Welcome to week 1 of A Bowl Full of Lemons 14 Week Organizing Challenge. This is a tested challenge that thousands have completed & it’s guaranteed to get your home in order. If this is your first time participating in the challenge, welcome! If you’re back for more, I’m excited to see you again. Get ready for a transformation because your home is about to be turned upside down (in a good way). Each week, you will receive a new challenge & you will have 7 days to complete it. If you are not subscribed to my blog & want reminders for the weekly challenges, you can sign up here.
The first thing you need to do is print out your 14 Week Schedule. You can hang it on your fridge and check it off as you go. Print it out here.
WEEK #1 TASK – The Kitchen:
The kitchen is the hub of the home. Everyone ends up in the kitchen at some point during their day. So it gets messy fast! The best way to conquer the mess and the clutter is to get organized.
To begin the process and in order to be fully organized, everything really should be emptied out of the space, so you can see it clearly and start fresh. Its time to clear the clutter. Empty out every Cabinet and drawer in your kitchen. Only do this if you can have everything put back in its place within the week. WE ARE NOT ORGANIZING THE PANTRY THIS WEEK. We will address the pantry in a couple more weeks. Get a babysitter (or send the kids to the neighbors), put on your comfy clothes, and turn up the music. Its time to organize!! *Before you start, look around your house to find bins, baskets, etc… You can use these for your kitchen organization.
WEEK #1 CHECKLIST: (Print out the checklist HERE)
1. Clean out and organize all cabinets.
2. Clean out and organize all drawers.
3. Purge everything that is not used, expired, doesnt belong, collecting dust.
4. Clean out & organize fridge & freezer.
5. Mop, wipe down cabinet doors, clean counter tops & tables.
6. Take everything off the refrigerator door. It makes the kitchen look messy.
7. Clean all appliances.
THE PROCESS:
1. Clear off the kitchen table. This is your dumping grounds.
2. Empty out all cabinets & drawers! Place ALL items into “categories” on the table.
3. Wipe down the cabinet doors, shelves and drawers. Add new liners if necessary.
4. Discard (trash) old, expired, and no longer used items & food. Check the dates.
5. Place all items that are able to fit, into baskets.
6. Place everything back into the cabinets & drawers (in categories).
7. Take everything off the kitchen counters and place onto the table.
8. Wipe down the counters & backsplash with a good natural cleaner.
9. Wipe down ALL small appliances & large ones too!
10. Put back items you use on a daily basis, onto the counter top.
11. Mop the floors and wipe down the table & chairs.
12. Empty fridge/freezer. Wipe out. Put back in an organized manner.
13. Clean and organize under the kitchen sink.
Tip: Keep all clutter off the counters at all times. If you take it out, put it away!
Here are several blog posts that will inspire you to get your kitchen organized.
7. Baking Cabinet Organization
8. Tupperware
9. Coffee Station Organization
HOW TO SHARE:
Share your progress on Instagram using the hash tag #abfolorganizechallenge, blog about the weekly challenges – sharing your before and after pictures and/or share over at my Home Organization 101 group here. Hold yourself accountable and finish all 14 challenges!
NEW TO THE CHALLENGE?
If you are just joining us, visit the challenge details page here, to learn what it’s all about.
HAPPY ORGANIZING!
I’ll see you back next week for another organizing challenge.
Tags: 14 week challenge
14 Week Challenge, 2015 Home Organization 101, Blog, January 2015, Kitchen, Organize Posted in
47 comments
47 comments on “14 Week Organizing Challenge Week 1 “The Kitchen””
Is it bad that I am so excited about this that I’m contemplating pulling an all nighter to get started? Thank you so much for sharing your practices & tips! Here’s to an organized home in 2015! 🙂
Oh my gosh I wanted to also!!
Thank you for this. can’t wait to start
So excited to start this challenge! First time and very much ready and excited. Thank You!
Hi, really excited to do this, after 17ys of being a stay at home mum I’m working again and life is a mess. So pleased it’s a short and sharp program. As my kitchen and laundry is in one with no pantry I’m looking at spreading the kitchen over 3 weeks which will work with full time work, part time study and a family. Love the check list!
Totally off topic. But where did you find the white dish to hold your soap/cleaners that is on your counter?
I started cleaning out my kitchen last week. We have way too many things on the counter and it is driving me batty! My next step is the cupboards. I might need more than a week to get through it all though… 🙂
Hi,
I am so excited about this challenge but neither the Schedule nor the Kitchen Checklist will print. The sheets keep coming out blank. Can you help?
Les
When you go to print and view it, do you see it before you print? Try right clicking on the file then print.
john, it is some kind of a setting in pdf i think, because i have the same problem. one day i got up and could no longer print off pdfs from work. i think there is an internal setting that got changed somehow. i’ve tried everything. if you figure it out, let me know
I saved mine as a picture and then printed the picture – try that – it worked for me 🙂
Download it first. I had the same problem.
Use the printer icon at the top of the page to print, rather than the browser menu’s File/Print dropdown. That’s what worked for me.
I had problems printing the file too and discovered if I use the print in the Google Drive rather than the browsers print option it worked well. Hope that helps you too.
🙂
I will have to do this Monday! Monday is kitchen day in my house, and I’ve gotten a bit lazy with it!!
how can I get these updates email to me? If you can let me know I would greatly appreciate it thank you!
A link sent yesterday for the print out for the 14 week challenge is not working today. Every link I try circles me back to the home page. I have signed up received no emails and need to have access so I can get onboard.
I had the same problem…using the file>print from my top toolbar. It worked fine when I just clicked the printer icon on the google bar that pops up with the document.
Love your ideas but seem to have a hard time viewing them….
Great list! I’m doing a lot of this around my kitchen already this week, so it’s awesome to find a list to work from. Looking forward to the rest of the series, and definitely will be sharing on my FB page as well. Thanks for putting together!
I see under the title pots and pans, baking sheets etc. But I do not see how you stored your pots, pans, and pan lids. Certainly you must have pots for chili and soups. Also, where are your crock pots, mixers, and other small appliances stored? What about kitchen towels and dish clothes. Am I missing some pictures here?
My sheets are coming out blank too. Are there pdf’s we can get?
I just cleaned under my kitchen sink as my project for the day. Much better. I thought I would pass on something I found that works. Instead of contact paper or a mat I used self stick 12×12 vinyl tiles from the hardware store. They are very easy to wipe and come in different designs. Also I put a small kitchen fire extinguisher under the sink ready for an emergency I hope will never happen.
what a great idea. thank you for sharing!
I used a piece of remnant vinyl and cut it to fit. It’s also easy to clean and I used something with primarily a white background so it’s easier to see under there! Love the 12×12 idea also!
I am really excited and looking forward to completing this challenge.
Why can’t I get your emails?
enter your email at the top of the page where it says ‘subscribe’
I am having to begin my kitchen in reverse, so to speak!
I had to clear off all counters and clean and disinfect all surfaces, run the dishwasher, and get the counter space ready to empty the cabinets and drawers. I have a tiny, galley kitchen, so no kitchen table. Only a desk that sits in my dining room. It is now cleared and organized so I can use this as my surface area to work from. SO excited! Ready to get to the in depth cleaning and organization today! I LOVE THIS CHALLENGE! Thank you, Toni, for being such an inspiration to thousands of us! I appreciate you so much!
I’ve been praying for order in my home and your blog has been an answer to my prayer. Thank you for sharing so detailed and simply put. I just found your new blog today and look forward to starting this afternoon. Blessings! 🙂
This is perfect timing! Just had a new refrigerator delivered today, so it’s a great time to organize the kitchen. Thanks!
I am having a very hard time reading your blog from my home pc. I can see it fine on my ipad, but not on my pc. It comes across as very unorganized and when I click “read more” for the blog entries I get taken straight to the comments page. Is anyone else having this problem or is it just my computer? Any ideas?
You must have the old version of internet explorer. If you update your version (for free), it will work. You could also use a different browser (chrome, firefox, etc.). 😉
I literally have no place to put any of the things I am supposed to move from one spot to another (clearing off the table to have a space to put the kitchen things, for example). There is a tiny path to walk through the house and that is it! All I can do is wash a couple of dishes at a time and put them away. And that won’t clear the counters. Now what??? I want to cry!!
I got a late start, but I think I will be pulling an all nighter to get it done. I am really looking forward to it.
Ok this is my 2nd time starting this challenge. My husband already calls me OCD, but I still have a hard time finding things which means there is too much crap everywhere!
Is there a way to get all 14 weeks of checklists on one page? I’m a student and time is the enemy some days, it would be easier if I could print all of the checklist off at 1 time. I also need to catch up to everyone that started a few weeks ago!
Thanks!
Where did you get your lazy Susan’s? Thank you!
You can purchase from the ABFOL amazon store.
I am just starting this challenge and find it is an ideal tool for helping me as I move into a smaller space. Thank you for putting this challenge out there for us to find 🙂
I am a little bit late for getting involved in this challenge, but I will use those tips in my daily cleaning tasks. My hatефул part is cleaning out and organizing the drawers. My mistake is always the same, I start cleaning the bathroom, I get bored then leave it and start cleaning some of the other rooms. If I compile a list maybe will be better. Checking it off will give me a pleasure.