As you can see, I have a VERY small pantry for a family of 7!
This has been a source of frustration ever since I moved into this house 2 years ago.
I have slowly learned that if you have a small pantry you must me creative and ORGANIZED to make it work.
For instance, I have had to be creative with storage and have dedicated some shelves in my laundry room right off of the kitchen for pantry type items. That is were I put a big basket full of all the chip bags for the boys lunches, along with jars of nuts, trail mix and Costco size fishy cracker box, etc. I have been organizing and overhauling that room too :)
I also have glass jars on my counter for flour, sugar, and brown sugar to save room (although--now with these changes in my pantry I probably have room).
I got rid of all the different containers for everything and used these IKEA jars instead. I can not believe the difference it has made! I have so much more room now that everything is a uniform size! Not to mentiion that now with the clear jars and labels, I can quickly and easily find anything I am looking for!
The baskets and cereal containers are from Walmart. I printed the labels here for free on cardstock. Then I laminated them and attached them with zipties or scrapbook dots (very strong). I left the labels for the cereal blank, so that I could write with a dry erase marker when we changed out the cereal.
The 'snack' basket is way up on the tops of the pantry so I have a little more control over the consumption of granola bars and such:)
I bought the turn table (lazy susan) for my oils and the expandable tiered shelf for my cans at Target. These were great purchases that have helped me easily find items on this small shelf that used to be such an unorganized mess!
I love this wire pantry door organizer that was already installed when I bought the house. I have seen them at Home Depot and Lowes and at very affordable prices. They really help add usable storage to a limited space. You really should check out all the options on the kitchen organizing isles at Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Lowes. There are some great products!
I am so glad I took the time and invested the money in organizing this space in my kitchen. It has made a HUGE difference and I LOVE it. I smile every time I open this door--and that never happened before!
Why did I wait so long to do this?
Next up organizing the spice/ baking cupboard!
Happy Monday!
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14 comments:
I've been trying to organize some cupboards. Love your ideas. Where did you get your white bins?
Hi Lori,
I bought the white bins at Walmart and Target. Both of those stores carry them in my area in 3 different sizes. Hope that helps! Good luck with your organizning:)
Your pantry looks great! I love all the Ikea containers and those cute labels. :)
I can't wait to see your post about the spice/baking cupboard. Mine is in desperate need of an overhaul ... I will definitely check back for that! :)
I'm inspired! It looks great!
I have the same-size pantry for my same-size family, and I agree, it has been a frustration to me. I've toyed with the idea of turning my half-bath, which is next to the kitchen, into a pantry, and my current pantry would be converted into part of a mud room. But what is more valuable? A half bath (we do have a full bath down the hall, but that half bath is so convenient for guests and for hand-washing before meals, etc), or a bigger pantry? I can't decide! Maybe I'll try some of your organizing ideas and see if it helps me love my pantry more! :)
I love it Mel!! I would totally smile too if my pantry looked like that! :) I guess I have too much room...I'm not motivated enough to get organized! haha! I love all the labels - it makes it all look so cheerful!
I loved your pantry organization. It inspires me to organize mine. Can you tell me what kind of jars you used from Ikea? Where did you get the containers for your oats?And also what containers do you use for your flour and sugars?
This has just got to be the most organised pantry that exists or at least one that I have EVER seen! Good job. I love it :)
I want to be like you when I grow up. :)
Wow, I am really needing to do this and you made it look so simple and functional. Do you want to come organize mine for me?! Thanks for the inspiration!
Love all the organization! I've been meaning to do my little pantry for quite awhile. I really just need to buckle down and do it. DO you a have bigger area where you keep more food downstairs? I can't decide what I want to keep upstairs besides cereal, bread, and basic baking needs... it looks like you have just one can of each of the more commonly used things in recipes. Maybe I'll do that, too. Anyway, it looks great! And I agree with Baba, your labels are very cheerful!
Thank you so much for posting this! We are a family of six with a small pantry and very little storage space in general. I look forward to implementing some of your ideas. :)
What do you have lining your shelves?
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