Pantry Perfection Take 2

Several years ago I did an overhaul on my pantry that revolutionized the way my family can find things in there. It has worked very well but now that my kids are older that means they are in charge of getting their own snacks and packing their own lunches and so I knew it was time for a change. Plus, there were some elements that needed tweaking for myself as well. Organization is a process after all. Sometimes the system needs to adapt and grow just like we all do.:)

I started with the bottom row of the pantry AKA the "snack bins". Originally, I had put all snacks into four different bins. I tried to organize them by category but they mostly didn't stay that way. And while everything is contained you can see that things were spilling out. Another problem that occurred was my kids were awful at using up a snack and then putting the empty box back in. When I'd make my grocery list I'd check the pantry, see the box, and assume that there was still that particular snack. It led to extra trips to the store and things taking up space that didn't need to. Kinda annoying really. 😕 So I got to work!

First I cleaned out all the snack bins and tossed stuff that was empty or old. That is the first must in any organization project! You don't want to store unneeded things! Next I went to the store and found clear shoe box containers for $1.50 each. Then I took all the snacks out of their boxes and put them into the containers by category. My thinking was if the snacks were in clear boxes I could see easily how many were still there which would help with grocery shopping.

With this method I can now fit ten boxes where there used to only be three! They look great and I was able to customize it perfectly for my family's needs. Now everyone can find the exact snack they need and I can see when I need to buy more of a specific thing.

The labels are an essential part to organization. It helps everyone find what they are looking for quickly! A friend of mine told me she has a similar method for snacks except she made a bin for each kid. I like that too!

With the kid section under control once again, I turned to the next section of the pantry that needed some help... The baking section. If you recall from my previous pantry post I have my pantry divided into zones: cooking, baking, breakfast, snacks, and then the floor hosts large objects that don't fit on the shelves. Still thinking on how to keep that more organized. ;)

The baking section of the pantry worked okay-ish, I had divided the spices up by tall and short and written their names on the lids. That helped a lot but I was still doing too much searching when looking for a specific spice or herb. So I began researching spice racks that don't take up a lot of space.

That's when I found this "beautious" (quoting my daughter Aftyn) thing! It's a spice rack that mounts to the inside of the pantry door!! I bought some clear spice jars and labels and suddenly finding the right spice has become so quick and easy! For one thing they are alphabetized and they are in clear jars so I always know when I'm about to run out. And I absolutely adored the "farmhousey" chicken wire style. Love, Love, Love!

With that taken care of, I turned to the rest of the miscellaneous baking items that used to be in a messy bin. I read about mini lazy susans in a January issue of Better Homes and Gardens (guys, if you are needing organization ideas check out January issues of homemaking magazines. They always have great tips!) I bought two mini lazy susans from amazon and put all my other small baking things on them. Now when I am looking for something, all it takes is a quick swivel! The baking chips are set snugly next to them in another clear bin for more easy access.

Doing those two easy things opened up a lot of space in my little corner pantry and I was able to slide my baking sugar and other canisters into the corner. Then I made a bin just for baking mixes, then another for bulk spices, and finally a shallow basket for cooking oils. Baking zone all done!😇

One more tweak. Originally I had been storing cans in two bins which kept them contained but made it difficult to find what I was looking for. I finally decided it was time for a can rack. It's a little big so I had to put it up on the top shelf in the pantry which I thought might be a pain because I'm not that tall but you know what? I like it where it is because I can look up through the rack and see what I need to get for dinner. 

Confession: I did all these projects at the beginning of 2019. 😳 I meant to blog about it but never got around to it. Life with five kids tends to be busy, y'all. But I'm kinda glad that I've waited until now because that means I've had my new ideas in place for a whole year and that's given us all a lot of time to see how well they work. Well, let me tell ya, they've all worked out great! I LOVE the spice rack and I'm keeping up so much better with the snack situation. All in all, it was time and money well spent!

I hope my ideas can work for you too!