How to Organize a Pantry Step by Step
Disorganization leads to stress in all areas of your life. It can affect work, relationships, and even your finances. Organizing your home and belongings is a wonderful and self-sustaining first step to improving your overall quality of life.
For now, let’s start with an area of your home you rummage around in every day: your pantry.
An organized and streamlined pantry can not only prevent stress, but it can also save you time and money. Think of all the times you’ve gone to the grocery store and purchased duplicate items or ingredients you already had in your pantry and didn’t need!
Let’s break down pantry organization into four simple steps:
1. Take Inventory
To streamline your pantry, start from square one. Taking everything out sounds like a time-consuming task, but simultaneously taking inventory of what you have will save you time and money when everything is back in its newly organized spot. This is also a great time to put items on your shopping list and restock your food supply.
An added bonus: Your trips to the grocery store will be short and sweet!
2. Organizational Tools
Having a place for everything is key. Pull out baskets for produce, bags of chips and more will save you time and energy. Place your most reached-for items at eye level for an easy access storage solution. Drawers are the perfect spot for items such as napkins and linen napkin holders. Packing lunches, grabbing a snack before an important work meeting, or whipping up dinner before soccer practice has never been so easy.
Another great product to have in your pantry is a tiered Lazy Susan. Cans and spices can be stored on different levels of the Lazy Susan and rotated independently so nothing gets pushed to the depths of your pantry. You’ll always be able to see exactly what you have and what you need.
Note: Your pantry can be built to fit your lifestyle. If you’re a wine connoisseur, built-in wine storage can save you space while keeping your most cherished bottles safe and secure.
If you love to host, a pull-out linen holder keeps your linens stored so they stay in the best shape and hold up for years to come.
Slide-out racks are perfect for storing your serving trays and cookie sheets for the avid chef or baker in your home.
Bulky appliances can be stored on a corner shelf when they’re not being used to save counter space.
Finally, tiered risers on solitary shelves can save space while making everything you need visible and readily accessible.
Noticing a theme here? Being able to see what you have and know where everything is will help you create an organized, clutter-free pantry.
3. Wipe It All Down
Take the time to clean out and wipe down your pantry. Rarely will you have empty shelves to work from and easy access to all the nooks and crannies, so take this opportunity to wipe down the shelves and clean off any dust and food debris. When you do a thorough cleaning from the start, you’ll seldomly need a full pantry clean-out again.
4. Put It All Back
At this point, you’re in the home stretch!
Begin by pairing similar items together. It’s silly to do all the work just to go back and throw items in random places.
Cans store perfectly on tiered risers with labels facing out so you never have to hope you have beans or tomato sauce again.
Lazy Susans are great for various spices with similar packaging—think cereals, snacks, and syrups or sauces. You can even leave healthier options at eye level so you’re more likely to reach for a wholesome snack. Similarly, store kids’ snacks lower on the tiers to make snack time easily accessible for your little ones.
Use those slide-out baskets for shelf-stable produce, like apples and potatoes.
Utilize pie-shaped corner shelves and slide-out racks for cookie and baking supplies, such as trays and appliances.
Still Feel Disorganized?
For more creative ideas to help maximize & organize the space in your pantry, no matter the size, schedule a free consultation with our team! We can help you create a unique storage space that both looks great and exceeds your expectations.
