'This $42 hack gave me back my kitchen bench space.'

I've never claimed to be a neat and tidy person.

In fact, I'm famously quite the opposite.

I have too much stuff, and trying to sort through it all overwhelms me. But I've been on a bit of a clearning/tidying/decluttering blitz lately and it seems to be kind of working out for me. Albeit… very slowly.

One of the main scapegoats for my disorganised bulls**t is my smaller-than-a-shoebox kitchen.

It's miniature.

Teeny weeny.

I don't want to give it a complex, but honestly, there is zero big kitchen energy at my place. You don't walk from one side of the kitchen to the other because you are at both sides when you're standing in the middle.

Are you picking up what I'm putting down?

Now, let's do some home maths together.

Interminably Smol Kitchen + Unbelievably Messy Gewl Who Is Tip-Toeing The Line Of Hoarder Tendencies = You Can Probably Make A Good Guess About The State Of The Limited Bench Space In My Kitchen.

In case you can't, I'll give you a hint: it's a hot mess.

Every inch of every surface is covered. (In my defence, there aren't many surfaces to cover, but still.)

Because I don't have much in the way of built-in bench space (even without all the clutter atop it) I brought in a little portable kitchen island from IKEA, which is great, because after I did that I had even more bench space to dump things on and make a mess of???

I just can't with myself sometimes, honestly.

I can't believe I'm putting this online for the world to see. Pls try to hold your judgement. Image: Supplied.

But! BUT.

As I mentioned, I've been on a bit of a mission lately to become a Real Functioning Adult with a Tidy Home, and to that end, I've been diving deep into TikTok kitchen storage hacks late at night.

And friends, I found one. Actually, credit where credit's due, my cousin (who has a much tidier home than me) sent me a post of the cleverest, most delightful, and (my favourite bit) inexpensive tiny kitchen ideas on a budget ever.

This DIY kitchen organisation hack involved just three items, and minimal assembly. Zero tools required.

I sat on it for a while before putting the plan into action — not because it was carpentry know-how, but because this hack is so good, the main parts I needed have been sold out for literal months.

Here, let me show you how it looks now:

To create this organisational masterpiece, I picked up two floor caddies from Target, at $15 each — a steal. Then I took myself to Bunnings, chose a nice-looking plank of wood, had the helpful team trim it to size. And, voila: instant storage.

I got home, cleared all the crap off the kitchen island (throwing a few things out along the way, because I do aspire to have less crap) and "built" my new shelves.

And I have never been more excited about an easy at-home project.

Watch a TIkTokker recreate the caddy shelving hack. post continues below.

If you look at "viral kitchen caddy hack", you'll see heaps of people putting their own spin on this nifty space-creating idea. If you need some extra storage in your home office, set it up on your desk. If you need extra shelves, grab two planks of wood to create a second ledge. (This would make a very cute bookshelf, I reckon.)

Here's everything you'll need for the "build":

Target 3-Tier Floor Caddy, $15.

Three-tier floor caddy. Image: Target.

Full disclosure, they have exactly the same caddy (same brand, same price, same everything) at Kmart, so if you can't find them at Target, you know where to look.

You can obviously use any caddy you like, it doesn't have to be this one. Ikea, Kmart, Temple & Webster… they all have cute caddies you can pick from. But the advantage with this particular style is the open sides, which allow you to slide that plank of wood on in without losing the storage at the top of the caddy.

As for the wooden plank, I picked up a piece of Bunnings Treated Pine for $12.85/metre. But you could also grab some pre-made floating shelves (just check they'll fit through the space at the side of the top tier of the caddy.

Oh also, a word of warning: I selected a piece of pine that was the perfect size to go through the short end of the caddy — the width and not the depth/length.

It's no big deal, in the grand scheme of things. I suppose. The shelf still works and all, but it does kind of annoy me and my detail-hyperfocused brain that the wooden shelf is a few centimetres narrower than the caddy basket.

I wasn't prepared to go and buy a second, slightly wider piece of wood just because I made a measurement mistake. But if this is the kind of thing that would annoy you, be sure to pick the right plank!

What do you think of this hack? Would you give it a go? Let us know in the comments below!

Alix Nicholson is Mamamia's Senior Weekend Editor. For more of her home chaos hacks, follow her on Instagram or TikTok, or check out here other Mamamia articles here.

Feature image: Supplied.