Old kitchen, U-shape:

toaster
paper towel holder
canisters - hardly used
2 knife blocks
cookie jar
spaghetti canister
battery charger
cell phone chargers

One of my goals in the new kitchen (in progress) is to get rid of counter clutter. So I'll have a knife drawer instead of blocks; canisters have gone away; charging station in a cabinet.

New kitchen counters (I hope):
toaster (it's a 1953 model)
small corner microwave
The cookie jar may or may not stay out - we rarely have cookies.

I wanted to add a bit of color and sparkle on the counter so instead of using the stainless steel container that came with the utensils, I bought a teal vase in heavy glass with a clear bottom about 1.5" thick. I think it looks nice because the stainless sparkles behind the glass.

2utensil holders(SS...cheap from ikea), knife block, SS toaster, paper towel holder, napkin holder, fruit bowl, coffee maker, clear plastic drainboard. Probably too much since its a smallish galley...but we use almost all of them daily.

Let's see:

Old kitchen with white-painted cabinets; white tile backsplash and counters, white appliances ....

1) Prep area by the left-hand side of the stove:

-larger plastic cutting board
-two knife blocks
-very old cutlery basket that holds oils, vinegars, mortar and pestle, salt and pepper grinders
-old bean crock that holds kosher salt
-old bean crock that holds tea bags
-plus an old flat-bottomed round basket that holds a tall glass canister with angel-hair pasta; old glass jars that holds current herbs and spices
-another (yes, I have three) old bean crock that holds packets of Splenda

2) On the other side of the stove:

-paper towel holder

3) On the left-hand side of the sinks:
-white electric kettle
-old teapot

4) On the right-hand side of the sink (tucked under the overhanging breakfast bar)

-- a small electric salt lamp and a green box that holds car keys and chargers

4) Across the kitchen -- by the fridge:

-a round wood cutting board that holds a large white pottery bowl with fruit
-a white coffee maker
-a white Bose radio
-another small white pottery bowl currently holding my small tomatoes from my tomatoes bushes by the front door ...

6) On the main shelf of the black Welsh-style cabinet:

-a very old black-painted scale, a clock and a couple of old wood bowls that hold potatoes and onions .....

....yes .... it does sound cluttered but the "clutter" is contained in groups and in baskets and that system seems to work well for both prep areas and "out front" storage for "in use-and-in-sight" fruits and vegetables ...

Plus I didn't mention my old copper lamps (look like old lanterns) and came from my mum ....in the each of the far corners of the counters ....LOL!

My kitchen isn't totally finished but what is there now is my Keurig, salt and pepper shakers, canister set, a crystal biscuit jar, and last but not least my wire egg basket that I use when gathering eggs.

Coffee pot,paper towel holder,dish soap dispenser.

This topic makes me want to cry. lol. After searching for over a year for the perfect ceramic rooster to put on my counter, I finally found one. It was the prettiest I've ever seen. The rooster arrived yesterday shattered into a million pieces. Wahhhh. And it wasn't the fault of UPS, it was the way it was packaged.

But right now there's a lot of veggies from the garden that needs to be dealt with, coffee maker, large wood cutting board next to the stove, silver tray holding hand soap next to the sink, mirrored tray holding a small lamp and an apothecary jar with lemons.

Anyone want some veggies? ;)

I don't like to have a lot of stuff on my counters, but here's what I have:

Toaster oven.
A tray containing my utensil jar, which is an antique jar from Portobello Rd flea market in London, salt and pepper, and containers of tea. Everything corraled in the tray.

We have a pass-thru area with counter/cabinets between the kitchen and dining room, with a small bar sink. On that counter: two coffee makers, a felted bowl containing sweetener packets, basket containing coffee pods for the Keurig, vitamins, and the counter opposite that is my catch-all spot for paperwork that has to be dealt with, open bottles of wine, etc.

On the island, where kitchen sink is: hand lotion, and a drying "pad" for dishes.

Lots of stuff on my counter but all spaced out....where I have lots of little stuff (like salt & pepper and evoo and worchestershire and soy etc.) it's all grouped on a tray so it looks intentional. Utensil holder, paper towel holder, cannister set, toaster oven, can opener, mug full of measuring spoons, composting cannister, hot shot, coffee maker, sugar bowl, basket full of napkins and a wood board on either side of the cooktop.

I have a fairly large peninsula that is kept clean and is used for food prep. There's a small flat screen TV in the corner where it meets the wall. Along that wall:

Fruit basket
Paper towels
Sink
Built in soap dispenser
Toaster oven

In the corner there's a framed piece of ODS's artwork from preschool on an easel.

On that counter:
Copper pot with utensils
Glass dish with salt
Range

On the other side of the kitchen there's a small run of cabinets in the corner. That counter holds:

Small cachepot with a plant
Keurig coffee maker
In the corner there's a candle in a clear glass hurricane
Telephone
Cuisinart
Kitchen Aid stand mixer
There's also usually a stack of papers that accumulates in this area. ;)

Aside from a about 20 jars of pickles and a few stray cucumbers, the permenant things (small kitchen, U=shaped, moving from left to right):

old copper new potato steamer holding utensils
salt pig
pepper grinder
copper tea kettle on range
small apple plaque that DM painted
hammered copper stock pot
herb box that I painted
white tray for dirty dishes
canister jars

Nancy

On my counters....

ceramic crock with utensils
small pouring bottles of EVOO and balsamic
cutting board

small bowl with magic eraser, scraping tool, etc
decorative bottle with Dawn inside
hand soap

small ceramic crock with Equal inside
tea pot on bamboo trivet

That's it. I like clear counters and stash all the appliances when not in use.

My counters are overrun and none of it is really decorative. :( We have a vitamix, toaster oven, toaster, juicer, 2 big baskets of fruit a small basket of tomatoes, a pretty large cutting board, and a small basket of mail and a small basket of wash rags.

We use all daily except the toaster oven so It is a pain to put them away ever day so we leave them out.

We do not have a lot of counter space. The wicker box above the MW stores foil, clear wrap, and plastic storage bags. You can see the can opener and my WW food scale to the right of the sink.

I also keep the KA mixer out on the counter near the coffee maker. The smiley face stores Splenda (which I don't use any more). It used to be DH's cookie jar when he was little.

Another who doesn't like alot on the counters:

-basket w/napkins
vintage canister

-vintage platter on stand
egg cup
crock filled with utensils

on the two largest counters/prep areas

-basket (puppy treats!)
phone

-small tv
large glass canister with snacks
basket

Our pantry is located in our kitchen so oils/baking goods/tea, etc. is kept there. Coffee (rarely used) in freezer. Paper towels on holder inside pantry door.

I leave out the things we use everyday or nearly everyday. So the microwave(the one over the stove is to high for the kids) kitchenAid, toaster ,coffeepot. A bowl at the end of the counter for phones and keys because my husband cann,t seem to hang them on thier hook directly above the bowl. I have metal bowls on my kitchen window which collect everything ,small a vace with pencils pens another vase with paint brushs and a change jar. I keep the island top clean and have a freestanding fruit veggie three tiered stand.

Paper towel holder
coffee maker
stand mixer
knife block
telephone
small ice cream maker (we make ice cream all the time)
bowl for fresh fruit and tomatoes
salt/pepper
kitchen timer
on the far corner-old silver bowl for DH's pocket stuff
old silver julep cup for pens and notepads

I'm prone to clutter so I keep the counters almost bare.

My kitchen is small so even though things like the toaster, that are used everyday, are put away it only takes a second to pull them out. All the cooking utensils are in a drawer next to the range and the cooking oils and spices are in a cupboard right by the range. So, easy to access yet not in sight on a daily basis.

Dish soap and Scrubber in a teacup by the sink
Blender in the corner
Butter dish
Juice pitcher (haven't found the perfect spot for it yet)
Egg gathering basket

I also have two plants on the kitchen windowsill.

On the L:
Utensil crock- Fiesta plum (It is really a cookie jar cuz their utensil crock was too small)
Longaberger recipe box
Garlic Jar from Etsy
Toaster oven
Dish drying pad
Small Bowl with scrubbie sponges
Fruit bowl
Paper Towel Holder

Hutch counter:
Mini Keurig
Jar of sweeteners
Glass of straws
Candy dish

No high end granite or finishes in my new-to-me kitchen but it's bright, lots of room, tons of cabinetry (white). Counters on either side of the glass cook top have a pottery utensil holder, a wooden cutting board and trivet, stove-side S&P set, so not a lot there. I was used to cooking in a kitchen with three pull out bread boards this kitchen doesn't have, and needed places to sit a hot pan, thus the cutting board close to the cooktop.

The counter extension that divides the breakfast area from the work area I try to keep clear, it does have the base set/answering machine (quite small) to my cordless phone system plugged in there. I suppose that area does have my elbows on it a lot if that counts, as I stand in the work area and talk to people seated at the table :)

To the right of the sink, my Keurig, charger holding the elec wine opener, a red metal bread box, toaster, food processor because its too heavy to take in and out of a cupboard, a pottery bowl for fruit.

My window holds a prayer plant, and right now envelopes of seeds I've been collecting, a Strongwater ring holder I splurged on since I'm slipping off jewelry in my kitchen often...not that I have a lot :)

One thing this kitchen does not have is a great place for my kitchen aid mixer, it's 1/4" too high to slide back under an upper cupboard. I've got the countertop space, but not the height. So it's on a small rolling butchers block table on the other side of a door into the laundry room. I don't use it daily and wheel it in those days I do want it.

I like clear counters, but beside the cook top, I have a stainless steel utensil holder and a stainless steel knife block. I've linked the knife block below because I have a collection of different brands of knives and I've found this kind of knife block to work really well.

Here is a link that might be useful: Knife Block

I'm pretty clutter free.

Knife block
Paper towel holder
Fiestaware Utensil Crock
VW Bus Cookie Jar with no cookies
Large enamel popcorn bowl to fill dogs water bowl

I should play along in my own post...

Keurig
plastic cups
baby wipes

utensil crock
cutting board (leaning behind utensil crock)
two tier basket
knife block

soap dispenser
dish drying rack

digital picture frame
toaster

~on island~ white fruit basket

When I designed our new kitchen about 6 years ago, I had it done in neutral tones so that any color of accessories would work well there. I love the bright colors of Old Mexico and so most of the year, it look like this:

Behind our corner sink:

To one side of my sink, I have a pottery bird planter to hold my dishtowel.

In the middle of my counter under the windows, I keep a cookbook stand and a storyteller statue. This is an old pic, as I see the outlet covers hadn't arrived yet. It still looks basically the same now, though:

Down to the left more, where the counter makes a turn and becomes the eating bar, I keep an old clock, a phone, and a framed little painting on an small stand:

To one side of my cooktop, I keep our coffeemaker and toaster. This is the best pic I have of that area. Sorry.

In this bar area of the kitchen I now have a large Talavera jar that I keep the dogs treats in and another small pic on an easel.

Everything plus the kitchen sink! Hardy har har!

Seriously, I keep everything on the counter top. I cook and use my small appliances almost everyday and hate having to pull things out all the time. I suppose to some it might be cluttered but I'm all about how the space functions and that's why I have miles of counter top space. Plenty of room to work and for all my junk!

I cannot stand counter clutter and am dreaming about the day we remodel our kitchen so I can be rid of most of it. In all honesty, it's not too bad in terms of things that are on the counter b/c I want them there, but it's the things my family accumulates on the counter that drive me nuts.

On my u-shaped counters w/one side as peninsula:
Toaster oven to the left of my range. To the right of my range, canister w/utensils, decorative olive oil w/spout for cooking, clear glass sugar/flour canisters and knife block. In the corner (bottom of U), Kitchenaid mixer and then to its right, next to/left of my sink is a small single serve coffee machine. To the right of my sink, nothing. On the peninsula, up against the wall is where all our paper/mail/etc accumulates. I HATE THIS AREA! I desperately need a separate command center away from my counter. And then on the open edge of my peninsula, a large bowl of garden vegetables (I keep a large bowl of fruit in the center of my kitchen table).

Now, aside from the paper clutter, the countertop does not really appear cluttered, even though it sounds like a lot is on it. But what drives me batty is that with four kids, I always have cups all over the counter to the right of my sink. Try as I might to limit my kids to ONE CUP per day, it's inevitable that there are usually a bunch of glasses there. But even if they each only have one, the visual clutter of the four glasses drives me bonkers. Top that with their personal stuff that they always leave on the peninsula, well, drives me insane. I cannot cook without having my counters completely clear, so it's so frustrating having crap on the peninsula - I usually end up prepping in the tiny space in b/w my range and sink.

Sigh. dreaming of a new kitchen with separate command center AND a spot by the fridge where kids can leave their daily cup when not in use but out of sight. I should point out that my sink is visible from the front door so the cups on the counter can be seen immediately upon entering my house which is partially why it drives me nuts!

since we had people over yesterday, my counters are about as uncluttered as they get right now.

I know that most people don't have an electric pencil sharpener on their counters, but my kids do their homework at our island, so it is frequently used.

Thank you all so much! I especially love the photos of the counters.

And oakleyok so sorry about your rooster :(

This post was edited by zoey75 on Wed, Jul 31, 13 at 18:23

I love how many (ha!) people posted pictures with their descriptions :) I did not cheat and purposefully clean up but looked tonight and thought, well it's not too bad....

It's not so much the counters but the island that gets cluttered. Give DH a horizontal surface and sheesh....! Though actually, most of the clutter is mine. Two WSJ's (haven't looked at yet), ceramic basket recently regifted by DD-exMIL (she deserves two dear dears :)), and misc. mail.

Best, oldbat2be

oldbat2be, I love the soft lighting in your kitchen.

There was a similar recent thread on the kitchen forum that I've linked below.

Our list is similar to everyone else's. These items are usually out on the counter:
Mixer
Coffee machine
Knife block
Salt & pepper
Utensil jug
Tea kettle
Roll of paper towels
End grain cutting board
Fruit bowl
Towel next to clean clean up sink with items drying

I don't think it looks too cluttered:

Toaster oven is in an appliance garage which is open 90% of the time since we use it daily.

Here is a link that might be useful: On your counters

I love looking at everyone's kitchens! So pretty and each so unique. Cluttered kitchens don't bother me . . . as long as it's not my kitchen (LOL).
I was laid up with a injured knee yesterday and didn't want to get up to take any new pics for this thread. But, I did take one this morning of the bar area the way it is now. The lidded jar is Talavera from Mexico. I store the dogs' treats, vitamins and any meds they might be taking in it.

Thanks pps7...going over to take a look. Beautiful kitchen pictures.

Thanks dbfirewife! I do like the kitchen at night. Lighting, we have a ton of..... horribly planned but all on dimmers. The light switch locations I'd thought we'd use regularly, we don't. To get the lighting right, it's a flick and dim here, then walk over there, do the same, then walk to the other side of the room.....Oh well.

At the far edge of the island, we have pendants hanging down from the sky light dormer, which illuminate the prep area. (That took a good three different types of lights before we found what we liked). We also continued the UCL lighting along the length of the front (interior) of the hood, otherwise that area would be dark(er) than the rest of the backsplash.

Lynn, I never tire of looking at your kitchen, especially those windows!

Today my rooster arrived, two days after the first one came broken into smithereens.

It's funny because when we remodeled the kitchen I was going for a retro look, checked floors and all. But it never felt retro and after doing a lot of "research" and looking at friend's homes, I noticed my kitchen was more french country than anything. I'm having a ball accessorizing!

Once again everything appears to look so small from my camera. The rooster and tray are a good size.

It will be my last rooster, because I have this one on the DR wall. I love how the colors match.

oldbat2be - I am in love with your kitchen and backsplash. Gorgeous!

It is still new, so the following is on the counters -- except for an occasional phone charger or snack box, nothing else has taken up permanent residence:
Container for dog stuff
Container for dog stuff
Container for coffee capsules
Toaster
Nespresso
Coffee Maker
Toaster
Soap Dispenser
Towel holder
Small box for fleur de sel
Ginger Jar (currently empty)
Vase on ledge
Banana Hammock (put away when we have no bananas...)
Soap Dispenser on Island

In addition, the nearby table has a fruit bowl and piggy salt & pepper shakers.

I would have liked to get rid of one of the coffee makers, as they are the bulkiest items. But items used daily had to stay on the counters, because I've found they tend to be left out. The plugs were designed so they could live low against the counters, so that the permanent appliances would hide the outlet covers.

I didn't have time to snap a new picture of the counters only this morning, but here is a representative montage.

Things are still shaking out post-remodel (well, nearly), but at the moment:

Coffee maker
Soda stream
Toaster oven
Salt/pepper grinders
Olive oil bottle
Paper towels
Garlic keeper
And by the sink is assorted scrubbers on a tray and a bottle of Dawn Direct (which we found by accident, but it is fantastic stuff!)

And any day now I have a hive shaped large honey pot coming from an Etsy vendor, can't wait to add that! It holds about 12 ounces, so should be nice for cooking as we use it for stir fry sauces.

I'm an avid cook, and I don't see the tools in my "laboratory" as clutter. Those things that I use frequently are kept out and accessible. I cook every day, and we entertain frequently.

oldbat2be - Would you mind telling me the name and finish of your kitchen cabinets?

Here's my kitchen

I tried to use stainless steel, silver and oil rubbed bronze with my decorating.

This post was edited by newhomebuilder on Fri, Aug 2, 13 at 15:14

Sorry...don't know why it posted multiple photos.

This post was edited by newhomebuilder on Fri, Aug 2, 13 at 15:15

Oooops!

This post was edited by newhomebuilder on Fri, Aug 2, 13 at 15:09

Last one deleted. So sorry!

This post was edited by newhomebuilder on Fri, Aug 2, 13 at 15:10