Under the Kitchen Sink Organization
I’ll be the first person to tell you that organizing under sinks is a pain in the ass. The pipe is usually in just the wrong spot to accomplish what I envision but, I somehow always make it work for my client. And it’s always infinitely better than what they had going on before … ifidosaysomyself.
Thankfully, the underneath of my kitchen sink didn’t pose too big of a problem when it came to organize. It’s wide which is good but the pipe (or pipes, there’s two sinks) didn’t give me much to play with when it came to depth/height.
I don’t foresee this being an issue though because my t rex arms don’t allow me to reach too far anyway. PLUS the back of this cabinet usually becomes a black hole for stuff to pile up, get lost and get gunky. I’ve often worn gloves when pulling everything out from under my client’s sinks because shit leaks back there and it’s not pretty.
If that’s how your sink looks like right now, don’t stress. I’m hoping this post will motivate you to clean out under yours and reorganize it!
Now, I didn’t have much to clean out being that I just moved in but that’s the very first thing you should do before anything else. This goes for any space - pulling everything out allows you to really see all you have plus clean and measure the space correctly.
Measuring for containers or products is always important but even more so under the sink (re : pesky pipes). I suggest doing it multiple times to make sure you’re correct with yours before ordering anything.
The next step should be to decide what you want to store under the kitchen sink …
Anything having to do with dishes or the dishwasher should live here. So that goes for:
Sponges
Scrubby pads
Gloves
Pods or detergent
Dishwasher cleaner
Liquid dish soap
If you buy in bulk and, say, you have 5 bottles of dish soap, I would suggest storing that offsite. I’m convinced that everyone who bulk buys needs to have a spot somewhere - in the basement, garage, laundry room, etc. - where their overflow goes because otherwise it will crowd up your other spaces.
Hand soap is another issue. I know everyone went crazy Covid buying it and it’s not unusual for me to find 15-20 bottles of hand soap under my client’s sinks. An extra bottle of two stored under there is fine but limit it to that, everything else goes in the bulk buying spot.
As you look through the photos, you’ll notice I don’t have any hand soap extras because when we moved, I had full bottles and haven’t bought any since. Same with dish soap so when I do need to restock, I’ll probably do what I did with the “bug stuff” you’ll see in a bit!
The other stuff you should keep under the sink is dependent on your space. Cleaning supplies are popular to store there which is what I did. Some people like to store them in a linen closet, the laundry room, etc. which is totally fine! I don’t have a linen closet and my laundry room is filled with other things (which you can check out here) so under the kitchen sink made the most sense for me.
Again, the same rule should apply when it comes to overstock. If you were one of the Covid crazies (hey, no shame, I’m still using crappy TP from last year), then store your 27 bottles of antibac wipes in the bulk zone!
In reality, anything that you are using right near the sink or surrounding area should be stored there. I’ve even had a client ask me to organize her son’s retainer cleaner under her kitchen sink because she had to stand there over him and make sure he did it and it was easier to do in the kitchen. Whereas mine is stored in my bathroom where I clean my retainer. I mean, some mornings I wish I had my mom standing over me to do it because I don’t wanna.
OK! So getting into how I organized under my kitchen sink, you’ll find that it’s really simple and straightforward. Much like the rest of my home. That’s because if it were complicated, I wouldn’t keep it up. I’m way too lazy for that. Also, I live pretty minimalistically which makes it easier to stay organized.
The biggest struggle was finding a spot for my regularly reached for items like pods and trash bags. I measured and had very specific numbers I had to stick with thanks to the pipe. I knew I wanted to maximize the height in the front of the cabinet so I looked for stackable organizers. Originally I bought these stackable open bins from IDesign which worked in the space but weren’t really big enough to store the stuff I needed to. I also always like to leave a little room to grow which wouldn’t have happened.
So, instead, I opted for these stackable pull out drawers instead that just fit and gave me the right amount of space needed to store my stuff. I divided my things into categories and there were four of them. Thankfully, four drawers fit to a T!! The categories were:
Dish towels
Pods
Trash bags
Things to clean with
I then specifically put them in order of how often I reach for them. Dish towels get swapped out daily, I run the dishwasher most nights, the trash gets taken out every few days and I replace the sponges when needed.
Within most of the drawers, I also put things in order of how often they’re used. When it comes to the pods, I have the dishwasher cleaner pods which are used once a week or so, in the back. I would have loved to have a divider keeping them separate. But this is the smallest size pull out drawer and they don’t make them unfortunately. They do for the next size up and on!
I can see the difference in the pods so that works for me! If it doesn’t, I can simply measure and find a small drawer insert to separate out the cleaners.
We have a relatively small trash can so only need small bags which live in front and are easy to pull out.
I do have a roll of tall kitchen bags living behind it though in case I have more trash than can fit in the smaller ones.
And for the bottom drawer, this is a crap shoot in terms of what I use the most often as it depends on a few things.
I have the gloves in front, sponges in the middle and steel scrubbers in the back. If this doesn’t work, I can move the system around. That’s what it’s there for!
Moving on to cleaning supplies, again, you can choose to store yours under your sink or elsewhere. There isn’t a right way or place to store them! One general rule I like to tell my clients to follow is to not store bathroom specific cleaners under their kitchen sink. Because, why? Your toilet is probably kinda far away so instead store bowl/tub/tile cleaners under the bathroom sinks. Remember, always try to store things nearby where you use them. Make your life easier!
I bought this caddy to store my cleaning supplies because, honestly, it’s so freakin cute. I’ve used it for clients in the past and know that it’s good quality. It holds all of the things I need it to and there’s a little wiggle room which, as I already mentioned, is always a good thing.
I specifically knew I wanted a caddy to be able to move easier from room to room. For example, the countertops in my kitchen are the same as in the bathrooms so I use a special cleaner for all three spaces. Rather than spending the money (or, just as importantly, wasting the space!) and buying three bottles of the same cleaner, I can just grab the caddy and carry it from room to room when I’m cleaning. If you have a cleaning person, they will love you for this!
Another reason I like to contain cleaning products to something - whether it’s a caddy or a bin - is because it helps give you a limit to the amount you can own. There’s only so much stuff you can fit into a definitive space so you’re forced to stop at a certain amount. I mean, sure, I’ve seen with my own eyes people shoving bottles into every spare crevice of a cabinet and at some point, they just can’t anymore. And what does that accomplish though? It looks awful and good luck finding what you need! This is a better way to live. Trust your girl.
Lastly, we all know that bottles can be messy and sometimes leak. If you have them contained in something, you just have to clean that rather than your shelves which could permanently stain. This also helps with the under the sink gunk I mentioned earlier.
Next to the caddy is our tiny trash can which I also had to be careful with measurement wise. The way that our kitchen is set up, there is no space for a larger one (without it literally being in our living space or completely out of the way of where we need it). And because we rent, installing one into a cabinet isn’t something we want to do. This works for two minimalistic people and c’mon, how awesome is it that it matches the caddy!
Speaking of matching, I used a mini command hook on the inside of the right side cabinet to store my dustpan. This was a HomeGoods find years ago and I’m obsessed with the bamboo! I could have put this in my laundry room with the swiffers as it kinda fits in that category but it looks good here and I’m also more likely to use it in the kitchen (like, when I make popcorn and it goes flying everywhere).
Don’t forget you can use the inside of the doors if you need more space! I had my paper towels stored on this holder in my last place to save counter space (because I had none LOL) and have used baskets like these tons of times for clients! One word of caution when using over the cabinet organizers is that you will see the hooks when you close the doors. This bothers some people and not others. It’s all about preference and priorities.
If you do decide to store something on the inside though, make sure the door closes properly. I had to put the dustpan on the right side because it wouldn’t have fit on the left with the drawers. I could hang something skinnier if I need to down the line.
Lastly, I have a small amount of space in the back to each side of the pipes. That’s a good spot for things you don’t need to reach for often. So I took a small clear bin I had leftover from my last place and added “bug stuff” aka spray and traps. I also added a gel room freshener to keep it smelling good under there.
And that’s it! I added a lot of advice in here but I hope you got some good ideas and inspiration to clean up under your kitchen sink. I’ll be tackling my bathroom one next so stay tuned!
PS If you want custom labels like these, I (very patiently) make them with my Cricut Joy machine.
PPS I have an Etsy shop now if you’re looking for gifts for that organized person in your life!
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.