We’ve all experienced the infamous “pantry crash”–where you open the cabinet door and seven spice containers immediately leap from the shelves and come crashing down on your head. It’s easy to blame the cabinets, or the spices, or the person who carelessly put them back on the shelves before. But what’s shockingly easier is maintaining a worry-free, easy-to-navigate pantry. Just look at this fab example we found fromBetter Homes & Gardens that turned a modestly sized kitchen into a chef’s heaven. Following these simple steps to reorganization can get you back in your kitchen and cooking in no time–without the added stress of a cluttered workspace!
Clear View. For easier access to things like cereal, flour, cookies and chips, nix the awkward boxes and bags and employ a collection of glass jars like this one from Crate & Barrel. Decorative glass jars make identifying food at a glance a cinch, and the presentation is so pretty, we’d recommend going sans pantry door to show off your stash! (Though, you might want to hide Mom’s infamous chocolate chip cookies when guests stop by.)
Divide and Conquer. To avoid having to dig through jars and bottles on each shelf at every meal, group ingredients and tools based on how you use them. For example, sugar, flour, baking powder and cinnamon are ingredients you’d most commonly use for baking, so they should be kept together. For added ease, store everything in a large basket that can easily be removed from the pantry when ready to use. We love the industrial look of Pottery Barn‘s wire basket, but for a softer look, a classic woven basket is a great choice.
Tag It. Attaching easy-to-read labels to each container, box or cubby in your pantry can make remembering (or, even better, eliminating the need to remember altogether!) where you stored the brown sugar that much easier. Try cute hanging labels, like these handmade distressed chalkboard tags from Etsy, for a solution that’s both fashionable and functional. (Bonus: the chalkboard paint makes them reusable.)
Upward Bound. Oftentimes, people make the mistake of using the height of a pantry cubby to stack cans and jars atop each other, yielding the bottom can virtually useless, as it’s commonly forgotten about. An easy solution is installing cabinet shelves or undershelf baskets, which allows easy access to each can and better visibility for everything in your pantry. The Container Store carries a wealth of organization options. We recommend the bamboo stacking shelves for their good looks and durability.
Let us know in the comments, do you have any pantry organization pet peeves that you’ve recently resolved?
