copyright ©1999-2004
DigsMagazine.com.

The definite kitchen keepers are also pretty easy to pick out. Anything you use at least once a month should obviously stay put, as should any of the edibles that you're genuinely planning to consume. But if you last used that garlic press a year ago, is that sufficient grounds for keeping it in the kitchen arsenal? A few things to consider:

(1) Are you really planning to use this object again someday?
(2) If that someday is in a future far, far away, will it:

(A) genuinely make your kitchen work faster/simpler/better, and 
(B) will it be too expensive to just go buy yourself another one?

If the answer to 1 is really a no, question yourself no further. That apple-corer, the egg slicer, the salad spinner that gave you a callous on that one occasion when you tried to use it? If the objects in question aren't actually of use to you personally, say bye-bye, and place the object in your Donate/Sell box. If the answer to question 1 is a maybe, then hang onto the doodad only if its price would make it impossible for you to ever get your hands on a replacement, should the occasion ever arise where having the tool/appliance handy would genuinely make your life easier. Put it in regular storage if you think you'll use it maybe once a year, deep storage otherwise.

Of course, there's still all that stuff that we manage to accumulate that's useful, but not essential. Those promo bike bottles you've snagged through your yearly Walk for Hunger, Run for Breast Cancer, Skip for Whatever-itis? Sure, you've been known to bring them on hikes and picnics. But unless there's a really, really compelling reason why you need to have a different one for every day of the week, pick out your favorite, and place the rest in the donate box. The same goes for multiple sets of silverware -- there's really no need to have three different 12-piece place settings -- and the cheap pots and bakeware you got when you first left college and that you've been slowly replacing with better-quality versions. The one possible exception is glassware -- if you're a klutz like me, you probably break glasses on a semi-regular basis, which makes it a good idea to hang onto as much of your collection as space permits. If your cabinets are really jam-packed, either pack up your extra glasses and put them into deep storage, or build/buy open shelving or stemware racks to accommodate them.

sidle on this way for more

---------------------------> lounge . nourish . host . laze . home.