Back in March, I wrote a post about keeping your kitchen clean. I mentioned in the post how reducing clutter in your kitchen helps tremendously, but I’ll be honest, sometimes clutter lurks in places you forget about, or sneaks onto your counters, and sometimes it shows up in the form of a gift from a well-meaning someone who brings it into your kitchen and leaves it there. Before you know it, the kitchen has been overrun by things that do nothing but take up space.
So, when I saw a post on Pinterest that begged me to take a look at one woman’s minimalist kitchen, I couldn’t help myself. What I saw made me sigh happy, clean counter, sighs. But, it also made me wonder…
Can a large family live without a lot of extra kitchen appliances, dishes, tools, and gadgets?
In other words…
Can a large family have a minimalist kitchen?
I will start off by telling you that kitchen gadgets are NOT my thing. They hold no appeal for me, so you won’t find a lot of that type of thing in my kitchen, minimalist or not. In fact, in nearly every area of my life, I tend toward the minimalist category. Decluttering is cheap therapy for me. I like to throw things away. But everyone knows a large family naturally accumulates more stuff than a smaller family. More people bringing in more things, not to mention outsiders who figure you need more stuff since there are so many of you, can easily overtake a large family kitchen.
I was determined to take the minimalist approach to the kitchen, and run with it – just to see how far I’d get. I can definitively say that you ABSOLUTELY CAN HAVE A MINIMALIST KITCHEN in a large family, but there are a couple of things you have to take into consideration.
1. Have the RIGHT SIZE of tool for the job. You will waste a ton of space if you are trying to accommodate a large family with 3 too-small pots, rather than 1 perfect-sized pot. Don’t hang onto items that don’t really fit your family. Upsize and declutter the too-small things.
2. Purge often. Because of the sheer number of people in a large family household, you have to be on your toes with sorting and getting rid of things that don’t truly belong in your home. If you receive something that is a better fit, get rid of the item it replaces. And don’t look back!
OK, let’s get started with the tour…
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This is the main wall of my kitchen. This is by far, the largest kitchen I have ever had; however, it has a few tricky spots I’ll point out as we go.
On the far left, you see a glimpse of an antique ice box that holds our teas and my Bosch mixer. While I use my Bosch often, I decided it was not often enough to warrant counter space. On top of the ice box is a glass pitcher, a flower arrangement my 10 year put together (she has a real knack for home decor), and a plate for fruit. These things are all decorative and functional.
Working our way to the right, you’ll see a counter space that has a basket for bread with a butter dish next to it. I could get a bread box, but that’s not something I’ve ever owned, so until I do, a basket works. I also hung my hot pads on a 3M removable hook next to the stove. (I LOVE these hooks!)
Above that counter space is my Baking Cupboard. I have had a designated Baking Cabinet/Cupboard for years. If you bake a lot, and you can spare the space, I highly recommend doing this. This is also where our often-used seasonings go, so they are quick to grab when cooking up meat and other dishes.
Below that counter, are casserole dishes, cookie sheets, and other baking dishes. Here is a list of exactly what I own:
- 1 9×13″ glass casserole
- 1 10×15″ glass casserole
- 1 9 1/2 x 6″ casserole – used mostly for bringing bread/sides to the table
- 1 oval 2 1/2 qt casserole with lid – used mainly for baking side dishes
- 2 large metal cookie sheets
- 1 large bar pan
- 1 large round stone
- 1 medium round stone
- 2 stackable cooling racks
- 1 large muffin tin
- 1 large mini-muffin tin – this is my daughter’s and not used often
- 1 bundt pan – not used often
- 2 donut pans – not used often
I could rid of the items we don’t use often, but for now, I like to have them on hand for the few times I do want to make something that calls for one of those pans.
Next, is the stove. I do not keep anything stored in the oven or in the drawer below (except the broiler pan that belongs with the stove…and never gets used). On top of the stove, I have a tea pot. This would not necessarily have to be there, but I like the way it makes the stove look all homey. 😉
Above the stove and microwave, is where I keep olive oil and olive oil spray, along with my knife sharpener.
The next counter space over has an upcycled utensil holder made by my friend Char at New Life Treasures. It holds a few wooden spoons, an assortment of spatulas, whisks, tongs, a ladle, and a couple of other utensils. I was brutal and got rid of any utensil that didn’t get used regularly. If there was something that didn’t get used often, but I still thought ought to be kept, I moved it to a container in a cupboard – more on that in another post. I will say this counter top space is also where clean dishes go to dry. We hand wash any dishes that don’t fit in the dishwasher as well as any dishes or knives that are not supposed to be put in a dishwasher. I use an XL Envision Dish Drying Mat to put the overflow dishes on to dry.
Above that counter is where our plates and bowls are kept. I have 3 small plastic bowls and 3 small plastic plates for my little guys. I have 6 more plastic bowls that work well for snacks and such, along with 8 pottery bowls that match the 8 dinner plates I have of October Franciscan pottery. I also keep 3 deep bowls in that cupboard that work well to mix small batches of things. Besides the 8 dinner plates, I also have 8 smaller Corelle-type plates. Typically, when the table is set, Mommy, Daddy, and the two oldest children get large plates, and everyone else uses the Corelle or plastic smaller plates. Sometimes, depending on the meal, we all use the smaller plates.
Excuse the horrible photo. I was taking it with my phone and there was no making it look pretty. You can see below the sink there is a cupboard and another right next to it. These hold cleaning supplies.
Next to those cupboards, you will see the only drawers in the kitchen. They are small and shallow. Very strange setup for such a large kitchen, but we’ve made it work. The top drawer is silverware and extra DrinkBands for guests. The next drawer contains kitchen towels. The 3rd drawer contains Bosch attachments, gadgets we actually use on a regular basis (pastry cutter, apple corer, beaters, etc). The bottom drawer used to hold plastic storage container lids, but I’ve decluttered enough of those that it currently stands empty! *gasp* It will probably end up housing my drying mats (yes, I have more than one) or some of the less used kitchen gadgets that are put away on the opposite side of the kitchen (another topic in Part 2).
The counter top above those drawers is the dirty dish holding area. That is where all the dirty dishes go until my Dishwasher Helper takes care of them after every meal.
And lastly, the cupboard above that counter is where glasses go. We have two glasses for each person, colored coded with their DrinkBand. There is also a place for sippy cups, and a box that holds plastic reusable cups that my husband takes with him on his daily commute. I use a box for these because inevitably, someone would open the cupboard door and out would fall all the plastic cups! I do have a few extra glasses for when company comes stored on the top shelf as well.
I will be sharing what is housed on the other side of the kitchen along with the island in a later post. Feel free to ask any questions and offer ideas for other readers to create a more minimalist kitchen of their own!
Posts in this Series:
Can a Large Family Have a Minimalist Kitchen (with Kitchen Tour Part 1)
Minimalist Kitchen Tour Part 2
Want to read more about Homemaking?
Check out my Homemaking Basics!
Teresa Youngblood says
I cleaned out my utensil drawer this week. I only got rid of 6 things, but now everything actually fits nicely in the drawer without cramming. This is really nosey, but I would love to see inside your cupboards. I especially struggle with the cup cupboard. We have too many sippy cups and water bottle type things.
Amy says
I’ll take some photos for the next post. 🙂
abbey says
To Theresa youngblood’s comment we use a shoe rack on the pantry door to hold all the water bottles/ sports bottles. So much easier this way!!
Melanie says
How do you manage with so few plates? Do you wash them after every meal? Use paper at some meals? What about when you have company?
Amy says
The dishwasher does run 3x a day on most days. For company, we almost always choose to use paper products. It creates less work to do in the kitchen afterward so there is more time to fellowship. 🙂
Julie Bersano says
Wow…and I thought I was a minimalist…(sigh) I have all of that plus several pie/tart pans, several round cake pans, several pitchers, plastic and glass, casserole dishes in assorted sizes I rarely use but they were wedding gifts so what to do with them?? at least 6 ceramic mixing bowls, yonana maker, coffee bean grinder, a blender/food chopper, cupcake carriers, deviled egg plates, and lots of lock and lock storage containers because I love good food storage….and I thought I was a minimalist because I don’t own a toaster but use the oven for toast instead and refuse to own a knife block or a flour-sugar canister set…help..I have too much but feel it is all being used at some point )-: Oh, and I—like you—- think it is therapeutic to throw things away and donate them..but you probably don’t believe it after hearing all of this..(sigh)….one question..just one….What do you think is proper to do with family heirlooms such as wine glasses (we do not drink) or pie plates/platters that are not your style…but were handed down to you? Thanks Amy! and as always, you are an inspiration to me!!! P.S. you would be proud to know that I do not have much on my counters except a cookie jar, coffee pot, mixer, bread box, and cookbooks.
Melanie says
If I can jump in here, Julie, I wonder if maybe you’re being too hard on yourself. Is your stuff causing you a problem? If you’re using it and you have room to store it, then it’s doing exactly what stuff is supposed to do–serving your family and/or community. Now if it’s causing you trouble in some way, then by all means problem solve, but there’s no reason to get rid of stuff just for the sake of having less stuff. The question is not really how much you have, but is what you have working for you or getting in your way. I realize you may actually have, say, a storage problem, that you didn’t exactly mention. But I thought it was worth throwing out the thought. 🙂
Julie Bersano says
(Light bulb moment) Thank you Melanie! I suppose I never thought of it that way. I was thinking…”get rid of stuff to have less stuff”…perhaps the wrong philosophy and maybe I am being too hard on myself. Funny how others can see this clearly when stepping outside of the situation 🙂 So, okay, I’ll step back and think which things I am using to serve my family and others and then I’ll know how to discriminate. Thank you so much!!
Amy says
Great thoughts, Melanie! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Amy says
Don’t forget – there’s a part 2! 😉 I still have an island and a few cupboards on the other side of the kitchen to share.
Heirlooms are difficult. I have a china hutch where I store things like that. Honestly, our wedding dishes are stored there. We NEVER use them. I will hand them down to one of the kids eventually, but I have considered getting rid of them. I’m not sure the kids are going to want anything they never saw in use. If you really feel the heirloom piece needs to be kept in the family, then either find a way to display them that is more your style or store them. You might even consider passing them onto another family member who might like them more than you do. Just some thoughts. 😉
Julie Bersano says
Thank you Amy! I forgot about “Part 2.” And good advice 🙂 Maybe my sister-in-law would like the small wine/juice glasses. I don’t have fancy wedding dishes…I picked out Corelle at Wal-Mart and after 21 years, they have all had it except for maybe one..guess you could say we used them to death! I always thought it would have been neat to have nice china but then again, I probably would have been like you and they would be in a hutch and never used because we go elsewhere for holidays and we do not entertain. Side note–I said a prayer for you last Wednesday that your glucose test would turn out good so maybe the next time around will be a charm 🙂 Blessings to you~Julie
Amy says
Thank you, Julie!
Dianne Johnson says
Hi Amy,
You mentioned in your post that you like to declutter and throw things away. I hate clutter but I have SUCH a hard time getting rid of things. I have 4 children so it doesn’t take long for things to get out of control if I am not careful. The absolute hardest things for me to get rid of are stuffed animals. They seem to multiply exponentially and take up so much space but I feel bad getting rid of them. Do you have this problem? Do you have any advice about how to get rid of the critters? How many should I keep? Ughhhh
Amy says
UGH – stuffed animals! I am pretty picky about what stuffed animals are even allowed to come into our home, but sometimes they slip by me. 😉 We have one basket for stuffed animals/dolls upstairs (that we go through often) and another tub downstairs that stores the others. We actually have several that were my husband’s, but I keep most of them in storage. He doesn’t want to get rid of them, so a tub is the best home for them. My best advice is get rid of them yourself until your children are old enough to help you pick through them. Always encourage them to only keep the ones that really have significance. Some children really understand this. Others need a lot of prodding (and understanding from us 😉 )
Cherriezzzzz says
I love the link to the minimalist kitchen! I’ve been “minimalzing” EVERYTHING in our new, large home… I teared up yesterday after installing a lock on our children’s toy closet, nothing to trip over when toys aren’t being used and I can control clean ups! Also did the homeschool area and master bedroom; more tears 🙂 It’s so freeing! I can better serve the Lord through ministering to my family this way. I have so much “more”, giving up so many things! Thanks for this post, the encouragement, and more inspiration for minimalizing!
Alice says
We are a large family too and it is my goal to keep a similar kitchen! We try to keep only items that serve at least two purposes, such as red and white melamine bowls we use for mixing, serving salads, and also for popcorn/chips. We recently changed our dish situation, we bought a box of small size dinner plates and of bowls from a restaurant supply store (48 of each!) as we were tired of always needing to hand wash plates to set the table. Should have enough to last our family for years to come!
Amy says
Great plan!
MICHELLE says
Very inspiring! I have a small kitchen with a total of 3 upper double cupboards 3 double lower cupboards. I need to get in there and purge again.
Clarissa West says
Love this, Amy! Thanks for sharing!
Nadine says
Amy, thank you so much for this post. It gives me hope. We have six children; oldest just turned 9. Our kitchen – well, our whole house – is nearly 100 years old, and therefore not a whole lot of counter or cabinet space. Very awkward design for today’s appliances. One thing I do like about it though is that the entry point is one standard doorway. It has been baby-gated for the last 8 years, and will be for at least 3-4 more. Part of this is because honestly, though my counter spaces be small, they are always a work in progress (i.e., lots of stuff lying around that I don’t want little ones to be able to grab). Your post gives me hope and motivation to fix that. However, I still can’t help but wonder, how on earth do you keep your kiddos’ hands off that knife block sitting on your island? (first pic in post)
Amy says
Nadine,
I had a friend ask me the same thing about the Berkey spout. I seriously don’t know! It’s just not something they mess with. The 4 and 5 year olds have their own “knives” from Pampered Chef, so I guess they don’t see a need to mess with them. The 20 month old does whatever they do. 😉
Reggie says
This is a bit late, but I have also always had a knife block sitting on the counter. With the exception of one or two forays while Mom was napping, it has always been left alone. I should add that both forays were instigated by my oldest and most independent and strong-willed child. I find that if a child grows up with certain items in plain sight, they are much less likely to be curious about them, thus less likely to attempt to play with them.
Christine W. says
Question for you: I run my dishwasher twice a day and it runs for a long time. When it runs, there are tons of dishes that accumulate. And I don’t want to handwash those. What do you do as you run your 3x per day?
Amy says
We run the dishwasher after every meal and it isn’t a long cycle. Sometime before the next meal, I call in a couple of kids to empty so my 10 year old doesn’t have to wait to get started after the next meal. She rinses, loads, and hand washes anything that won’t fit. We have a slight build up between meals, but not much. And everyone uses the same glasses all day long, which used to cause the biggest between meals build up.
Jenny K. says
Your post was so inspiring! I also do not like clutter. It is so freeing to go thru & purge room by room every now & then. My kitchen is small so I seem to purge there more often then the rest of the house. I use to complain I didn’t have enough cabinet space but then realized I just had too much stuff!
I have the Apple Franciscan pottery. The plates were passed down from my mother-in-law. I have been wanting to buy some new pieces to replace the ones we’ve broke. Thanks for the link for the replacement website.
I can’t wait to read part 2 of this series! God bless you & your family 🙂
Amy says
Oh how neat you have the Apple set!
shiloh says
I am definitely trying to declutter my kitchen. I’m thankful for a small house and purge often, but yes, what a struggle to declutter. Thanks for posting.