{31 Days to a Functional Kitchen}: Day 1: The Heart of Our Home

I am so excited to share my first ever 31 Day series. Last month,  The Nester introduced her annual 31 Days series for 2011.  This year, she has invited back her friends but has also challenged other bloggers to join in the fun. Well, I am always up for a challenge, so I am in with my very own 31 Day series. Introducing...

Welcome to my 31 Day series...31 Days to a Functional Kitchen.  The kitchen is one of those rooms that always seems to need attention, especially when it comes to function, style and organization.  I look forward to sharing tips and ideas about how I have organized, cleaned, DIY'd and decorated my kitchen to make it more functional for the way that our family lives.

Each and every day throughout the month of October I will be sharing my tips, tricks and favorite finds to create a beautiful and functional kitchen. My goal is to inspire you to take a fresh look at what is arguably the most important gathering place in the home...especially ours!

Day 1: A Kitchen Tour - Zones

Welcome to our kitchen.  I love my kitchen and how it functions.  Is it perfect - NO - but we are getting there.  It, like everywhere else, is a work in progress that will continue to change as our family and lifestyle continues to change.  When we moved into our home, I immediately looked at the kitchen and determined some zones based on how the kitchen would be used and the placement of the appliances, sink, pantry, etc. Each section of cabinets serves a general function.  Throughout this series, I will share specifics about each area of our kitchen so to begin with, here is a quick tour.

Beverage/Entertainment Zone
The area between the refrigerator and the pantry has been designated as the beverage zone with a sub-function as the entertainment zone. In this area, I have cabinets for coffee, alcohol/bar, fancy glasses, pitchers, kids cups, etc. Additionally, I store trays and other entertainment items in this area.

Pantry
I am blessed to have a nice sized walk-in pantry inside my kitchen. I am an avid couponer and believes in having the essentials available at all times.  There are many times when this pantry doesn't seem to be big enough.  I am thankful for the storage that this space does allow for and continue to work on making it function better for us.

Baking and Storage Zone
The area to the left of the stove is where I store bowls, plastic storage containers and baking pans. Being near the pantry and stove makes this very convenient. I can pull items from the pantry to mix up a cake or pull things from the stove and place in a container for the fridge or freezer.

Dishes/Cookware Zone
I selected the upper cabinets near the dining area and across from the dishwasher to store our everyday dishes. Emptying the dishwasher is a breeze as I simply take them out, turn around and place them in the cabinet. The same is true for setting the table.  The lower cabinets below the dishes zone and just to the right of the stove is where we keep our pots and pans.

Small Appliance Zone
I am so happy that my kitchen is large enough that I can designate an area to store my small kitchen appliances such as my crock pot, mixers, ice cream maker, popcorn popper, waffle iron, etc. In my previous homes I have had to store these in the pantry or a cupboard/closet in another room. I find that I use them more frequently now that they are convenient.

Cleaning Zone
Every kitchen has one, an area where your sink and dishwasher (if you are fortunate enough to have one) are located.  The function in this area is critical to keeping the rest of your kitchen clean.  Adequate storage for cleaning supplies, counter space for both dirty and clean dishes and a sink/faucet that meets your needs.  This house has a large sink basin with a smaller side basin.  I was used to 2 equal sized basins so it took some getting used to but I have learned to love this new configuration.

What's missing?
I have no where to store my cookbooks. No where for my table linens. I have some ideas for these. More on that to come. Does the organization of your kitchen make sense? If you had a plan, would it be more functional? Do you have a zone that I have not mentioned?

TODAY'S TAKEAWAY...

Giving thought to how you use your kitchen.

Keeping like items together will help you have a more functional kitchen.  

Remove any items that are not essential in your daily living 

and store them somewhere else if space is tight.

Assignment:  Map out your kitchen into zones to maximize space 

and function for each area.