Pantry Cabinet Organizers, Organize that Pantry Cabinet — Ahh, the pantry cabinet. It seems as if some people have no problems whatsoever keeping their pantry cabinets clean and orderly. However, if you are anything like most people, your kitchen pantry storage cabinet goes through changes along with everything else in your life.
As you try new foods, spices and grow your kitchen pantry fluxes and how things fit perfectly one time will not work again and again.
Take your main pantry cabinet for the kitchen, does it look the same now as it did 10 years ago, 5 years ago, a month ago? Mine doesn’t. Cereal is now where pans used to be and spices are where canned goods once were.
* Image via Flickr by Rubbermaid Products
Our pantry cabinets are a reflection of ourselves and the fluctuations that our lives go through. Though not a complicated home improvement project, having an organized pantry cabinet will definitely improve your life.
Pantry Cabinet Organizers, Organize that Pantry Cabinet
In order to organize your kitchen pantry cabinet, the “whole picture” must be taken into account. Cleaning out and organizing one pantry cabinet at a time will not help, you must do like cabinets together. For example if you have more than one cabinet that holds food then you will need to clean out and organize all of them at the same time, this includes your corner kitchen pantry cabinet.
1. Pull Everything Out of the Related Pantry Cabinets
I mean everything! Pull it all out and set it on your floor, kitchen table, countertops and wherever it will fit.
2. Clean the Pantry Cabinets
Take a clean wash cloth and wipe down each of the pantry cabinets you just emptied. If you notice an abundance of cobwebs and/or dust bunnies… first off, you should probably do this a little more often. More importantly though you should either add some lemon juice to your washcloth or use Lemon Pledge, PinSol or other cleaning product with Lemon added. Spiders and other dark pantry cabinet loving insects hate the smell and taste of lemon and will refuse to live anywhere that has it.
3. Categorize the Items You Pulled from Your Pantry Cabinet
Place baking products together, canned goods, cooking oils, boxed items, etc. I usually do this on the floor so there is more space and I can easily have each category separated from each other and at a glace can see how large specific categories are.
4. Sit Back and Analyze the Situation
Take a break, grab a glass of water or find a small snack and sit down in the kitchen. While you are stuck looking at the mess you have created whether you do it consciously or not, your mind will soon devise a way to put the puzzle pieces together. About the same time that you are done with your drink or snack your body should be motivated to return to work, putting things away in their new home.
5. Wipe off Each Item Before Putting it in the Pantry Cabinet
There is no sense in cleaning the pantry cabinet itself if you place a bunch of dusty cans and jars back into it. Use your clean wash cloth to quickly wipe off the dust from each item as you place it in its new home.
6. Expect Trial & Error!
Although your mind thought it came up with the perfect way to put things away some items may not fit where you had hoped they would fit. Don’t Panic! Simply take another break. Keep the items in the pantry cabinets that you have already put there. Sit back again and look at what has been put away and what is left needing a home. You may need to pull everything back out to put it in a better more suitable location. It is okay.
7. Use Pantry Organizers
If you have deep pantry cabinets that are hard to reach into, a pantry organizer may be perfect. There are many different types of pantry organizer systems on the market to fit any need. There are over the door pantry organizers as well as pantry door organizers that adhere to the door itself.
Can goods seem to be especially difficult to get and KEEP organized. A can organizer for the pantry is a wonderful way to keep your cans organized. There are a vast array of can organizers available that will do the trick without costing too much. This is a small investment that will keep your frustration level low for many years.
Before you run out and buy anything though, measure your pantry cabinets and get a good idea of what is going where so you will know what pantry organizers will work best for your needs.
8. Build or Buy an Extra Kitchen Pantry Cabinet Organizers
Pantry Cabinet Organizers — If no matter how you try to rearrange items in your pantry you come up with more things than space, you may need to consider adding cabinets. If you have the know-how it may be easiest and cheapest to build your own kitchen pantry cabinet. Keep in mind it does not have to be a wall mounted traditional cabinet or cupboard it could be a small shelf, stackable bins, a Baker’s rack, etc. You may even be able to find something around your house that you can slightly alter to make it functional for the kitchen.
If you do not feel comfortable with building your own pantry cabinet, you can purchase one of the many different styles available on the market. Or you can hire a woodworking specialist to build a custom cabinet for you.
9. Remember – You don’t Have to Store Everything in Your Kitchen!
Many of us have items in our kitchen that we rarely use. So why do we have them take up space in the kitchen? What about the turkey roasting pan that is only used during the holidays or the waffle maker, blender and other items that rarely make an appearance on your counter top? Organize them in easy to reach cabinets in another room like the garage, basement, or even in the storage shed. This will open up a lot of space in your kitchen pantry cabinet that you never realized you had because it was being filled by large appliances.
Keep in mind when you are choosing which appliances to move, how often you realistically use them. If you have a blender that gets pulled out once a month for parties, leave it in the kitchen. If your set of serving trays is only used for the Holidays, move them somewhere else. Wherever, you decide to move things to, be sure to keep all of it together. Life will get really confusing if you have a blender in your bathroom, a mixer in the garage and a bread maker in the basement. Find one spot for your less used items.
10. Step Back and Enjoy the View!
Once everything has been wiped off, cleaned and placed in its new home, relish the moment of a job well done. See, it wasn’t that hard to organize the kitchen cabinet pantry. Take pictures, text them and email them to friends and keep them around as a reminder of how good your organizing skills are. Then cook a huge dinner so that you can enjoy how easy everything in your pantry cabinet is to find!
You can readily find very functional pantry cabinet organizers at very reasonable prices from Amazon, with many items eligible for free shipping. Browse below and click on any item of interest to get more details.
