Keeping Your Fridge Tidy

Dear Katie & Kelly: My fridge is a disaster area and always seems that way within a few hours of me cleaning it. As a Classic, it annoys me to no end. Any tips on how to keep it organized? Annoyed in Astoria

Dear Annoyed: Messy fridges are Classic Kelly’s pet peeve too. Labels can work and are worth trying. But, the real key is to walk everyone through where things go. You also need fridge bins. Which ones to get varies by fridge and core staples but The Container Store is our go-to place for them. We’ve found that the main problem with maintaining fridge organization is leftovers. Then there’s always new grocery items that don’t fit into the old scheme. To accommodate these items (and keep the organization system you’ve created) it means you often have to keep areas of your fridge empty. Otherwise, yes, someone is going to put a takeout food container on top of your neatly lined up yogurts.

One easy place to keep free is an extra door bin down low. It’s an inconvenient spot to store things but perfect for temporary items that will not be taking up permanent residence. Finally, remember that the image that we’ve included here is staged for a photo shoot. It’s the rare bird who keeps his/hers looking that good. It also takes a lot of work because you often have to take things OUT of packaging to achieve a beautifully styled refrigerator. Often not worth it to many personality types.