Take control of the space under your kitchen sink

1. Toss old products out.

• Get rid of all stained, encrusted and half-empty bottles of cleaning products. If you haven't used them up by now, chances are you never will. (Besides, chemicals in household cleaners lose their potency over a lengthy period of time.)

2. Pare down what's left.
You can do your basic kitchen cleaning with just 6 products:

• Liquid dishwashing detergent: gentle enough not to damage any surfaces, but good enough to get the job done.
• All-purpose cleaner: when you need some abrasive power, these products will do the job without harming any surface (except glass).
• Glass cleaner
• Degreasing cleaner

You'll also need a few tools for basic cleaning: a bucket, soft cloths, rubber gloves, and a scraping tool for stubborn stains; sometimes the edge of a plastic credit card is enough. For heavy scraping (to remove caked-on food, for example) I like a safety razor: always use it on an angle, and make sure you have a lubricating medium (such as oil or water) underneath.