As much as we love a good full gut before and after remodel, don’t discredit smaller projects that can have a huge impact on function.  One of the small builds we recently completed for the kitchen in a stand alone vertical divider to easily store and sort cutting boards, baking sheets, and other slim items.  When organizing a kitchen, I try to keep items as close to the place they’re used as possible.  The cabinet above our double ovens had never been maximized and sat mostly empty until we added this handy compartment.

To get started on this, we measured the smallest inside dimensions of the cabinet and built a self-contained box to fit inside.  Rather than taking up the entire cabinet, we built it 16 inches wide, creating four 4 inch compartments.

To create the compartments, we cut pieces of 1/2 inch MDF to fit between, using a piece of scrap material and dimes to space.

The dimes allow wiggle room for the painted verticals to easily slide in and out without sticking.  Pieces of 1/2 inch MDF also function as the dividers.

By cutting those pieces a little small, the boards come out without needing to get serious muscle involved.

Once in the cabinet, I loaded it up each compartment sorting cookie sheets, plastic cutting boards, wood cutting boards, and muffin tins and cooling racks.  All things that are light weight and not breakable, but don’t stack well or fit easily in other cabinets.

This freed up the drawer below for our heavier glass baking dishes that nestle in.  Such a simple project that really upped the usability of the kitchen and put a higher cabinet to good use.  Do you have a favorite quick organizer you’d like to share with us?