Dwell On This: Ditch Your Extraneous Kitchen Gadgets

Real talk: your kitchen is a hot mess. That juicer you purchased five years ago during your short-lived cleansing diet that’s been sitting on top of your fridge for the last two years? You’re likely never going to use it again. Same for that sous vide contraption purchased with hopes of awakening your inner molecular gastronomist, but now only occupies the deepest, darkest recesses of your kitchen cupboard. We won’t even get started on that mug collection that seems to multiply like rabbits left unattended.

Of all the rooms in your home, the kitchen should be the most orderly, clean, and functional. But more often than not, the kitchen morphs into something akin to a closet, cluttered with items reflecting who we are—but also evidence of who we were, or who we wanted to become. And like our closets, we often collect more items in the kitchen without taking note of what we already own.

Paring down your kitchen requires only the simplest system of categorization: Keep anything you use daily, along with any appliance you use seasonally. Say farewell to everything else, especially appliances greeted with "Oh, I forgot I still owned this," anything coated in dust, or anything most aptly described as a "gadget." Ridding yourself of nonessentials will leave your kitchen looking renewed without a cent spent, leaving it easier to clean and reclaiming counter and cabinet space in the process.

Think of neglected kitchen appliances like an ex: Yes, at one time you might have had something special, but over time the magic fizzled, and you stopped calling. Donate, resell, or best yet, pass on that hardly used waffle maker or yogurt making machine to a friend and hope their relationship proves more lasting.

Illustration by Sophia Yeshi

Related Reading: Dwell On This: It’s Time to Rearrange Your Plants