Is your kitchen more of a nightmare than a smooth operation? Get organised with our simple storage solutions

You know that feeling when you can&rsquo;t find your trusty scissors or knife when you&rsquo;re cooking? When you&rsquo;ve bought cumin yet again even though there&rsquo;s already a full jar in the cupboard? And when you just have that claustrophobic ‘I have no space&rsquo; panic? Stress no more with our simple storage hacks to declutter your kitchen and you&rsquo;ll soon have the best running kitchen to rival any chef!<h2>1.     Hang up your kitchen essentials</h2>Take inspiration from some of your favourite celeb chefs and utilise hanging space. Hang frequently used items like pans and kitchen tools in plain sight. Not only will this save you time (and stop you rooting around in drawers trying to find what you need), but it will also enable you to quickly grab any last-minute items mid-cooking.Hanging some of your cooking kit has the added effect of making small kitchens appear larger as it frees up counter space.Try hanging pots and pans with DIY handrails and hooks above surfaces and attach aprons and cutlery to doors with adhesive or wire hooks like these <a href="http://groceries.asda.com/product/diy-and-hardware-supplies/command-wire-hooks/910001244160" target="_blank">Command Wire Hooks</a>. Recipes and to-do lists become far more accessible when stuck to surfaces such as cupboard doors and even the fridge.Top tip: Tape magnets to essential items that come in boxes such as cling film and parchment paper, and stick them to the fridge door.<h2>2.   Store items by how you use them</h2>Store your kitchenware based on how frequently you use it. Put everyday items at easy-to-reach eye level or lower, and store pots and pans close to the hob.You can then put your special occasion pieces up high in harder-to-reach cupboards. It may sound simple, but it will save you lots of time!Top tip: Adopt this rule in your fridge and freezer too. Keep everyday items such as vegetables and dairy in easy reach. Hang a whiteboard on or near the fridge, and keep an ongoing list of ingredients you have. That way you can quickly see at a glance what you have before you go shopping, and can easily rub out anything you&rsquo;ve run out of.<h2>3.    Co-ordinate with containers</h2>Be they metal or wood, transparent or colour-coded, containers such as baskets make great <a href="http://direct.asda.com/george/home-garden/storage/D26M01G01C13,default,sc.html#http://direct.asda.com/george/home-garden/storage/D26M01G01C13,default,sc.html" target="_blank">storage</a> units for the kitchen. Choose different sizes or colours, and group similar items by category. This is particularly useful for cupboards full of small items, such as spices, and good for high up shelves, where it is easier to pull out a container rather than trying to reach for one item.Top Tip: Use this method to update your kitchen spice rack by transferring them to matching jars with labels.<img alt="storage-containers__hero" class="ci-image ci-hero" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/storage-containers__hero_GL?scl=1"><h2>4.   Make use of free stuff</h2>This tip is especially handy if you&rsquo;re on a budget and don&rsquo;t want to splash out on new storage boxes. Keep old food containers and cardboard containers to store ingredients. For example, old baking powder containers can easily be used for herb, spice and flour storage.Top tip: Old loo rolls also work well as pots for seedlings in your kitchen - you&rsquo;ll soon have your own little herb garden growing.<h2>5.   Think double-duty</h2>This one requires you to be a bit inventive. Believe it or not, there are plenty of items that you have in your home already that you haven&rsquo;t even thought of using for storage. For example, an oversized mug can double up as cutlery storage in your kitchen. Or why not use a wooden peg rack to organise pan lids in the cupboard?Top Tip: Need extra storage but don&rsquo;t have much space? Don&rsquo;t forget items such as adjustable CD towers, shoe racks and skinny bookshelves &ndash; you might find that they just fit into the small spaces between cabinets. Got any great storage solutions? Let us know below! And don't forget to check out the latest kictchen storage solutions from <a href="http://direct.asda.com/george/home-garden/kitchen-storage/D26M08G08C10,default,sc.html#http://direct.asda.com/george/home-garden/kitchen-storage/D26M08G08C10,default,sc.html" target="_blank">George Home</a>, for even more ideas

5 simple kitchen storage solutions to declutter your space

By Asda Good Living,12th January 2016

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