boards remain in a neat line, easy for you to see and grab.

Reviewers agree that the Variera pot lid organizer has multiple functions that can come in handy. "We use it in the kitchen for organizing lids, serving trays, baking sheets, cutting boards," one customer said on Ikea's website. Another noted the storage solution's practicality: "I have ordered multiples of these now, both to save my kitchen from being a disordered mess (it's intended use) and the others to completely reorganize my clothes to make items stand on end. Endless uses!"

Another buyer notes that this rack is also ideal for effectively cleaning your cutting boards. "I bought this to hold my wood cutting boards upright while they dry (to prevent warping) and they can also be used to keep them upright when I oil my boards and let the oil soak in overnight. There's enough dividers to allow for air circulation while the boards dry." Because of the organizer's accordion design, you can pull it apart to give boards more space, then push it closed once they're totally dry.

Because this organizer is adjustable, you also have options on where to place it. Think about where you most often use cutting boards and identify space on the counter, in a cabinet, or even in a deeper drawer. Once you get used to the routine-improving appeal of this organizer, you'll want to stock up on more racks. They're also a smart way to store baking sheets, platters and plates, trays, boxed snacks or ingredients, mugs and travel mugs, cookbooks, and more. You can even hang it on the wall and use the pegs as hooks for aprons, oven mitts, and pots and pans.