Pantry Re-Organization
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Since we moved in (4 months ago), items in the pantry have just been tossed around with no designated spot...aka: a messy disaster. It was time to put an end to this area of clutter, so Daddy was on duty with the kids for several hours while I got to work...I love to organize! It made sense to create/designate different sections in the pantry, so our family would know where to look for things.
The pantry in our home is located next to the mudroom on one side (where we enter the house from the garage & back door) and the kitchen on the other. When we designed our home, we wanted a walk-thru from the garage to mudroom to pantry to kitchen. It's great to have so much room just off of the kitchen for food storage. We placed our stand-up freezer in this area too.
Let me give you a tour of the newly organized pantry...
Top shelf: large boxed appliances (mostly for entertaining), candy jar and bulk items.
I formed a basket for guilty-snacks on the top shelf, that way the kids have to ask and won't be helping themselves anymore. Getting rid of all the packaging that comes with these snacks, freed up
alot of space in the pantry.
Cans...these used to be on a corner shelf of the pantry. The shelves are so deep, I couldn't even reach them. So they are moved to a much more accessible spot and organized into common groups (tomatoes, mushrooms, artichokes, beans, fruits, fish, etc.). I stock up on canned food when it's on sale and often don't keep any more than this on-hand. It's so easy now to do a quick check to see what I have before I head off to the grocery store.
Maybe if I ever learn to make sushi, I'll be able to use this can of
wasabi one day.
Snack Basket...we love chips in this house, not the most healthy choice but it could be worse. So like many
pantrys out there, ours always had half full bags of chips lying around in different spots. I consolidated them all into this large basket. It's great to have it all in one place now and if there is a spill of an open bag, it's just in the basket.
More Snacks...yep, we're
snackers! On the left we keep containers for tortilla & pita chips to keep them fresh. Microwave popcorn, ice cream cones, dried fruit, mini
oreos, goldfish &
trailmix. On the right a
separate container for mini & large marshmallows. I also created a
s'mores box (graham crackers & chocolate bars), so we can have a special treat at a moments notice.
This is a fun & yummy shelf!
Dry goods...Rice, lentils, pearl barley & oriental noodles live here.
Nuts...yep we're crazy about nuts! Containers for bulk nuts (for baking & putting on salads or to make our
homemade trail mix) & snack nuts too.
Condiments, sauces, soup & pasta.
Bottom shelf...I wanted a shelf the kids are able to access. Some bulk juice, peanut butter, honey & granola bars.
The basket on the left contains all of the ready-to-make mixes I keep on hand. T hey used to slip
thru the wire shelving, this is much better.
Also on the bottom shelf...crackers. I love to let the kids choose the crackers we are having for a snack.
Cereal...this used to be on the top shelf, which made no sense. Now the kids can go into the pantry and pick for
themselves what cereal they would like for breakfast or to have for a dry snack.
Next to the cereal: granola, instant oatmeal, brown sugar & bulk popcorn kernels.
On the floor...I decided to put a couple of baskets: one for reusable grocery bags & the kids' lunch kits, and one for bottled water (so you can grab one when you're heading out the door or to the vehicle).
I'm a bottled water snob, I only prefer Nestle Pure Water...the best tasting as far as I'm concerned. I always disliked looking at the half-opened case of water and trying to reach in to get a bottle, now the packaging is gone and the bottles are easily accessible.
Doggie basket...located next to Piper's (our dog) food & snack containers. This basket is where all the dog's miscellaneous items belong: 'to-go' container of food, toys, brush, dog towel, wipes (for dirty paws). I love that when I ask the kids to clean up Piper's toys, they know exactly where they go.
I actually had a good time organizing the pantry. Who knows how long it will look like this, but at least this is a start and we can update it as our food needs change. We are lucky to have such a nice space we call our pantry.
