Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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How To Organize A Pantry

Let the pantry party commence! I never thought organizing a space that sat behind a closed door 90% of the time could be so cathartic, but working on this pantry with Sherry has made us both feel like the whole kitchen – nay, the whole house – is more functional. Clearly it has even made us more prone to hyperbole.

Pantry-Adding-Storage-And-Microwave

First we got an outlet added, switched up some shelves, and moved the microwave in. Next we moved the trash out. Then it was time for a few fresh coats of primer and paint.

Pantry2 1 Painted

Sherry and I briefly debated choosing a happy or bold color in there (either on the walls or the shelves or both), but with all the colorful food labels that end up in a pantry we decided white made sense to keep things as calm as possible – especially since we don’t have a light in there, so we didn’t want it to get too shadowy or dark in the back corners.

So we removed all of the shelves and lined them up in the dining room. Note the strip of painter’s tape so they could lean without marking the wall. It took one coat of primer (Kilz Premium) and three coats of paint (Advance paint in Simply White, leftover from the kitchen cabinets) which we applied with a small foam roller for the most part, although we did break out a brush for the trim and corners in the pantry.

Pantry2 2 Painting Shelves

Once the shelves, walls, and trim dried, we put things back together and rehung the door, which we removed for easier priming and painting access. Each shelf was made up of two boards, but after a fair amount of debate and experimentation, we opted to only use one board for the two upper shelves. We decided that shorter depth would prevent things from getting pushed way back where we couldn’t see / reach / use them anymore.

Pantry2 3 Microwave Back In

Next up, we added this $35 back-of-the-door wire shelf system since no fewer than two dozen of you recommended it in the comments of this post. It can be hung over the door, but we opted to screw it directly into the door (using anchors whenever it didn’t hit something solid) so we wouldn’t have any hooks peeking over the door when it was closed.

Pantry2 4 ClosetMaid Shelves

We still wanted to do something to make the bottom area of the pantry work harder (since the trash can was no longer hogging all of the space), but before we made any decisions we figured it would be smart to load things back in and see what sort of help we still needed down there.

Pantry2 5 First Load In

We debated some vertical dividers, or maybe some stacked bins, but ultimately decided that another shelf would do the trick for now. Thankfully it was pretty speedy to add one because we already had two spare boards ready to go (since we only added one to make those two top shelves shallower, that left us with two extras that were already primed and painted). So I just screwed a couple of wood strips to the walls (like I did in this post) and in no time we had a spot for paper towels and cloth napkins (those were in the laundry, so they’re MIA in these pics).

Pantry2 6 New Shelf

You’ll note the two under-shelf wire baskets that are also helping maximize the space, which came as part of this $15 shelf organizer set. We like that they allow us to compartmentalize the shelf a bit more without having to add more permanent systems (the wire cubbies just slide on and off, and we can remove them or place them somewhere else if we want to reconfigure things down the line).

Pantry2 10 Detail Paper Towels

It’s looking a little sparse in there because we have to go shopping again pretty soon. Or maybe it just looks that way because we suddenly have so much more storage space in there? Either way, by the end of this little pantry re-org, Sherry and I were both itching to go to the store just to see how much more we could cram in there. Maybe tonight’s the night…

Pantry2 7 Detail Full

On the top shelf we put baking items and meal items, including things like bread crumbs, boxed rice, brown sugar, and baking soda. On the right there’s also a box that contains sprinkles and icing for decorating cookies and cupcakes. Below that is a shelf that we devoted to snacks, cereals, and other boxed items like oatmeal, granola, and crackers. Then below that one, on our narrow shelf, we lined up all of our shorter items, like cans and jars of soup, salsa, peanut butter, tuna, etc.

Pantry2 14 Detail Straight On LABELS

The wire shelves that gave us a little bit of extra stacked storage were part of the same 5-piece set that included the two under-shelf baskets that I called out a few paragraphs ago. And the fifth piece from that same set was a wire basket that hangs against a wall or inside a cabinet door. We screwed ours into the side wall to store spare plastic bags. It’s so much nicer than the giant bin on the floor that we used to haphazardly toss them into.

Pantry2 12 Detail Plastic Bags

Oh and although a ton of Pinterest pantries have awesome glass or plastic containers like these (which are from The Container Store), we thought long and hard about how we really live and decided that even though we have some clear containers already on hand (like the ones you see in this shot of our first house’s makeshift “pantry’) it felt like they’d be more for show than anything else. We tend to go through things fast enough within their own packaging, so putting them in pretty jars just didn’t feel like something we’d honestly keep up with these days.

Containers

But back to the pantry. The wall across from our plastic-bag-holding wire bin has a similar spot where we could hang something else, but it’s empty for now, at least until we have a specific use for it. You’ll also notice some empty shelf space in front of the cans. We can always use it if our can & jar stock expands, but for now it’s mostly to protect the top of the microwave from anything that might “jump” off one of the top shelves. It has also proven helpful as a spot to temporarily put things down or spread them out while we’re organizing or looking for something.

Pantry2 13 Detail Other Side

And thanks to the narrower shelves on top of that one, it’s still easy to grab those cans and see what we have (we stacked the same items in front of each other, so there’s nothing different lurking in the back that we’ll forget about).

We used our new door-hanging system to stock the items that would most easily fit into those baskets (they’re only 5″ wide). So it mostly ended up being random stuff like tea-and-coffee-related items on those top two shelves, along with a shelf for nuts and other snacks, one for pasta, and one for other items like granola bars.  There are still a couple of leftover baskets from the set that we could have hung, but we found that cramping the shelves closer just made it tougher to access things. So we’ll add those extras if we need to down the line, but for now it’s nice to have some space above the long boxes of pasta to actually pull them out without banging into another shelf right above them.

Pantry2 8 Detail Door

We also dedicated one shelf to some Clara snacks, which are right at her height, so she can help herself. She already loves ducking into the fridge to get packs of carrots or little containers of hummus that we keep on a shelf in there for her, so having a snack-zone in the pantry has been a big hit as well. We also appreciate that this shelf is full of easy-to-grab items for packing preschool snacks more quickly in the morning.

Pantry2 9 Detail Clara Snacks

The space that will probably evolve a bit more for us is the floor. We didn’t end up doing anything except adding a basket (that had previously housed our plastic bags) to corral big packages of a few bulk items, and tossing down a couple extra-tall cereal boxes before they’re called into action (i.e. poured into the glass containers that we keep on the counter). But this probably foreshadows the purpose of this area as a spot to house more bulk items. For example, now that our pantry feels under control, I’m tempted to stock up on some things. Nothing too crazy, but it’s nice to have a little “growing room” down there.

Pantry2 11 Detail Floor

So besides fine tuning the floor area and seeing how it functions after a grocery trip, we’d consider this pantry makeover complete. And now I have the urge to go organize something else. Wait, am I nesting?

Pantry2 Before After

What did you guys do this weekend? Did anyone else who got snowed in end up organizing or re-thinking how a cabinet or closet works for your family? Are you now craving Nutella or Craisins? Ain’t no shame in that, my friend.

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Comments

  3. Lisa | Winter Heights says

    Awesome awesome awesome guys, and organization can’t help but feel amazing. This weekend I found us 4 solid wood dining chairs on craigslist for $35! Planning on painting them white, but I’m just baffled over the deal of them! Craig did us good. :))

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s awesome, congrats Lisa! This weekend we found a few awesome secondhand scores that we can’t wait to makeover for the showhouse! Must have been some good thrifting mojo in the air…

      xo
      s

  4. Bethany says

    Looks awesome! Have you thought at all about building rolling drawers that pull out on each shelf? My hubby swears he’s going to make those for me (we have two large pantries) because we always end up losing stuff in the back. Hasn’t happened yet, though… ;)

    Reply

  6. Teresa @ wherelovemeetslife says

    Looks awesome. Can I ask how you store your paper and plastic bags? We currently use an IKEA bag holder for our plastic, but the paper bags are just folded and slid next to our recycling bin. I’m always curious how others do it.

    And this weekend was another productive one. I finally painted the rest of teh master bedroom after 2 years of having only one wall done. yup.. 2 years. Started the project, got pregnant and all desire to pick up anything for DIY fled my body. :) Back on it again.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Our paper bags are folded flat next to the trash can we installed in the cabinet last week (it’s where we’re putting recycling stuff so far) and our plastic bags are in a new wire bin that we added to the side wall in the pantry – that’s in this post for ya :)

      xo
      s

  7. sarina says

    Hmmm.. I was totally having pantry envy when I saw that door rack! I think I just figured out a cool way for me to use it though. I will need to measure a little bit.. but they just might fit the back of some lower cavernous cabinets.. I could just cut the height to fit!

    I am so needing those undershelf baskets too.. that seems like a great deal. Were these things in stock at Lowes? or did you have to order them online. I was in HomeDepot this past weekend and the one on Broad Street doesn’t seem to have much in stock.. in fact a lot of their stock is old..very dusty!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yes, both of those systems were in stock at Lowe’s right in the shelving/org aisle. And as for cutting the door rack, it comes in small sections so you might not even need to cut it, you could just leave off the top section. Hope it helps!

      xo
      s

  8. Jess @ Little House. Big Heart. says

    I’ve got pantry envy, now. I also have ammunition. I’ve been trying to convince the hubs we should move our over-the-stove microwave to the pantry and add a pretty range hood. You know, for resale’s sake. :) Now I can add: “See, YHL has theirs in the pantry.”

    We shirked all our Little House projects and drove down to San Antonio to go camping this weekend!

    Reply

  9. Sara says

    Wow! The pantry looks great! It’s amazing what paint and organization can do! It looks so crisp now. I love all of the growing room too!

    I started organizing our bathroom closet. Progress was made, but I still have a lot more to do. Always.. HA!

    Reply

  10. Rachel says

    Hold. On. What is going on with the dining room built ins? Did I see a fancy paper in there? I thought you took out all the wallpaper? Am I forgetting a post where they got a fancy paper treatment? Is this going to go ignored for future post reasons? SO MANY QUESTIONS ABOUT PAPER!

    Pantry looks awesome btw :)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha, I wish it was something exciting! Alas, that’s still just the old wallpaper. We mentioned in this post that we couldn’t remove it from that surface so we’ll either paint over it or cover it with new backs that we paint/paper… someday!

      xo
      s

  11. Rachel says

    Looks fantastic…I’m terribly jealous of the pantry. We have nothing of the sort. When I read your “jars & cans” label I immediately started singing “Bottles and cans, just clap your hands, just clap your haaands….Where it’s at! I got two turntables and a microphooooone.”

    Anyway, nice pantry. :)

    Reply

  12. Nicole says

    Amazing transformation! I am saving up for a press unit from Ikea that I can create a pantry in and seeing your amazing organised one has me itching to get mine as soon as possible!! Great job as always you guys :)

    Reply

  13. Kaitie says

    Can I just say I love that you guys put a before and after preview right at the beginning of the post? Instant gratification before reading the details is excellent.

    Reply

  14. adele says

    I’m craving some Nutella right now. There’s an italian grovery near my house and they have what seems like imported italian Nutella. I’m always tempted to buy it, but it’s double the price (9$ Canadian) for a big jar. I always wonder if it tastes different… Great job on the pantry! Lookin’ good!

    Reply

  15. Shala says

    We redid our pantry and in the bottom made a cedar lined dog house for our spoiled dogs (lab mixes). The top is totally separate to keep appliances and food clean. It is so nice to close the door and no one is the wiser when the dogs are outside and when inside the dogs have a nice dedicate space to lounge out of our way.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re eventually thinking about heated tile, probably big and dark, like 16″ rectangular charcoal tiles, maybe laid in a herringbone pattern? Not sure yet!

      xo
      s

  17. Nanns says

    Your pantry is inspiring me to get on that and get it painted. Thanks!

    But your last couple posts about it also have me looking around for a stepstool for the shorter people in your family. Being vertically challenged myself, I have these from Kikkerland scattered in various pantries and closets in my house.
    http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/kikkerland-reg-easy-fold-step-stools/3241862

    In my clothes closet, I have this nicer, permanent stepstool from Ikea that doesn’t require bending over and setting it up.
    http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/kikkerland-reg-easy-fold-step-stools/3241862

    Even though it might sound silly to have 5 stepstools in a 2 bedroom house, that extra cash spent has me cursing less while running to the kitchen to grab my trusty Kikkerland!

    Reply

  18. Sheila says

    I’ve recently made our pantry more functional by adding two rolling crates to the floor space. One stores cereal boxes, and the other holds chips/pretzels/etc. I just purchased unfinished crates, stained them, and added casters. It makes it much easier to access everything. An added bonus is when I need to clean and sweep out crumbs that inevitably end up on the floor — just roll out the crates and sweep without having to manually unload every item. And now I suddenly feel the urge to go clean/organize my pantry!

    Reply

  19. Emily says

    Looks great! We spent the better part of two days putting two coats of paint on some ceiling trim in two rooms. I’m about 90% of the way there and I’m sure that I don’t have to tell you how sad it is to go to bed with a project 90% finished and know you won’t be able to tackle it again and finish for another few days.

    Reply

  20. Jen in Texas says

    I am prepping for our 11th move and so I spent the weekend culling. I’ve bee going drawer by drawer and pulling out items that we just don’t use and going through the craft/sewing/school supplies and tossing scraps. My daughter has a tendency to hold onto 2″ sections of pipe cleaners and 6″ lengths of ribbon. Might work in a more stable household, but we just don’t have room for wee scraps!

    Reply

  21. Tricia says

    Did I miss this info sorry if so but how deep and wide is the space? I have been trying to deal with a very similar looking sized pantry that came with the house as a empty room with a door…no shelving. I had been debating for the longest on the style of shelving to add and I like the simplicity of this makeover. Thanks so much I can totally relate to the giddy feeling having this complete might invoke – can’t wait to get my own “pantry party” on :)

    Reply

  22. Katie says

    What a difference a little paint and organizing makes. I love the hanging shelves under the microwave. It makes for a perfect spot for your paper towels too! You definetly gave me some inspiration for organizing my own pantry. P.S. Pirates Booty is one of my favorties too! I could sit and eat the whole bag :)

    Reply

  25. Rachel says

    Wait. You don’t keep your bread in the fridge?

    When we moved into our new house this summer one of the first things we did was paint all the (old, 1970s era) shelves in our pantry. I don’t know if we used the wrong kind of paint or if it was just too warm outside at the time but it never really fully dried. So I ended up buying some shelf liner from ikea so that cans and boxes wouldn’t “stick” to my “new” shelves. Did yours harden nice and solid?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thankfully nothing sticks to the pantry shelves, but it could be the type of paint (oil paint can take a while to cure and get tacky on humid days, so shelf liners are smart – you can also try sprinkling baby powder on the shelves to see if that absorbs the tackiness so they’re more cured/dry). As for bread, we keep it in the pantry since you don’t have to refrigerate it (we have more room in the pantry than the fridge, so it’s just nice to have it in there).

      xo
      s

    • Rachel says

      Keeping your bread in the fridge actually makes it go stale faster according to Sheldon Cooper. Something about starch molecules crystallizing

  26. Kaye says

    I LOVE the extra open shelf above the microwave, for all the reasons you mentioned, but also because I suffer from having no space near my microwave to set things down after I take them out. I sometimes have to sprint across the kitchen with almost-too-hot-to-handle dishes to set them on the counter there. Jealous! ;)

    Reply

  27. CohoesMom5 says

    I’m so glad that you didn’t use the clear containers for everything. I like to see a pantry that is easy to use instead of difficult to maintain. Moving everything to clear containers just seems like a ton of extra work for something that would be empty in a day or two.

    We only use different containers for sugar and flour since those don’t get used up as quickly and the containers keep out flour bugs and prevent a mess from a broken bag.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yes, we have those pretty glass ones out on the counter for flour and sugar (as well as cereal, which we go through fast enough not to get stale). I love those out in the open for items like that ;)

      xo
      s

  28. Jen says

    Sshhh! Don’t tell but I don’t put my food items in pretty glass jars either, and for the same reason. And I work at the Container Store. ;-)

    Reply

  30. Kate says

    I have some serious Pantry Envy going on now.
    All I have is only one over the counter kitchen cabinet next to my stove and I only keep it half stocked with items within arm reach because otherwise I’d have to get a step stool out to reach anything on the top two shelves. Drives me nuts to have such wasted space like that.
    This post makes me want to go and empty out all my kitchen cabinets and re-organize them. =)
    Great job guys!

    Reply

  31. Sarah says

    I agree with you that using clear containers to show off food stuffs is a bit silly, especially for items stored behind a closed door, but I do have a few that I use for specific items. I find that baking is a lot easier when I’m taking the flour and sugar out of a nice big wide-mouthed jar, instead of the crinkly coated bags they come in. And we eat a lot of rice and other grains that come in just plastic bags, so putting them into stackable containers definitely keeps organization easier! But for most things, keeping them in the original container is definitely easier, especially as it keeps the ingredient list and nutritional info handy if you need to look at it! (Not to mention the brand of the product, so you don’t forget what exactly it is when you want to replace!)

    Reply

  32. Cleyde says

    This is a wonderful project, thanks for posting it. Have you thought of a spot for Burger’s vittles? Maybe the very bottom of the pantry can house a bin that closes and has a scoop for easy and convenient Burger-feedings.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s smart! We currently keep those upstairs since he’s a weirdo and loves his crate and food to be “hidden” (they’re tucked into our closet, where Clara can’t bug him – haha).

      xo
      s

  34. Sara Richins says

    Great pantry update! I miss shallow shelves like we had in our last apartment for the same reason of not losing food in the back of the pantry. I like having free space at the bottom of the pantry for bulk items as well like rice or wheat before we grind it into flour. I also like to keep large appliances like a slow cooker or bread maker (which I never use since I prefer to make bread by hand).

    Reply

  35. Bonnie Ellis says

    As a relatively new reader of your blog, I’d like to say how much I enjoy it! My husband and I have been on an organizational tear lately. Our “pantry” is in the basement, and is organized on steel shelving. We recently installed a system to store plastic tubs, which allows us to have access without moving stacks of loaded tubs, to inevitably get to the bottom one. (Isn’t that always where the item you need is located?) We found this ingenious system at Bin Warehouse, but got the original idea from an article in Family Handyman. GREAT MAGAZINE, if you don’t already subscribe! You can never have too much storage! Thank you for sharing your journey with us.

    Reply

  36. Chris says

    It’s the funniest thing. I redid my pantry, too. No painting or reconfiguring, as I like how it is, but I purchased more bins to keep the cans from falling on my feet. That was the whole reason for the tidy up. The fact that I found stuff in there that expired in 2012 was a bonus! I just keep opening the door and looking at it. My (grown) daughter thinks it’s funny.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s awesome and I can totally relate to the open door thing. I keep walking in there like I want a snack when I’m not even hungry. Just to stare. I even texted my mom a photo of it. Haha!

      xo
      s

  37. Barb says

    I switched to containers for everything, not for looks, but when we had a bug invasion of some sort. And then we had a critter problem and I was really glad I had made the switch. Hopefully, none of these unwanted visitors will cross your threshold, but that could be why a lot of people do it. :)

    Reply

    • Jesse says

      I’m so glad you mentioned this. All I could think when I saw boxes of cereal on the floor was NOOOOO the mice will get it!!! (in my head this is said in slow motion).

      I keep everything in glass or ceramic jars to fend off critters of all types (you name it I’ve battled it). I guess that’s one of the down sides to city living!

      I haven’t had a problem in my current apartment but figure I’m use to it now and might as well keep it up (plus now I have a lovely eclectic assortment of jars from thrift stores that make my pantry with no door look neat and organized!)

  38. Eilene says

    I love it! There’s nothing better than being organized. I attempted a pantry a couple months ago and decided to go with shelving that I saw on Joss & Main. Apparently the shelves weren’t as deep as they mentioned on the site so it’s really not working all that great… but the shelves are beautiful.

    Reply

  39. caitlin says

    Do you guys buy items in bulk, like paper towels and toilet paper? I can’t resist that because it’s so nice not to run out and it’s so much cheaper but I end up having to store it in my basement. Have you got a second stash somewhere of paper goods?

    Reply

  40. Cat @ MaryMarthaMom says

    Love it! I got the urge to purge my pantry this weekend… it wasn’t a complete makeover like yours, but I did get rid of a lot of things and reorganize it a little. Today I’m going around the house making a to do list for each room. We had a baby about 6 months ago and the house has become chaotic ever since, so time to do some major organizing.

    Reply

  41. Emma says

    We also don’t use the microwave that much, so it’s tucked (almost) away on a shelf (currently don’t have a pantry in our tiny apartment). Maybe I missed it, but how did you guys hide the plug to the microwave? Was there already an outlet in the pantry? Am I just blind? Anyway, just curious because I can totally see us keeping ours in there once we finally have our own house!

    Thanks!

    Reply

  42. Katherine says

    Keep an eye on that wire shelf that you have on the top shelf, guys. Like you, I have that in my pantry and I kept things that are not too heavy on it. Nonetheless, after almost a year, it has bowed enough that the boxes now lean into each other and fall over when I take one down. *sad face*

    Reply

  43. Allison says

    Are your shelves pure wood or were they veneer? Did you have to sand them up before priming and painting so that the paint would stick? Does paint show up on wood differently then on walls?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      They’re just solid wood slats, so we wiped them down with a liquid deglosser and primed and painted them (sanding works if your wood is slick/super sealed, just to cut the shine, but since ours were matte we skipped that step). Paint typically looks the same on wood as on walls if it’s prepped (ex: the white walls of the pantry match the white shelves well, even though one is wood and one is drywall).

      xo
      s

  44. Lindsey says

    So much better, Sherry and John!! Great work! My pantry is pretty bare, too. It’s a walk-in, so I’d have to buy a ton of food to fill it. We’re modifying it a little to be a place to hold our mudroom stuff, like coats, bags, etc since it’s right next to our garage entrance. We’ll still have a lot of room for the pantry items. Shoes we leave in the garage.

    Reply

  45. Ali says

    This post reminds me of an MTV Cribs episode with the amazing house tour (the cars! the indoor pool!) but the best part was when they would open their fridge and you’d think, “Wow, Jay Z likes Rasperry Smuckers!?!”

    I’m all, “John and Sherry eat Chex cereal!”

    :)

    Reply

  46. Kelly {the Centsible Life} says

    We spent Saturday cleaning and reorganizing our living room/office space. We still have to buy a piece of furniture, redo the floors, paint the walls and ceiling, and get new drapes/curtains, but getting the layout right was a big first step. (I shared a quick pic on Instagram this morning–http://instagram.com/p/khWyiPtJw0/)

    Sunday I spent the day in NYC at Toy Fair (kind of crazy sensory overload but I spotted Alicia Keys and Robert DeNiro!).

    Reply

  47. Lynn says

    Love the new, bright pantry! We also have an outlet in our pantry, we use it to keep our dust buster vac charged and ready to go.

    Reply

  48. Leah says

    Do you ever use reusable grocery bags? I love those for reducing plastic bag clutter. I rarely get a plastic bag at the store, and I still find I have plenty that somehow come into my house (more than I can use for garbage can lining). It takes a bit to get used to, but I highly recommend the reusable grocery bags. We just put ours back into our car once we’re done unloading groceries.

    Also, I am so glad you kept going! This space looks lovely and much more you. When you posted the first pantry party, I was a little sad inside. This space looks so functional now.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yes, we love these reusable shopping bags, which we’ve been using for a few years now. They’re so handy at the grocery store (we even get a credit for using them). But like you, we somehow amass our fair share of plastic ones along the way (from random items dropped off by inlaws in bags, quick runs into the bookstore, etc).

      xo
      s

  50. Maureen says

    You inspired me to do some pantry cleaning/re-organizing of my own!
    I have a kitchen fire extinguisher mounted inside mine. You could mount one opposite the plastic bag holder.

    Reply

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