One of the trickiest parts of any home renovation project is the seemingly endless list of decisions. As my family embarked on our long-awaited kitchen renovation, one choice I kept getting hung up on was our sink. Should we stick with a functional and traditional double-basin, or spring for a single-basin with space to wash larger dishes and more under-sink storage? It turns out the solution to my sink dilemma was shockingly simple: a $3 dishpan that’s revolutionized our kitchen workflow.
The Surprisingly Brilliant Hack
Before the renovation, I spent years with an outdated but extremely functional double-basin sink. Our family system was clear: stack and soak dishes on one side, keep the other side free for washing. When I looked at friends’ single-basin sinks, I noticed they inevitably wound up washing dishes on top of a pile of dirty ones—a workflow nightmare I wanted to avoid.
