As a designer, one of my greatest delights is designing a perfectly customized kitchen, one that is as beautiful as it is functional. In order to do that, I have to understand how my clients truly live. It’s a process of trust as they choose to open up about what really matters to them so I can help them interpret that into the most functional and inspired space possible. Seemingly odd questions about the kinds of spices you like to cook with or how you like to plate food can lead to really critical design decisions as we lay out your space.

While at KBIS, the Modenus BlogTour crew had the opportunity to visit the fine folks at Wood Mode, and they highlighted the value and possibilities of extremely customized cabinetry. Today, I’m going to show you just some of the ways you can customize the function of your cabinetry with Wood Mode, remembering as I said last week, that it’s often what’s inside that counts the most.

One of the key areas to customize when designing your kitchen is your utensil storage. The images above show you just some of the endless options:

1. A 36″ wide drawer with room for all your daily use cutlery and some of your main cooking utensils. Easy access to everything all in one spot.

2. An 18″ wide drawer belies it’s depth of storage with a tiered cutlery tray. The top layer slides back to reveal space for more utensils underneath. This is the ideal way to maximize a narrower bank of drawers.

3. A dedicated knife drawer with customized built-in knife blocks. This is essential to keeping your kitchen tools organized and on point (pun intended).

4. A 24″ wide metal utensil drawer that is easily wipeable and extremely durable.

5. A Pacific Cloth-lined cutlery drawer for your silver. When wrapped in Pacific Cloth, your silver won’t tarnish, making more elegant affairs truly effortless!

 

I find when it comes to storing tableware there are two schools of thought: Either you’re all about the cupboards/open shelves or you love storing in drawers. In our household, we are all about the drawers as the lower storage means easy access for kids, giving them the chance to get involved in emptying the dishwasher and setting the table.

When it comes to storing your cookware, organization makes mealtime for busy families a breeze. No more searching for that rogue lid that’s gone missing!

1. Tiered pull-outs for kitchen linens, strainers and mixing bowls are disguised behind one full panel door for a cleaner look to the cabinetry.

2. Pots and lids are separated but associated in this two-tier drawer system for easy access and simple organization.

3. Casserole dishes and Dutch Ovens that often won’t fit in standard drawers are given the perfect home with this customized two-tier system.

4. Custom-sized sections keep pots and pans from rattling around when opening and closing this drawer, and life is just prettier when everything has its place!

1. Count how many pieces of cutlery you have and measure the approximate width of each bundle (knives, forks, spoons, etc) to ensure the drawer compartments can easily handle your handles.

2. Edit your existing cooking utensils, removing anything you don’t use regularly. Replace anything that is broken and then lay it all out to determine how many drawers you need to keep things organized. Allow for some space to add in fun new gadgets like that cherry pitter you’ll need this summer when making a gorgeous Caflouti.

3. Count all of your kitchen knives to determine how many slots you’ll need in your knife block drawer.

4. Stack all of your plates and bowls and measure the height and diameter to determine the width and depth of drawer required to house everything perfectly.

5. Count all of your pots and pans. Determine which piece can nest inside one another and then measure the height and diameter of each piece or stack to determine the size of individual compartments and/or the overall width and depth of the drawer(s) required.

6. Edit your spices, ensuring you have everything you use on a regular basis and include all of the less common spices you like to have on hand for those special recipes. Decide where you like to have them in the kitchen – for me it’s in a top drawer right next to the stovetop – and count how many jars you have and what the average size is so they can all be laid out for easy identification and use. My favourite spices are by Simply Organic – the quality is great and the square bottles are really easy to organize.

With that, you are well on your way to truly customizing your kitchen storage to suit the way your family likes to cook.

I hope this has inspired you to get into your kitchen and get organized! With everything you need right at your fingertips, you’ll be cooking up a storm in no time.

Stay tuned for some seriously inspiring beauty coming at you this week in the form of a new book I can’t wait to share with you!

xx
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