It is easy to accumulate a lot of stuff. In the mindset of “more is better” one discovers the truth that all the extras don’t necessarily add anything to life. Don’t get me wrong, I love The Container Store, but the irony isn’t lost on me that it is a store full of stuff to hold your stuff. Life would be simpler with less.  For example, sometimes I wish we could own just one set of bed sheets that gets washed and put right back on the bed so I don’t have to struggle to figure out how to fold a darn fitted sheet!  Also, they say that when you have a lot of clothing you seem to never wear, turn the hangers the opposite way until you wear them once, and if there are hangers still turned after a few months, donate those clothes.
This is what gave me the idea to assess the kitchen utensils we own in a similar way. Take a look at the number of spatulas we have.

How many do we really need?

On Friday night, my husband and I hosted a pre-event cocktail party for his fire department company. Upwards of 30 people were expected. If there is any occasion you put a lot of kitchen equipment to work, it is for this type of cooking event.  Yet I don’t know that we actually used that many different things.  We did confirm a suspicion that what we could benefit from more serving platters.

Here are a few pictures of the food.

Now, I have put a piece of blue tape on each utensil of questionable worthiness. As soon as I use one, the tape comes off. I marked the calendar for 4 months from now.  Items with blue tape remaining are in serious danger of eviction!