0:00

Any suggestions in regards to bulk

0:02

purchasing both by I

0:04

mean, look, I don't personally

0:07

shop at Costco, because we

0:09

don't go through things as much and as

0:11

quickly as I would think. And so if

0:13

you are going to go to Costco, it's

0:16

a mentality of you are going to go

0:18

to Costco, but you have to look at

0:20

it and say how often are we actually

0:23

going through that item? You know, if it's

0:25

toilet paper versus strawberries, and you're not throwing

0:27

away the strawberries, okay, great. And you're having

0:29

all this toilet paper that you actually go

0:31

through because there's five or six people in the

0:33

house, look at the items you're

0:35

actually going and purchasing at Costco. And

0:38

then look at how quickly you are

0:40

using those things up. I would hate for people

0:42

to throw away the huge strawberries because they don't

0:44

actually they go bad too quickly because you're buying

0:46

so many of them and you don't go through

0:48

them. So if you are going

0:50

to buy in bulk, really be conscious about

0:52

number one, the space that you have and

0:54

obviously how quickly you are going through those

0:56

items. Well,

1:08

Rachel, thank you for joining me again on the

1:10

Minimalist Moms podcast. I am so excited to be

1:13

back. I'm glad to have you back. I always

1:15

come back to you because I think you're a

1:17

wealth of information. And today you're going to help

1:19

us as we declutter the pantry

1:21

slash kitchen that space. So why don't

1:23

you go ahead and reintroduce yourself and

1:25

then we'll get started. Okay,

1:28

great. So I'm Rachel Rosenthal. I'm an

1:30

organizing expert. I've been in business for

1:32

about 15 years now. So while I

1:35

own a professional organizing firm, we're based in

1:37

the Washington DC area. I work everywhere though,

1:39

we do travel and just work with brands

1:41

as well and give a lot of speeches

1:44

but just talk about organization and how there

1:46

are so many benefits to your home, your

1:48

family life and I feel like it is

1:50

a way of life that everyone should be

1:52

leading. Yeah, absolutely. And

1:55

I'm sure that you mentioned this back

1:57

on that first episode. But were you

1:59

someone that was always into

2:01

organization and cared about decluttering your home or

2:03

was this something that you kind of stumbled

2:05

upon? Great question. So I was

2:07

in law school, I've always been type A

2:09

and so I would say I always have

2:12

these tendencies but I didn't know what organization

2:14

was back then many years ago and so

2:16

when I started I didn't

2:18

really understand the concept necessarily. I just knew

2:20

that this is how I lived and I

2:22

did it for myself and then once it

2:24

exploded kind of this is how you

2:26

declutter this. Then it came to be I'm like oh actually

2:28

that's what I'm doing every day every day so I kind

2:32

of just morphed from there.

2:34

I've always been like

2:36

this. What do your husband and

2:38

your kids think about this? You

2:41

know it's a way of life for all of

2:43

us now because they have obviously lived with me

2:45

all of their life and so they see the

2:48

benefits and then they like go over to other

2:50

people's homes. I'm talking about my children who are

2:52

seen identical twin girls and

2:54

they'll go over and they'll say oh you know

2:56

I feel like it's not functioning as well at

2:58

my friend's house or you know when people come

3:00

over to our house they'll see how our pantry

3:02

is organized and they can get the snacks and

3:04

it's easy and we don't need you you know

3:06

to be there. So I think they see the

3:08

benefits. It's not again it's a way of life

3:11

for us now so they might

3:13

say something different but I think that's a good thing

3:15

right now. I'm glad to use that

3:18

pantry example because that's a good segue into

3:20

our conversation. I think for

3:22

so many people we are

3:24

mostly in our kitchen. I mean at least for

3:26

me I feel like the majority of my life

3:28

is spent in our home is in

3:31

the kitchen. We just kind of like to

3:33

congregate there. You're cooking. I will work from

3:35

the counter. So it's a space that needs

3:37

to be efficient and functional for everyone involved

3:40

and I think for kids sometimes

3:42

they can come in especially if they're little

3:44

and mess it all up. So I want

3:47

to get your tips on that question in

3:49

general but let's get a starting point

3:51

here. What is it like if I'm standing in my

3:53

kitchen and I want to start decluttering? What do I

3:55

do? Okay so I'm gonna scare

3:57

people when I say you have to... to

4:00

pull everything up. But I

4:02

think that is the best starting point and

4:04

the only starting point because at that point

4:06

you can actually see what you have. There

4:08

are a lot of times, and I'm in

4:10

agreement with you, I think the kitchen is

4:12

actually the most important room in your home

4:14

to be, getting it organized and functional because

4:16

you are in it so much, you know,

4:18

snack every day, you congregate there, do homework

4:20

at the kitchen table, whatever it is. And

4:22

so being able to declutter first, take everything

4:24

out. There's things in the pantry that are,

4:26

you know, not visible to

4:28

the naked eye or there's underneath in

4:30

a bin that got stuck in the

4:32

back of that lazy Susan, everything needs

4:34

to come out. And when you take

4:36

everything out, I want people to categorize

4:38

it by type. So that might be

4:40

dinner items, baking items, snack items. And

4:42

you'll see actually how much you have

4:44

had. And then you're gonna look at

4:46

expiration dates because a lot of these

4:48

things will have expiration dates. And I

4:50

think people are usually surprised to

4:53

see how long they've held onto things.

4:55

But foods do have expiration dates, even

4:57

canned goods. And so we've pulled things out of,

4:59

you know, people's pantries that are 15 years old and

5:01

they're like, oh, but can I still use it and

5:04

all of that. So take everything out and

5:07

categorize it. And then you're gonna get a

5:09

bigger picture on what things need to go,

5:12

whether they're a pass or expiration date, what things

5:14

you actually use, right? So you might've been as

5:16

a family on a spaghetti kick for several

5:19

months, but you haven't used it in a

5:21

year. And so that could be donated, you

5:23

know, to a food pantry. So really look

5:25

at the stuff that you have, categorize it

5:27

and make some choices on what actually should

5:30

stay and what actually should go. So

5:33

in communal spaces, my

5:36

belief is that I think I used to

5:38

just create systems that would work best for

5:40

me, but in those communal spaces, especially

5:43

if we have multiple kids in our home, we

5:45

need to have systems that work for everyone. So

5:48

what have you noticed, I guess your girls are 16,

5:50

so they might be a little bit more helpful,

5:52

but what are some of your recommendations for people

5:54

with young kids? How are we gonna actually go

5:56

through and organize? So I would

5:59

think for young kids, kids I always set parents

6:01

expectations because you are not and there is

6:04

a difference between being neat and being organized.

6:06

So in your home you know with little

6:08

kids especially it's not always going to be

6:10

neat. Things aren't always going to be lined

6:12

up in order. All the snack bars aren't

6:14

going to be piled perfectly. That's just unrealistic.

6:16

I also consider that neat. However it can

6:18

be organized. So if the you know bars

6:20

are out for your kids it can all

6:23

be in one bin. It might look messy

6:25

but they're organized in one bin. So when

6:27

you're talking about organizing with little kids or

6:29

kids and even at

6:31

16 again we're in a different spot

6:33

than a four-year-old but I really recommend

6:35

putting things at their level. Okay so

6:37

if you want your kids to be more

6:40

helpful in the kitchen or learning these tasks

6:42

like setting a table for example maybe

6:44

put the plastic up down low

6:46

or their plates and silverware down low in the

6:48

drawer that they can actually reach it and then

6:51

you're going to empower them to be able to

6:53

set the table because they can actually reach what

6:55

they need to get. And so there you

6:57

tend to know that the examples of things are not up where

6:59

we as an adults would have it

7:02

in a cabinet or something else that they can't reach but if it's

7:04

a task or something that you want them

7:06

to be able to reach it's in a lower cabinet.

7:08

It's not

7:10

organized you know perfectly and pretty but it's organized

7:12

in one place that

7:15

they can find it. Same thing goes with snacks. We really

7:17

want to empower I think as a mom our kids to

7:19

be able to go and reach for something or to pop

7:21

their things

7:23

that you want them to have access to.

7:25

It might not be the candy or something

7:27

in a glass jar or a baking thing

7:30

that you're not going to use very often.

7:32

Make sure that that is in

7:34

their sight line they're able to reach it. It's

7:36

not a whole big production for them to be

7:39

able to reach it and it's easy for them

7:41

to see. So if you want them to be

7:43

packing you know XYZ a granola bar a cheese

7:45

stick or whatever make those things accessible and organize

7:47

those in a way that it's easy to come

7:50

and reach in and get. Absolutely.

7:53

I'm curious to know I guess

7:55

a little bit more about your kitchen

7:57

and your pantry. We just moved and

8:00

I feel like in the pantry,

8:02

we don't have a huge pantry I should say.

8:05

So some of the cabinets I'm using for dry

8:07

food storage, but I don't know if there's again

8:09

a most efficient way to do this or really

8:11

if it just comes back to whatever works best

8:13

for you is where you should place your items.

8:15

What does it look like for you? So

8:18

I'm a big fan of decanting and a lot

8:20

of people will say, oh, but it takes time

8:22

to decant and all of them. I think it

8:24

takes five seconds to decant. You have the container.

8:26

I've had my containers for years. It's

8:29

very sweet. And then for me, it saves

8:31

me so much time and everyone else in

8:33

my family because they can see, okay, that's

8:35

the sugar. That's the, you know, whatever else

8:37

flour because there's a label on it and

8:39

I know it and the expiration dates are

8:41

underneath or written on the back in Sharpie

8:44

that could be a race. But

8:46

it is something that it's for

8:48

me and my pantry out of sight out of

8:50

mind. So if I don't see it or someone

8:53

doesn't see it, it doesn't get used as often.

8:55

It also helps when I'm making my grocery list.

8:57

I can see, okay, the

8:59

bag is, I'm not having to go

9:01

through the bag or go through the box of

9:03

granola bars. I can see I have two left.

9:05

I have a four glove, then knuckles on my

9:08

grocery list. And so I'm not wasting a lot

9:10

of time on that respect and I'm not wasting

9:12

money. When I get to the grocery store, I'm

9:14

like, oh wait, how many bars we have? Because

9:16

if you can't see inside of a box or

9:18

a bag of good dry goods, you are not

9:20

able to then see if you actually need to

9:22

put it on your list. And so I feel

9:24

like people always overbuy. Then they get home and

9:26

they're like, oh, you know what? Actually, I didn't

9:28

look in the box. We actually have five left.

9:30

I didn't really need to buy it. I

9:33

feel like there's a lot of food

9:35

waste that goes on in most people's

9:37

homes because we're overbuying because we

9:39

don't actually see what we have. And because there's

9:41

not a system for sort of this refill and

9:43

when you go to the grocery store, what's the

9:46

system to decant and get it back into the

9:48

pantry or the fridge? Okay,

9:50

so that's a good point. I think that

9:52

decanting is great. It also looks more aesthetically

9:54

pleasing. I have a few things that I

9:57

have decanted in my home. That

9:59

said... sometimes people will go

10:01

out and they have the best of intentions to again

10:04

make everything look aesthetically pleasing

10:07

or be more cohesive

10:09

but then they over buy and they

10:11

don't actually need that much and they're

10:13

storing too much and so what's your

10:15

advice with that? You know I think

10:17

a lot of people want and have

10:20

their panties look like it's on Instagram

10:22

or in Marcus Stewart like whatever the

10:24

place is but I will tell someone

10:26

that's not realistic right? Not everyone has

10:29

things lined up in jars and the

10:31

spices are perfectly decant it's

10:33

just not realistic so do for you what

10:35

is going to work for your family. If

10:38

you want something aesthetically pleasing and all the

10:40

same jars go out and buy the same

10:42

jars but before you do that measure your

10:44

space and actually know what you're

10:46

going to buy for because all the time I

10:49

see people going up and down the

10:51

line you know the eyes of the containers or

10:53

a target whatever is and just throwing bins in

10:55

because they think oh well that's what I'm supposed

10:57

to be using but not actually knowing what they're

10:59

supposed to store and you have

11:01

to first declutter before you go and

11:03

buy the bins because if you skip

11:05

that step you are absolutely going

11:08

to be holding on to things that you

11:10

don't need don't use no longer or you

11:12

know are part of your lifestyle so I

11:14

see a lot of people missing

11:16

that step and just going and wanting to buy

11:18

a pretty bin and put it in but if

11:20

you don't declutter you're just going

11:22

to be holding on to stuff you actually probably don't need. Yeah

11:25

I think especially for people

11:28

that are not necessarily they're not chefs

11:31

and we're holding on to like all

11:33

these spices that are just obscure for

11:35

one recipe I kind of tend to

11:37

stay away from those things or

11:40

if they find a certain recipe with several like

11:42

with one random ingredient I'll find several meals to

11:44

make around that ingredient just to get rid of

11:46

it but I think we hold on to these

11:48

things and then they end up expiring

11:50

so we're still holding on to them because

11:52

we spent money on them so I think

11:55

for someone that is into cooking maybe

11:58

you consider that when no one what

12:00

to declutter or what to buy in the future? 100% and

12:02

if you're making like the

12:05

gingerbread cookie recipe once a year, is there

12:07

another way so that you don't have to

12:09

buy the whole thing of what cinnamon and

12:11

if you don't use cinnamon you know throughout

12:13

the whole year it's not worth buying the

12:15

cinnamon because then it's gonna be like you

12:17

said sitting in there taking a physical space

12:20

then take the emotional space which like oh I

12:22

paid X Y & Z for that and then

12:24

it gets to the next Christmas and it's already

12:26

expired. So you really have

12:28

to think about how you are functioning,

12:30

what you are using you know for

12:32

daily snacks and okay your child tried

12:35

you know these chips this month

12:37

they hated them, no one's gonna eat them,

12:39

let go of them, give them to a

12:41

friend whatever it is let

12:43

it go and then just move on because

12:46

again it's going to be taking up so

12:48

much more physical space and your emotional space

12:50

thinking about oh you know my little

12:52

child didn't love these chips and I paid

12:54

one for them because I went to Costco

12:57

it's time to move on because your your

12:59

mental energy is spent elsewhere or should be

13:01

spent elsewhere and the physical space needs to

13:03

be going towards things you're actually using on

13:06

an everyday basis. Yeah

13:08

I'm glad you mentioned Costco

13:10

any suggestions in regards to

13:13

purchasing both sides? I

13:15

mean look I don't personally shop

13:17

at Costco because we don't go through

13:19

things as much and as quickly as

13:21

I would think and so if you

13:23

are going to go to Costco it's

13:26

a it's a mentality of you are going to

13:28

go to Costco but you have to

13:30

look at it and say how often are

13:32

we actually going through that item you know

13:34

if it's toilet paper versus strawberries and you're

13:36

not throwing away the strawberries okay great and

13:38

you're you know having all this toilet paper

13:40

that you actually go through because there's you

13:42

know five or six people in the house

13:45

look at the items you're actually going

13:47

and purchasing at Costco and then

13:49

look at how quickly you are using those things

13:51

up. I would hate for people to throw away

13:53

the huge strawberries because they don't actually they go

13:55

bad too quickly because you're buying so many of

13:57

them and you don't go through them. If

14:00

you are going to buy in bulk really

14:02

be conscious about number one the spaces you

14:04

have and obviously How quickly you

14:07

are going through those items? Yeah, absolutely I

14:09

think another thing that I've noticed in regards

14:11

to Costco. I love Costco. We go probably

14:13

twice a month We do have three

14:15

kids two little boys a husband. I like to eat.

14:17

We go to Costco. We it's worth it. However There

14:20

are a lot of influencers these days doing

14:22

Costco hauls or this is what I found

14:25

at Costco That's really healthy and it's you

14:27

guys And it's like we're

14:29

I don't know It's kind of

14:31

like what you actually eat because then we'll end up

14:33

spending money on these things and wasting money Like

14:36

just because I buy it doesn't mean that

14:38

you need to buy it. That's correct I

14:40

mean look I think that's with any product

14:42

right for your kitchen for your pantry any

14:45

Appliance all that there are influencers that are going

14:47

to try to sway you to go by and

14:49

it might work for them and their Family, but

14:51

it might not work for you either. And so

14:53

again before you're just doing this. I'm gonna put

14:55

it on my list I'm gonna try it because

14:57

XY and he told me to Really

15:00

think about it because you are spending money no

15:02

matter what and then you're gonna get home And

15:04

if it's that it's if you already bought it

15:06

and it doesn't fit your lifestyle You're

15:09

gonna feel shame about buying it and and

15:11

feeling bad about spending money on it so

15:13

really be conscious before you're just throwing it

15:15

inside of your cart and I Think

15:18

it's harder to do when you have to physically

15:20

go out to a store and put it in

15:22

your cart Versus all the stuff that people are

15:24

buying online because I clean I've seen It's

15:27

like chopper that people have been using for

15:29

their kitchen and you know, people will

15:31

just automatically add to cart on Amazon

15:33

so again, it's just Need

15:36

to want to follow and buy and I'm sure people

15:38

are you know purchasing things Hopefully

15:40

that will be helpful, but it's the quick

15:42

purchase that you then get 12 and it's

15:44

not useful It's either return it or figure

15:47

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15:49

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to this, but if we're

18:59

talking specifically about, well, really any space, so talking

19:01

about the kitchen and the pantry, we

19:03

want to stop the accumulation before it hits our

19:05

door. And so I will always write a list

19:07

even for Costco and my kids get so upset

19:10

because they try those samples and they're like, but

19:12

we want that. And I'm like, no, if we

19:14

really want it next time, we sit and think

19:16

on it, maybe next time, but oftentimes it's just

19:18

a fleeting yumminess. And it's like, no, we don't

19:20

need to spend another $10 because that adds up.

19:23

And then you have $500. And

19:26

I think you're very conscious of it. I would

19:28

say a lot of people are not. And it

19:30

is, and look, I get it. You're

19:33

walking through Costco and they're giving up pre-samples and your

19:35

kids are there and you're like, you know, getting pulled

19:37

on, Hey, can't we get this? And you're like, okay,

19:39

I'll just pass by them. And we'll just get that,

19:41

you know, whatever it is. And then

19:43

we'll try it. And then you get pulled in after

19:45

a few days, they don't like it. So that doesn't

19:48

happen. I know I want people to be realistic.

19:50

It happens and it's going to happen

19:54

continuously. But the more conscious

19:56

we are about it purchasing and before it

19:58

gets into our home, the better. And

20:00

I have seen a lot because of just

20:02

Amazon delivers within you know 24

20:04

hours a lot of places it like push

20:06

send it comes in you don't use it

20:08

and it sits in your kitchen Where you

20:10

could have returned it and

20:12

then you pass the return window so just

20:15

being conscious of the things that we are

20:17

bringing in because so much comes in and

20:20

More than we most of us can keep

20:22

up with and so that's why if there

20:24

is an initial declutter and

20:26

then a constant Just this is how we upkeep. This

20:28

is how we organize our space and you won't have

20:30

to go back and do this like Five

20:33

hour long, you know decluttering of your home because you

20:35

were just setting up and then maintaining it. Mm-hmm

20:38

I think one of the hardest things for

20:40

me that I probably still struggle with even

20:42

trying to be more minimalist is Just

20:45

because I like it doesn't mean I have

20:47

to have it and that I'll

20:49

sit on things for a little bit longer Typically if

20:51

I really want something but there's a lot of things

20:53

I really like and might want but it doesn't mean

20:55

I need it Or it doesn't mean I need to

20:57

spend the money on it right now And

20:59

I think that is one of the toughest things and

21:02

not gonna be applied to those samples Wow, that was

21:04

really good But do I actually need it right now,

21:06

especially if you're trying to stick to a budget especially

21:08

a food budget right now It's the cost of food

21:10

right? I just must say that yeah I mean, I

21:13

think food especially it's a little I feel like people

21:15

have a different take on food versus like Church

21:18

or something else and food is like, oh, well,

21:20

it's food I eat it every day and we

21:22

need to survive But

21:25

the cost of food has gone up

21:27

obviously and Food

21:29

waste is a real thing I mean, it's you

21:31

know if you think about how much you let

21:33

go of because things have spoiled or Expired

21:35

and things like that So again being conscious

21:37

of before it's coming in I think really

21:39

is going to make a huge difference and

21:42

how it's organized in Your home because then

21:44

you see how quickly you're going through it

21:46

And if people are really liking it and

21:48

enjoying it and if it is a staple

21:50

going through it And if people are really

21:52

liking it and enjoying it and if it

21:54

is a staple versus not and we use

21:56

it You know again only on holidays. That's

21:59

all going to make a difference whether you see

22:01

it and use it and how it's organized

22:03

in your home. But food is hard. I

22:07

want to talk just more a little bit

22:10

about specific challenges that you've seen with your

22:12

clients. But actually, as we're recording this, I

22:14

put on a message to my followers and

22:16

I asked if anyone had specific challenges that

22:19

they were encountering in their own life. And

22:21

Marvelous Mrs. Melinda said, large lower cabinet, lazy

22:23

Susan's, and how to organize when they're so

22:25

awkwardly shaped. Those are, my parents had

22:27

one of those growing up. I mean, they

22:30

are everywhere and they're not my favorite. Although I

22:32

know a lot of kitchen designers put them in

22:34

because they think it helps with the space, but

22:36

they're just so awkward to put things on once

22:38

they're in that sort of half

22:41

view or that U shape. So it's very

22:43

hard. And so what I would say for

22:45

a lazy Susan is if you can get

22:47

a bin that maybe fits on the lazy

22:49

Susan, again, it's not going to be perfect

22:51

because most bids are like rectangle or square

22:53

or even a circle and categorize what goes

22:55

on there and put things on there that

22:57

you're not using all the time because those

22:59

things are very hard to get into. And

23:02

so it's annoying to put your

23:04

arm back there or move the lazy Susan out.

23:06

So make sure you're putting things on there that

23:08

are categorized that you know that go back there.

23:11

Maybe you're not a huge baker.

23:13

So then maybe it's your baking

23:15

supplies, making utensils in one layer

23:17

of that, but it's stuff that

23:19

you're not using all the time

23:21

if possible. Right? And it's

23:24

your only space. That's a different story. But

23:26

making sure those things are categorized on there.

23:28

You're not just throwing it back there because

23:30

things on a lazy Susan that are very

23:32

deep usually like go to die in

23:35

the back there and people can't see it and you

23:37

have to really make an effort to pull it off.

23:40

Yeah. That's what I was thinking. Like it's out of

23:42

sight, out of mind. And if you're doing a bunch

23:44

of dry or canned goods on there, it's just like,

23:46

I forgot that I had this squash in a can

23:49

and then right later. So, okay, cool.

23:52

Well, is there anything else that you have experienced

23:54

with your clients that's a really big pain point

23:56

in the kitchen? I feel like we've hit a

23:58

few. Yeah. Tupperware seems

24:00

to be a big one whether it's glass

24:02

or BPA free Tupperware, I feel like people

24:04

always ask me, should I put the lids

24:06

together? I feel like I take things out

24:08

of the dishwasher and someone eats it somehow

24:10

or we can't figure it out because people

24:12

are using it every day for school lunches

24:14

or to take stuff to work. And

24:17

so I'm a big proponent of making

24:19

sure that it's nesting because I want

24:21

people to have as much room as

24:23

possible. And when you put a pack

24:25

on top of a glass dish or

24:27

a regular Tupperware, you then lose that

24:30

space and so you can't actually nest

24:32

it inside. So I'm a big proponent

24:34

of nesting the actual bottoms altogether or

24:37

in a few different piles and then putting the

24:39

tops together. And then when you need to put

24:41

a top on it, grabbing the top. Having

24:43

a drawer divider depending on what the drawer

24:45

looks like where you're storing it is also

24:47

a huge plus because it can

24:50

actually keep things up. It's like a bookend basically

24:52

and it gives you that structure on

24:54

either side so that the tops aren't falling

24:56

over. They make many things that you actually

24:58

put in your drawer that the tops can

25:00

go vertically versus horizontally. So I'm

25:02

a proponent of nesting and not putting

25:04

the tops onto each thing.

25:06

But going through your Tupperware and your

25:08

glass containers and making sure that there's

25:11

actually a top that matches because same

25:13

thing with water bottles. That seems to be a big

25:15

thing for people. I think

25:17

15 million water bottles. Again, how often have

25:19

you used that water bottle? I know people

25:22

have to have, my kids

25:24

do sports so it's like we go through two

25:26

water bottles for each of them a day but

25:28

making sure, okay, this is how many water bottles

25:30

we're normally using. We don't need 20

25:32

on hand. We put them in the dishwasher, whatever

25:35

it is. But water bottles need a section

25:37

and a way to actually function so that

25:39

your kids can use them and you're

25:41

not holding onto too many. Yes,

25:43

absolutely. Oh, what do you do

25:45

with the items that you purge? So oftentimes

25:47

I feel like dishware I'll take to the

25:49

thrift store but expired

25:52

goods, I don't really know. It

25:54

feels so hard to send things off into the

25:57

trash. We have a contest now. good

26:00

if you can compost it a lot of

26:02

these things can't be composted and so and

26:04

they're fired and so a lot of food

26:06

banks will not take expired goods and you

26:08

have to ask because some will and some

26:10

will say okay well if it's past two

26:12

years we'll still take it it's in a

26:15

can versus something that might be like I

26:17

don't know a chip or macaroni that's in

26:19

a thing so first go to your food

26:21

bank and see if that's something that you

26:23

can and then if it is completely expired

26:25

and you sort of outweighs to that I

26:27

think trash is where it goes because it's

26:29

just not safe anymore you know according to

26:31

what these food safety places at

26:34

that point but if you can either donate to

26:36

a food bank or that seems too hard I

26:38

feel like a lot of people will say oh

26:41

well I don't want to go there and that's such a trip

26:43

and whatever but I don't want it in my house and then

26:45

it just kind of ends up sitting in a bag or a

26:47

box in their house if anyone

26:49

in your neighborhood wants it put it on your

26:51

neighborhood listserv you might not be using that flower

26:53

and you don't want to make a trip to

26:55

you know a food bank but maybe your neighbor

26:57

needs flower just like we put all of our

26:59

goods on it there's no reason not to put

27:01

your you know food as well. Yeah

27:04

that's a great idea. I wanted to

27:06

know again specifically for your life what is

27:08

one of the biggest benefits you've seen and

27:10

having a kitchen that is efficient and the

27:12

systems just work for everyone. So there's

27:14

a few. One I feel like I have definitely

27:17

saved money and time so money at the grocery

27:19

store because I'm not over buying I'm not buying

27:21

things that we already have or that have expired

27:23

and we're going through things a lot quicker

27:26

and I can see that. Two just

27:28

time I don't want I don't like to

27:30

waste time putting my grocery list together or

27:33

what are we eating this way so the

27:35

way things are categorized is like by food

27:37

or by dinner and breakfast and whatever so

27:39

it makes it more efficient when we're thinking

27:41

about our time and makes it more efficient

27:43

when it comes time to meal time because

27:46

you know we're all busy in our house

27:48

work school sports everything like that so when

27:50

it comes for meals I can actually see

27:52

what I have and meal prep is just

27:54

so much easier for us and then you

27:57

know having my kids involved in whether

27:59

it's packing their lunch or getting a snack. That

28:02

just for me is empowering them to learn

28:04

how to live when they leave the

28:06

nest type of thing and have them

28:08

contribute to, you know, making the dinner

28:10

or putting something, a dish on the

28:12

table. Absolutely.

28:16

Well, Rachel, this was so helpful. Where

28:18

can listeners connect with you if they

28:20

want more advice from you online? Great.

28:23

So they can find me on

28:25

Instagram at Rachel Organizes, or they

28:27

can come to my website, which

28:29

is rachelrosenthal.co. I

28:31

send out a newsletter with tips and tricks. I

28:33

actually think there's a kitchen organization thing that you

28:35

first get. So make sure to sign up for

28:37

my newsletter there. And those are the two

28:40

places. So Instagram and my website. Okay.

28:42

Well, I usually ask every guest two

28:45

questions, but instead of doing that, I

28:47

just want to do kind of a rapid fire question

28:49

round with you. So I'm curious

28:51

to know what is your favorite gadget in

28:53

the kitchen? I know I try to tell

28:55

people not to get these things, but do

28:57

you have one that you actually use and

28:59

love? Um, my

29:02

favorite gadget. Oh,

29:04

that's a hard one. I'm not a huge cook. I

29:06

use a chopper. That is one of my favorite things

29:08

because I make a lot of salads. So I will

29:11

use a chopper and it actually like can chop it

29:13

so I don't have to cut. So that's a good

29:15

thing that I use all the time. I

29:18

would say that's probably my number one tool right

29:20

now, overall. What

29:22

is the worst one that you've seen in clients' homes

29:24

that you're just like, why has this even been created?

29:29

I mean, we've seen things like, I don't

29:31

know, it was like an olive pit, you know, take like, took

29:34

out the olive pit, which I was like, that seems like a

29:36

waste of time or they have, which I'm sure is helpful for

29:38

some people, but like

29:41

a pineapple core thing. And

29:44

like how much, how many pineapple, like full pineapples are you

29:46

actually eating? So you see things like that. You know, I'm

29:49

not a cook, so I don't even know what half of

29:51

these things are. There's a lot of like, you

29:53

know, you put your eggs on things and I'm sure to some

29:56

people that's very helpful, but. like

30:01

an egg-bringer, which I'm sure that is

30:03

actually maybe helpful for people. So just

30:05

a lot of gadgets that are like

30:07

one use, one and they're not used

30:09

that often. So that to me,

30:11

I find that is a lot of clutter

30:14

for people in their main drawers and they

30:16

don't hardly use those things. Absolutely.

30:18

So where do you go to shop for

30:20

your kitchen? Like

30:23

appliance wise? Yeah, I think and

30:25

we shop for appliance kitchens too.

30:27

So that's relevant. Crane

30:29

Barrel is a great place that we've gone. I

30:31

feel like that one is really the main one,

30:33

the main stay that we've been doing right now

30:36

and then for like dishes in China and things

30:38

like that, which is not necessarily appliances we've been

30:40

going to like Bloomingdale's for

30:42

China and things like that. But Crane

30:44

Barrel seems to have a variety of brands and

30:46

they're expanding their brands and

30:52

Williams Sonoma also obviously has a ton

30:55

of brands too that we've been going to there

30:57

and dishes and things like that. Are

31:00

you of the mindset that quality over

31:02

quantity is better in the kitchen when

31:04

it comes to dishware? I

31:06

am and especially for dishware, you're using

31:09

it so often but you have to

31:11

be conscious of like for

31:13

years in my house, we use a

31:15

velamine and non BPA free plastic. It

31:17

looked nicer than a regular plastic and

31:20

was not toxic but I use that

31:22

for my kids because I was like,

31:24

you know what? There's so much wear

31:26

and tear with our dishes. And so

31:28

we use cream, melamine plates or that

31:30

wasn't breakable and it was an outdoor

31:32

plate or indoor for them.

31:34

So we use two different sets of dishes just

31:37

because there was so much wear and tear and

31:39

I wanted them to get used to putting things

31:41

in the dishwasher, pulling things out of a cabinet

31:44

when they could reach and I didn't want

31:46

them working with like a regular glass dish.

31:49

We ended up moving from plastic to just

31:51

stainless steel plates. Maybe that's the only thing

31:54

I don't actually know. You

31:56

can't break them. They don't. So

31:58

if you throw spaghetti on it. They will get hot

32:01

on the bottom. So usually I

32:03

just serve the plate at the table, but that

32:05

seems to be much more durable We have stainless

32:07

steel cups that are really great. So that's a

32:09

great idea. That's a great idea I

32:12

like the look of them. Honestly, I use a stainless

32:14

steel mug every morning for my mom What do you

32:16

think about rugs in the kitchen? So

32:19

I have tried it Personally and I

32:22

had a runner in my kitchen and

32:24

then I took it away because there's

32:26

too much Stuff

32:28

that falls and it just wasn't

32:30

working for me personally. I love

32:33

the aesthetic of them I think they're beautiful

32:35

and I've seen them all around and interior

32:37

designers that we work with put them inside

32:40

for me personally I was like vacuuming and

32:42

picking up the runner and it was becoming

32:44

an annoyance We still have

32:46

it. I moved it to another I did

32:48

with the direction of my room But it

32:50

just became too much with our

32:53

dog and the kids You know dropping crumbs

32:55

and meat dropping crumbs and cooking and we

32:57

cook every day not a good cup But

32:59

we cook every day So it just became

33:01

too much of a hindrance for us personally

33:03

in our life But I love love the

33:05

look of them And so I'm jealous

33:07

of those people who can actually function with

33:09

the result rug in their kitchen Yeah,

33:12

we just bought a cheapo one

33:14

from Costco There's our

33:17

floors are so old and we don't have a

33:19

long-term solution right now for because our house is

33:21

from 1840 But this was

33:23

like an addition. So those aren't as

33:26

old we were thinking maybe 50s or

33:28

60s But this is such

33:30

a high traffic area. We need a quick

33:32

solution and we'll figure it out But I

33:34

you're right. It does look better, but it

33:36

is you're but it's for you It's functional

33:38

because you need it cover the floors and

33:41

all of that So for us,

33:43

I don't necessarily need a rug to cover

33:45

my floors But I'm not case

33:47

I mean I would absolutely you know have

33:49

a rug If it's cold or you know

33:51

the other routines just for us personally We

33:54

don't necessarily need it for us. It would

33:56

be more of an aesthetic look over the

33:58

floor. Mm-hmm. And then I I'm not, I

34:00

don't like vacuuming and picking it up. All the

34:02

stuff is there. And it's done.

34:05

My last question for you, and then I'll let you

34:08

go, is what is your opinion on open

34:10

storage or open shelving? There are a

34:12

few trends right now that we are

34:15

seeking a lot of new homes. And

34:17

I will say, if it works for

34:19

you, great. If it doesn't, don't

34:22

just try to go with the trends. Because a lot

34:24

of people say, oh, shouldn't I have open shelving? I

34:26

see all these things. The open

34:28

shelving I normally see is when people

34:30

have all the same color dishes, all

34:32

looking pretty. That is more for a

34:34

visual. And a lot of people can't

34:36

keep up that aesthetic on a daily

34:39

basis when they're taking plates in and

34:41

out or whatever. If you

34:43

want open shelving, that's great. I think that

34:45

would be perfect for decor like vosnes or

34:47

art or glasses, wine glasses you might not

34:50

use on an everyday basis. But for the

34:52

average person, having open shelving, they don't wanna

34:54

see their dishes not be perfectly lined up

34:56

or their glasses not perfectly lined up. So

34:59

it just really depends on the

35:01

person and how their family and life is

35:03

functioning on a daily basis. I think it

35:05

looks beautiful. And if it works for you,

35:07

great. But I wouldn't beat yourself up

35:09

if you're like, I just wanna have a closed

35:11

cabinet and just throw, not that we're throwing the

35:13

dishes in there, but it looks

35:16

a little bit different behind closed doors

35:18

than it does on a perfectly styled

35:20

open shelving concept. Yes,

35:23

absolutely. I do love it. We don't have

35:25

it completely open here in this new house,

35:27

but there are glass windows into

35:29

the cabinets and it definitely causes more

35:31

stress than I would have assumed. Okay.

35:34

It looked nice. So there it is.

35:36

Trial and error over here. Yeah, yeah.

35:38

It looks beautiful. I really, I feel

35:40

like I could keep it up now,

35:43

but I know a lot of my clients wouldn't

35:46

be able to. They're kind of in the thick

35:48

of things. And if it is organized and you

35:51

are decluttered and you have

35:53

a set that looks the same, a lot of people

35:55

don't have full sets of things or free from X,

35:57

Y, and Z, and they're like, I don't wanna look

35:59

at. that. I'm like well then you need to put it

36:18

somewhere else. Another big trend that I keep seeing is a larger drawer and pegs inside

36:20

the drawer. So it's a pegboard system inside the drawers that people are storing dishes and

36:22

mugs and they're having coffee stations. A pegboard inside

36:25

of a bigger drawer is a great

36:27

alternative. Oh I just

36:29

thought of one more question. Coasters on counters, toasters

36:31

on counters, bread maker on counters. What do we

36:33

have on counters? What do you think? Completely personal.

36:35

I know that's a bad thing. But some people

36:37

are like I want to see nothing on the

36:39

counter. Get it away. Some people I will say

36:41

well what do you use every day? Is it

36:43

a pain to bring it out of the drawer?

36:46

Maybe not the bread maker because you're not using

36:48

bread. But if you're having a smoothie every morning

36:50

and you're toasting toast, you're having coffee, put those

36:53

things on the counter. Because it's going to depend

36:55

on if you're shifting and pulling things out. That's

36:57

a pain to me. I would not want to

36:59

do that every day. Another trend that we're seeing

37:01

with appliances are things called appliance garages. I don't

37:04

know if you've seen those but it's basically like

37:06

a cabinet and that's where all of your appliances

37:08

go. So some of them have a pullout tray

37:10

that you can put your blender and your coffee

37:12

maker on. Some of it is just shelving behind

37:15

doors and all your appliances go there. I

37:17

think it's a great concept if you are

37:19

building a house or renovating a house because

37:21

then everything is behind that appliance garage and

37:23

it becomes more functional like a coffee station

37:25

or something there. But it's

37:28

truly a personal preference. I personally

37:30

would not want to have something

37:32

that I use every day in a drawer and

37:34

I'm pulling it in and out. But

37:36

visually it wouldn't mind me to have

37:39

a few things out. Like we have a toaster

37:41

out and I'm trying to think. Oh

37:44

and I have a hot water machine because I

37:46

drink tea all the time and match up every

37:48

morning. So those are things that I buy had

37:50

to bring that in and out and it got

37:52

wet and I would be annoyed. Yeah.

37:54

We have an espresso machine that I just like

37:56

to look at it. So that's how and then

37:58

we also have a. hot water, tea container.

38:01

The thing that's an eyesore, we have a Berkey,

38:03

it's like one of those big water filters. And

38:05

I haven't found the right place for that, but

38:07

I'm like, this obviously needs to be out. So

38:09

that's my next goal. I mean,

38:12

it depends on your kitchen encounter

38:14

space, right? Yeah. What you're looking

38:16

at and is it visual to you or someone else

38:18

that comes in and then what your cabinet space

38:20

is. Because, and some people don't have

38:22

enough space in their actual kitchen for a huge,

38:24

you know, blender or a mixer, but they

38:26

only use the mixer once or twice a year.

38:29

So I'll say to them, okay, well, if you

38:31

have a basement storage, that's like accessible that

38:33

you can go down and put it there, but

38:35

bring it up. And that doesn't

38:37

bother you versus, you know, taking up the space

38:40

in your kitchen and you only use it twice

38:42

a year. So it really depends on the individual,

38:44

their storage needs and like what they want to

38:46

actually be looking at. So yeah,

38:49

one answer for everybody, but no, so helpful. Sorry,

38:51

that wasn't as rapid fire as I wanted it

38:53

to be, but I think you can blend filter

38:56

to the end. Well, thank you for joining

38:59

me about how to declutter the kitchen and pantry

39:01

and I'm sure we'll talk again soon. Yeah, thank

39:03

you so much for having me. I appreciate it.

39:07

What did you think of the episode? I hope

39:09

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39:11

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39:13

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39:15

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39:18

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