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A well-organized pantry is a must for every home cook. As you might know all too well, being an out-of-sight, out-of-mind catchall for half-empty cans, spare plastic bags, and more needless clutter is all too common for the pantry spaces in our homes. Smart pantry organization can change all that. And as the busy season for many kitchens approaches – aka the winter holidays – an organized pantry will be a huge help.
To organize your pantry it is important to designate a specific place to store all your canned goods, baking products, and specialty kitchen appliances, regardless of whether you have a small corner to fill or an entire kitchen closet at your disposal.
As a pantry organizing fan – really – here I wanted to offer you some ideas for pantry organization to encourage you to get your shelves in order so that it can finally be as easy to prepare weeknight dinners, put away groceries, and prep snacks for school lunches as opening the pantry door. Even better: Most of these clever tips and tricks will work in the rest of your kitchen, so you can keep the organized flow going throughout the whole space.
Declutter and Keep Decluttering
Canned goods are a staple in pantries for their long shelf life, but this often leads to an overstock of forgotten items tucked away in the back corners. It’s not uncommon to find cans of fruit or vegetables purchased during a sale that seemed too good to pass up at the time and are now gathering dust. Those multiple cans of apple sauce and cranberry sauce that you’ve accumulated ‘just in case’ might have outlived their hypothetical usefulness.
Starting your pantry organization journey requires a decisive and practical approach to decluttering. Inspect expiration dates, consider your actual consumption habits, and make tough decisions about what stays and what goes. Holding on to what you genuinely use and need will pave the way for a more functional and efficient pantry space. This first step isn’t just about creating room; it’s about re-evaluating your needs and habits to maintain a pantry that serves your current lifestyle, not one of yesterday’s sales.
Make Use of Baskets on High and Low
Take advantage of vertical wall space by scattering baskets on high and low shelves, no matter if your pantry is out in the open or closed off in a room. Place seasonal products high up in the baskets (for example, Christmas cookie cutters) and, down below, kid-friendly basics. Shop carefully, and these baskets can even improve your kitchen decor as well as your pantry organization!
Keep Baking Essentials In Easy Reach
The pandemic lockdowns gave rise to an explosion in home baking, so if you are one of the many, many people now doing a lot more of it because you learned some great baking skills back then, it’s important that you keep all of your baking essentials within easy, organized reach.
Decant common ingredients into large glass jars with lids, such as flour, rice, brown sugar, pasta and so on, and place them, for easy access, on a middle shelf. Set up small glass jars full of more specialized ingredients—things like spices, nuts, and dried fruit—on a shelf above.
Add Decals to Your Jars
Keep better track of what’s in the jars in your pantry with cute, decorative decals that complement your personal style and kitchen decor. Pro tip: Use a dry-erase marker to jot down any expiration dates before you decant things into their container. This will make pantry clear-outs easier (if you need them in the future) and help ensure you are always cooking with fresh ingredients.
Keep Cans Visible
All the jars and cans in your pantry look exactly the same from the top up. You will find just what you need without any hassle when you organize them by category—fruits, vegetables, sauces, and more—in a pull-out wire rack or clear organizer box.
Build Your Own Baker’s Racks
Need more storage space than your pantry can offer? Try building your own baker’s racks.
To do this, take advantage of any spare kitchen space by adding a tall set of industrial wire shelves. You can soften the look with baskets with ease, although some people like the ‘naked’ look for a more contemporary kitchen look as they give off a’real’ commercial bakery vibe.
Label Everything
You can set yourself up for success by adding an easy-to-read, interchangeable label for every basket, jar, and bin. The same goes for your garbage and recycling containers. It does not really matter how you label things – a handheld label maker can be a good investment if lots of things need to be marked – as long as you make the effort to do it during your initial pantry organization sessions, and then keep up with the task going forward.
Did I mention I love pantry organization? 😂 If you need help organizing your pantry, whether you want to be involved in the process or just have us do it for you and explain it all when we’re done, we are here to help. Contact us via email here or call 832-271-7608 to book a pantry organization session today (before the holidays and all that extra cooking arrive!)
Working with Taya and her team is easy. You can book an appointment easily on her website, or contact her directly at 832-271-7608
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