I Sent a Pro Organizer Photos of My Messy Fridge, and Her $7 Fix Changed Everything (It's So Smart!)

Table of Contents

I moved into my house five years ago and on the anniversary of our closing, everything went haywire. The furnace went kaput, our washing machine started acting funky, and the oven fan needed replacing. But worst of all was waking up to a warm fridge . As I cleaned up the melted ice cream and threw away curdled milk, my husband and I knew it was beyond repair. Despite it being another (unexpected) expense, we decided to upgrade.

While the new LG fridge was stunning, with fancy touches like craft ice and an InstaView window, this was our first time with a side-by-side fridge layout. It was tougher figuring out how to arrange and organize our food than I anticipated. My priority was to ensure our food was accessible so nothing went to waste, and I also wanted to make the best use of the drawers and use functional storage pieces .

My best option was to get an expert opinion! Enter: D'Nai Walker, founder of D'Clutter by D'Nai and The D'Clutter Method . I shared with her a few photos of my fridge and she was able to provide me with quick tips, tricks, and amazing product suggestions. The best part? Her ideas were helpful and super easy to implement.

Table of Contents

1. How a Pro Organizer Totally Rearranged My Fridge
   1. The Top Shelf
   2. The Second Shelf
   3. The Third Shelf
   4. The Fourth Shelf
   5. The Small Drawer
   6. The Large Drawer
   7. The Side Door

How a Pro Organizer Totally Rearranged My Fridge

When organizing a fridge, as with other areas in the kitchen and home, Walker says she likes to create zones , aka designated spaces for like items. And even though the narrow shelves of my new fridge were going to be a slight challenge, she wasn't daunted - taking me shelf by shelf, going from the top down, here's what she recommended:

The Top Shelf

Walker advised taking the eggs out of the carton and utilizing a narrow egg dispenser to take advantage of the vertical space. She also told me to use this shelf for tall bottles such as wine, milk cartons, or two-liter soda bottles.

Egg Holder for Fridge

Amazon

$15 (was $16)

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The Second Shelf

We zoned the second shelf for leftovers and other "eat first" items to reduce food waste . Walker suggested getting clear stackable drawers because they're handy for snacks such as my daughter's apple sauce, yogurt cups, and bars. Walker also said that hooking an under shelf drawer or two onto your fridge shelves is a great way to store deli meats and cheeses while freeing up space.

2 Pack Fridge Organizers and Storage with Pull out Drawer

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$26

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The Third Shelf

For the lefthand side, Walker said to use a lazy Susan turntable for other snack items like jars of pickles, hummus, or sour cream. "This will prevent you from having to move things to get items in the back," she says. Check out some other pro organizer-loved lazy Susans here .

YouCopia FridgeView Fridge Turntable

Amazon

$15

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The Fourth Shelf

One of my favorite suggestions from Walker was to remove sodas from their boxes and add a can dispenser on the right side of the shelf. She told me to place the cans of beers next to them in a row. She also suggested stacking the meats in two rows on the left, with the oldest in the front so it'd get eaten first.

Simple Houseware Soda Can Organizer for Pantry / Refrigerator

Amazon

$14 (was $18)

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How to Clean a Hat

The Small Drawer

Walker had me designate this produce drawer for fruits, and to store lemons or other loose items in a clear container so I can see everything at quick glance. This bin is another pro organizer favorite !

iDESIGN Linus Large Pantry Cube

The Container Store

$15 (was $20)

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The Large Drawer

Walker recommended this drawer be for vegetables. She also said to "file items on their sides from front to back so there's no need to dig." I couldn't believe how smart and simple this trick was!

The Side Door

For the shelves on the side door, Walker told me to remove dairy items because temperatures fluctuate there the most. She then told me how to group items together on each shelf like sauces, condiments, and other bottled items to make them easy to find.

The top shelf of the side door was reserved for jams and short jars while the shelf below should hold standard condiments, such as mustard, mayo, ketchup, and hot sauce. Shelf three is now for salad dressings and the bottom shelf is for any miscellaneous bottles. Walker also encouraged me not to be afraid to adjust shelf heights as a way to accommodate different bottle sizes.

What Happened After I Followed the Expert's Advice

I followed Walker's advice as best I could. I was amazed at how organizing my fridge and having a clear plan of where everything "lived" also changed my mindset - I've been much more apt to cook dinner at home rather than order out thanks to the newfound tidiness. I've also found myself grabbing a healthy snack like fruit or yogurt because I could easily see it and grab it rather than dig around, give up, and grab something salty from the pantry.

While cleaning out my fridge to make room for the bins, lazy Susan, and can dispenser, I discovered tons of expired food that got lost in the back. I had every intention of using those items but because they were hidden, I totally forgot about them and alas, they went to waste!

Additionally, I had never considered putting a lazy Susan in my fridge, which has been such a game-changer. It opens up so much space, and spinning it around to grab what I want is a really pleasant way to find ingredients, while also reducing food waste in my fridge. Similarly, taking things like soda cans out of the box and putting them into a dispenser was a brilliant idea. Beyond the space-saving, I now know when we're running low or even have too much, which keeps me from overbuying!

And as simple as it is, grouping the jars and bottles on the side door? I really don't know why I didn't think of that before. Salad dressings were mixed with pickled jalapeños, and ketchup was with lemon juice. It made things very tough to find, and often, I'd think we were out of something just to discover there were five half-used bottles scattered throughout the fridge.

This post originally appeared on The Kitchn. See it there: I Sent a Pro Organizer Photos of My Messy Fridge, and Her $7 Fix Changed Everything (It's So Smart!)

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