Pantries. Can we all just take a moment and reflect on the no-win situation they create? On one hand, we must have a place to store our canned goods and pantry items. On the other hand, having (and keeping) an organized pantry is quite the struggle. That’s why we need good, but practical, pantry organization options.
Now, while I love a good Pinterest binge, I often leave feeling demotivated and discouraged. If you’re like me and have a tiny, barely functional, or hard to maintain pantry space, then these six genius but practical ways to organize your pantry may bring you a little clarity!
Let Go of Perfection
How many organizing posts can I begin with this tip? There is a lot of buzz around the internet right now about becoming ‘deinfluenced.’ I think it’s brilliant. I, for one, have purchased way too many things that worked once, for that one person, and promised to make my like a living dream….and didn’t. It simply added to my clutter. I think it’s high time we start trusting ourselves to know our own spaces and determine what works for us!
The first step in that direction means letting go of the idea and the image of perfection. Here’s what I mean: These three images below are taken from thecontainerstore.com, target.com, and apartmentherapy.com. While these three pantries are beautiful, I can see so many points of failure. Having to dig through all the baskets to find what you are looking for, or maintain order in pursuit of an aesthetic simply doesn’t feel realistic to me. So where does one begin?
Think about the way you live
Before you can even begin to organize and create functional pantry organization, you must first think about the way you live. Are you an avid baker who creates cakes and cookies on a weekly basis? Are you an entertainer or host who needs serve ware at a moment’s notice? Are you someone who dislikes cooking altogether and simply wants to prepare a meal quickly and easily? Do you buy certain items in bulk? Do you need easy-to-access after school snacks you kids can reach independently? The way you answer those questions will help you determine what items need to be front and center, and which items can be stored elsewhere.
Ask yourself how you need your pantry to function and then do a little pre-organization exercise.
- Start with a clean slate. Empty your pantry onto your kitchen counter, island, or dining table.
- Group like items together. Canned goods, soups, seasoning packets, jarred sauces, dry goods, etc.
- Determine which items you reach for the most. For some it may be baking necessities; for others it may be pastas and sauces; for others it may be meal helpers. Whatever you reach for the most is where you need to begin.
Utilize functional storage options
What is a functional storage option? When it comes to pantry organization, each definition is going to be different. You have to decide what will work for your space, and what will not work for your space. Let me give you a couple of real-life examples.
- We had a small pantry in our house that measured 11 inches deep (not even a foot) by 3 feet wide. We were extremely limited on what we could store there because of space constraints. Given we had wire shelves, that only doubled our trouble. We found that small plastic bins from IKEA fit neatly on the shelves, didn’t take up unnecessary space, and kept small items from falling through the spaces to the floor below.
- In our apartment, we have very tall, and extremely deep pantry shelves. Because they are gray in color, it can be difficult to see and reach what may be stored in the back. The shelves are solid, which is a bonus, but they are narrow. While the baskets worked in the first pantry, they do not serve us at all in the apartment pantry.
Knowing what works for you and what doesn’t work for you will make pantry organization so much simpler, and will cost you less in the long run. Some items you may want to consider are:
- baskets
- bins
- dry good storage
- stacking shelves
- canned goods corals
Here is what we have to work with in our apartment pantry: This pantry is over eight feet high, has 6 shelf sections that reach nearly 2 feet deep. They are divided into an upper section of three and a lower section of three. The shelves are only 11 inches wide. We also have two small areas above the refrigerator.
To dive into this pantry organization project, I first cleared out every shelf. I grouped all my like items together, and then asked myself what I used most frequently. Then, as I began to put items back into the cabinets, I organized for function.
Prioritize what you use most frequently
As I considered what pantry items I used most frequently I set aside a few categories: canned goods, canned soups, and a few meal prep items like sauces and seasonings. The next category I set aside was pastas and jarred sauces. Finally, I set aside any ‘from scratch’ ingredients I frequently reach for like sugar, flour, bread crumbs, dried rice, bullion cubes, and pancake mix.
Here is the every day solutions I came up with. They aren’t pretty, we still have to stack a few select items, but our main shelves make common sense. Here’s what we have:
Because we frequently reach for things like sugar, flour, breadcrumbs, and rice, we decanted these items and stored them in the very back of the pantry shelf. We can still see what we have, and where it is.
In a small plastic bin we have chili seasonings, taco seasonings, ranch seasonings, etc.
Then, in the very front we have a small green basket that holds all of our spices. To the left of that is a clear bin that holds honeys, maple syrup, strawberry syrup, and vanilla.
These two front bins can be easily pulled out much like a drawer to reach items in the back more easily.
On the lower shelf beneath it, we have another green basket for soups, and still another green basket for canned goods. Most people like to stack their canned goods, but we find we can keep them more easily organized if we place them on their side, corralled within a small basket. Again, they pull out much like a drawer, and we can more easily see what is stored behind.
What is stored behind? Dried pasta, risotto, canned and jarred pasta sauces, and other ‘quick meal’ dinner helpers.
On the third ‘eye-level’ shelf we have things we reach for almost daily; things like breads, protein / breakfast bars, oats, pancake syrup, and peanut butter.
This allows us to reach in and access what we need in a flash, and we always know where things go when it’s time to put them back.
Store seldom used items in ‘out of reach’ places
This final section of our pantry really gave me a little trouble. We had more items than could fit neatly into one shelf. Several items were overstock, and a few were ‘in case of’ stock. Here’s what I mean and how we dealt with these issues.
First I separated these remaining items again. What was simply overstock? What items might I need access to with relatively little trouble? And what items did I just need to stash for later?
First, lets talk about the overstock.
I am a big advocate of having a couple weeks of food on hand in case of a snow emergency, a long bout of the flu, or other event that may keep you from getting to the store.
We keep all of those ‘extra’ items above our refrigerator. We don’t need to access them unless we NEED to access them. It’s out of the way, in fact, we need a step stool to reach them, so it’s a good solution for items we won’t need unless we need them.
Up here we have canned goods, dried goods, pasta, meal helpers, extra pasta, tea bags, and a few seasonings.
In the top upper cabinet, where we also need a step stool to reach – and where things in the back are nearly impossible to get to, we stored things like extra mayo, club soda, apple sauce, extra salad dressings, and bulk items.
When we need them, we can get to them, but they don’t take up valuable usable space in the cabinets below.
Finally, our very bottom pantry shelf. It is the most disorganized in sight, but it is actually very organized.
In the front basket, we have a few dessert type items. Hot cocoa, ginger snap cookies, chocolate bars, etc. This bin can be pulled out like a drawer, just like all the others.
Behind the basket is what I call an organized disaster! I ran out of storage bins and opted for gallon sized zip top bags.
In bag one is 1/3 bag of flour, 1/2 bag of brown sugar, and 1/2 bag of shredded coconut. In a second bag are things used in baking like chocolate chips, walnuts, pecans, etc.
And finally, we have any baking helpers like canned pumpkin, cake mixes, and frosting.
These items are not used frequently, but we need easy access if / when we need a dessert. This makes baking and clean up a breeze, and these bulky items do not take up necessary space.
Final takeaway
My best advice to you when organizing or reorganizing your pantry is to know what works for you and what doesn’t. For example, a tiered spice stand would be ideal for all those bottles. But one tiered tray would be all I could fit on that shelf. Ask me how I know!
Another brilliant organizing solution is a turntable. Again, I could potentially fit several cans or jars on one of those little gems, but that would be all I could fit on that shelf. Again…. ask me how I know.
Some of this is all trial and error. I suggest shopping your house first before buying any organizing solutions. It may be you already have a few plastic baskets or bins that would serve you well. They may not be Pinterest perfect solutions, but who is using your pantry anyway? You are! Make it function for you!
Additional Resources:
If you’re still looking for pantry organization solutions, here are a few I’ve tried. Some have worked for me; others haven’t. But that doesn’t mean they won’t work for you! Best of luck! Please leave a comment and let me know your favorite pantry organizing solution.
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Amazing organizing ideas! Love the pantry solution!!!!
Happy day friend!
KariAnne
Thanks, KariAnne. Pantries are always a work in progress 🙂