Organize Your China Cabinet
I got boxes and started one for dishes to give to family members, and one for dishes and ornaments to donate to the thrift shop. If you have garage sales you might start a garage sale box as dishes are something many people look for.
I have to admit, I found it a bit hard to part with some of the contents. I kept all my old things and most of the serving dishes; but I was quite ruthless in getting rid of odd glasses and tea cups. Most of those went to other family members and the rest I donated to a local charity for their yearly sale. The thrift shop got their share as well.
After taking out the china, I wiped down the inside from top to bottom. While the cupboard was airing out, I washed everything by hand in the sink, dried it well and put the things I wanted to keep back on the shelves. I must say it does look good, and I feel much better now that I can enjoy looking at nice tidy shelves with only the nicest things displayed.
Parting with the excess china was the hardest part of the cleaning and organizing job; but, now everything I have looks much nicer and I can find what I want very quickly. I plan on doing this every six months. Hopefully, it won't become a catch-all again.
Tips for storing your china
When stacking plates, always put something between them. I use a large coffee filter, it prevents the finish from being damaged. Many old dishes are hand painted and sliding a plate on top of another can scratch the paint. You can also use paper towels but I find that the round coffee filter is just perfect.
If you have matching sets of stemmed wine glasses arrange them on the shelf so one is turned up and the one next to it is upside down. This allows for the glasses to fit together and you can store more of them this way. Consider getting a fitting for the top inside 'ceiling' of your cupboard like they have in bars where the bottom of the stem of the wine glass can be slid in to hang upside down, thereby freeing up shelf space below.
Speaking of wine, can you believe there were about 10 corks saved in a jar? You know, of course, that they never fit any other bottle
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