Minimalist Kitchen Organization Ideas

Hey friends! I want to share a little something close to my heart. My little kitchen is my happy place, whether I'm savoring a morning cappuccino in the sun or whipping up a yummy cake batter while my son draws at our tiny vintage table. It’s a tight squeeze for us, but we love gathering around our cozy kitchen table for most of our meals. Sure, we have a spacious dining room, but we always end up in our little kitchen—it just feels right, even if it’s a bit cramped. In fact, whenever I entertain, my guests also always end up in the kitchen - the smallest room in our home. What is it about a kitchen and gatherings anyway?!?

My apartment is a classic German “altbau” from 1901, designed when kitchens and bathrooms were kept small to allow more space for the other rooms. Our 230m² apartment is quite spacious for city living. It features 3 bedrooms in the back and a wintergarten off the master, with two bathrooms, then a long hallway where a small kitchen divides the space - a kitchen that has two small rooms for storage. The front of the apartment is where you’ll find our living room with a wintergarten, my spacious office, an entry room, my husband’s office, and our dining room with a balcony. When the home was built over 120 years ago (we still have the original floors in the front rooms) the staff slept in the back rooms while the owners stayed in the front, with our tiny kitchen dividing the space along with our exceptionally large entry room.

Because the kitchen is so small and narrow, I’ve had to make the most of every inch. I often dream about a more spacious kitchen but until I decide to move, I’ve had to adapt. This is why I’ve adopted a more minimalist approach to maximize the small kitchen space to make the space feel cleaner and more open. Everything is easy to find yet concealed, and I don’t have more than I need. I even eliminated my small appliances (chopper, milk frother, coffee maker, juicer, blender) by tucking them away beneath the counter.

Minimalism helps me to focus on what’s truly important and necessary, allowing me to let go of what isn’t. Especially in the kitchen where space is so tight.

When paring down the kitchen, I found that it’s best to prioritize function in your kitchen first, then consider the aesthetics. Form always follows function—I can’t have beauty without utility, or utility without beauty.

Some common minimalist kitchen elements to consider:

Neutral colors (or at least a limited color palette), simple storage, hide as much as possible behind cabinet doors, no visible product labels (at least ugly/generic ones), clean lines, natural light, clutter-free spaces, a plant or some flowers but very limited—not a “jungle,” streamlined sink, sparing use of open shelving, and small appliances kept hidden.

Here are some ways I’ve applied some of my own advice at home:

I store small appliances that aren’t used daily. I keep my cappuccino machine on the countertop. Everything else, like my waffle iron, toaster, juicer, etc. is stored away.

My open shelving is kept spare. Open shelves tend to look cluttered if overloaded. I only keep items that I frequently on them like coffee cups and glasses. I also keep a plant on my shelf.

Oils and spice collection stay in the drawer. Piling spices by the stove can look messy but also, how many of them are you using daily or even weekly? If you’re a big cook, then perhaps you use all of your spices frequently - but even then, I’m guessing you rotate through the same ones over and over. You most like don’t use many of your spices regularly - so put them in a cabinet, drawer, or closet directly near the stove. I only keep olive oil, salt, and pepper near the stove for easy access. Note: I even put utensils and whisks in drawers instead of on the counter - visually this is so much cleaner and less of a hair/dust magnet especially if you have pets!

I had to get honest. This meant asking myself what I really use and need. I went through everything in my kitchen and asked, “Do I even use this?”, so I’m advising you to do the same. Maybe you can create a box for “giveaway” and another for “throw away” and declutter from there. You’ll be surprised at how many doubles of things you have, or even triples, so you can definitely simplify.

My kitchen is neutral: For a minimalist look, I went with natural tones like beige, black, khaki, sage, pale apricot, gray, pale blue, and sand tones. I kept strong colors out, and I don’t bother with flowers in the kitchen, they don’t last as long for me since the room is so small. My kitchen palette goal was to create a calming, clutter-free space that enhances creativity and joy and I used neutral colors to help me to accomplish serenity and to enhance the natural light.

Which leads me to the final point… I really take advantage of the natural light: I use simple, barely-there plisse in white for privacy at night or to filter strong sunlight in summer. Otherwise, I leave my windows bare to let in as much natural light as possible. I love how much light I get living on the 2nd floor (In America, I live on the 3rd floor or even 3.5 floor since my building has a lot of stairs to even get to the ground floor.)

I hope these tips to organize your kitchen inspire you to create a more streamlined and functional space for yourself, too.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and any tips you might have for keeping a kitchen clutter-free, so add a comment below if you have any!

xo Holly