I decluttered the kitchen fairly recently, here's what worked for me.
First, go through the cabinets and countertops and pull out everything that you don't use. Be honest with yourself. If the cappucino machine hasn't been used in three years, you're never going to use it. If you have a can of cream of mushroom soup that you bought by accident and nobody in the house likes mushrooms, let it go. You'll never turn it into a crock pot meal for company. Food that's been up there so long it kind of frightens you? Toss it.
Second, go through again and pull out all appliances and gadgets that you honestly do use, but rarely. Pizzele iron that only gets used at Christmas? Deep fat fryer that you use every three or four months for fish and chips? Collect it all and put it in far-away storage, like attic or basement. For how rarely you use those things, it's not that tough to go retrieve them when you need them.
Now, decide what you want on your counter tops. Don't leave out anything you don't use almost daily. If you use your George Foreman Grill about once a week, put it in a cabinet. (There may be some exceptions based on size. I leave out my Kitchenaid mixer and large crock pot because they don't fit in any cabinet and I use them too often to go into the attic for them, even though I don't use them daily. However, they're also two of my most attractive appliances, and I do use them quite frequently.) Anything you don't want living on the countertops, find space for it in a cabinet. If you can't find enough space there, review your appliances again and banish a few more to the attic, or at least the hall closet. Don't leave a lot of small items out on the counter tops - you'll be constantly moving them out of the way to clean crumbs out from behind them.
Permanent residents of my countertops:
Large jar with a betta fish
Cup full of teaspoons
Stand for hanging bananas
Decorative bowl for catching odds and ends
Lazy susan with 4 glass jars full of flour, sugar, etc.
Dish drainer
Crock pot
Toaster oven
Basket full of spice jars that don't fit on shelves
Microwave (really only used as a breadbox. I never use the thing, I'd gladly get rid of it but dh likes it...)
Kitchenaid
Two cans full of loose tea
Jar of honey
Salt and pepper shakers
Knife blocks
Crock full of utensils that I use regularly at the stove
Turkey roaster (soon to go into the hall closet, I just don't use it often enough to justify the space. To be replaced with a fruit bowl that used to live in that spot, and did get used.)
: She takes over the kitchen every visit and I don't want to be so embarrassed this time with the clutter.
: That was 2 years ago. I also finally tamed the food storage containers cabinet. Lids, containers. What a mess! We have a collection of glass containers that are bigger in size, and a bunch of little plastic ones. I just got rid of most of the plastic ones because they are stained and many are missing lids.
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