If you’re anything like I am, any storage areas that are behind closed doors are really messy. It’s easy to do when you can’t see the space at all times, like, say, your dining room. I am ashamed (okay, not all that ashamed) to say that I used to just toss stuff in there where ever it will fit after I get home from grocery shopping, too.
In all honesty, having a clean and organized pantry that is easy to navigate has made my life much easier. It makes cooking much easier because I can actually find what I need. It also helps prevent food waste, because it is easy to see what I have and what needs to be used before it goes bad. My only wish is that I would have organized my pantry sooner!
So if you’re ready to get your pantry in order, here are some pantry organization ideas to help you get your pantry looking great. This is a perfect little home improvement project for any rainy weekend!
Start Fresh
Before you can start on your way to a beautifully organized pantry, you need to start with a clean slate. Take everything out of the pantry. All of it.
While everything is out, go ahead and give your pantry a fresh coat of paint. You can do a nice basic white, or you can do any color you want, really. If you really want to get fancy with it, you can give your pantry an accent wall with wallpaper, a favorite paint color, or removable vinyl wall decals.
Sort All of It
It can be helpful to organize all of your pantry items before you start putting them back into the pantry. This is going to help you determine how many containers you will need, and what shelves should hold which items. A large dining room table would be a great place to do this, or you could clear off your kitchen counters and sort your items there.
For example, you should put all of your basic bulk items together, such as flour, sugar, and oats. I like to keep dry packaged food together, like pasta, rice, and other grains. Whatever makes the most sense for your kitchen. Keep going like this until you have all of your pantry items sorted into easy-to-understand categories.
Get a Bunch of Containers and Bins
Now that you’ve got everything sorted, it’s easy to see how many containers you need and what sizes. For some categories, like condiments or chips, they will be fine in large bins with labels. For everything else, like your baking ingredients or cereals, keep everything in clear containers that are properly labeled. The clear containers will help you easily see when it is time to restock.
If you have reusable grocery totes, paper towels, or other items that need to be stored in your pantry, try putting small caster wheels on the bottom of bins to put under the bottom shelf in your pantry. This will help make use of that space and keep items from piling up on the floor. The wheels will make it super easy to get the bin in and out.
Keep it Up
That’s it! Now all you have to do is keep up with your organization system. If the way that you sorted food into bins isn’t working, you can always take everything out and start over with new categories again.
I hope that these kitchen pantry organization ideas help you get started toward a neat and tidy pantry! It’s the kind of home improvement that is extremely low in cost.
Kat Sweet
Add comment