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Essential Ways to Transform a Hall Closet Into Pantry

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Being creative in your home to maximize your space is the easiest and most cost-effective way to organize your home. I found this true when organizing my home before our kitchen remodel. To help you get inspired, I will share how we transformed half of our hall closet into a pantry. Here we go.

First, let me explain the layout of my home. My foyer and kitchen are next, and we have a large closet in the hall (5 feet by 4 feet). The entry to my kitchen is just to the left of the closet. So, since I needed a pantry (affiliate) and didn't want to walk from the basement all the time, I decided to transform the hall closet into a pantry (affiliate).

A while ago, I installed shelving (affiliate) for gloves and other things, so instead of removing them, I decided to use them in my pantry (affiliate) and add bins to the wall next to them. The shelving (affiliate) wall unit goes from the bottom to above the top of the closet door, which gives me a boatload of space to store various narrow items.

To help you create your own pantry (affiliate), I have included several essentials to transform a foyer closet into one. I hope it helps.

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Tip 1: Use mason jars to unify the pantry's look. 

Since the side wall shelving (affiliate) was narrow, I purchased mason jars (affiliate) (in bulk) to hold various items like dried beans, quinoa, nuts, and dried fruit. The large mason jar (affiliate) labels (affiliate) made them straightforward to read quickly. Read more about how I labeled mason jars.

mason jar food storage

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Tip 2: Use large bins for snacks and other things you buy in bulk.

We buy snacks in bulk, like nachos and pretzels. So, I purchased a large sealable bin to hold these items. We also buy rice in bulk, so we store that on top as well.

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Tip 3: Have your emergency bin at the bottom of the pantry. 

If you have an emergency preparedness bin that holds food items you would need on the go, store it on the floor so you can easily access it quickly.  Visit our emergency food bin DIY project to help you set up yours! Store your 5-quart water bottles next to it to grab them too quickly.

Use the top of the emergency bin for storage. Make sure the bins are sturdy. If you feel that they are not, add a piece of wood that overlaps all edges of the tote to give a sturdy surface to hold excess items. And, if you want to transform your entire closet, you can add a few of these totes (affiliate).

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Tip 4: Store extra herbs, spices, and cans on their sides in a shallow drawer to quickly view and grab when needed. 

A shallow drawer was one of my favorite things in my pantry (affiliate). I could easily view the herbs and spices (affiliate) by laying the closed herbs and spices (affiliate) on their side. I also found that if my drawer could handle it, I could lay the cans on the side too. Visit our other post on managing spices and herbs in two different areas.

herbs spices cans storage drawer

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Tip 5: Add an area for your most-used cleaning items. 

Since the closet is also centrally located, I also stored cleaning supplies on the bottom few shelves (affiliate) on the wall unit. It helped keep everything in one place and allow for quick cleanup when needed.

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Tip 6: Keep baking goods in one place. 

Keeping the baking supplies together gave me a glance at what I needed when I was urged to bake something. Sealed containers work well for storing bulk baking supplies. Mason jars (affiliate) are great too for nuts and dried fruit. Below are some I found on Amazon (affiliate) (affiliate).

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Tip 7: Make sure to label all the bins. 

Using these different-sized containers may be confusing if you don't label (affiliate) them. I found that various sizes worked. I also didn't care that they were all the same. Labels (affiliate) just needed to stick and stay on all the different types of bins. Labels (affiliate) stick to the front of these containers to help you know what is inside. Visit our post about things to label (affiliate) in a well-organized house.

My Favorite Labels

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Tip 8: You don't need cereal containers.

I placed our cereal in the wire drawer and used snack clips (affiliate). I prefer the ones that will clamp horizontally around the open bag. If you wanted to add containers, I would recommend the narrow containers (affiliate). Below are examples of the clips and narrow cereal containers I used.

My Favorite Narrow Containers and Snack Clip

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Tip 9: Organize Small Snacks in a bin.

Acrylic snack divider organizers(affiliate) work well for these small snacks. It is convenient for snacks in a wire-shelf pantry (affiliate), since items can easily fall through the slots. But using these organizers is especially helpful for showing everyone which snacks are available to enjoy. And, also helping you understand at a glance what needs replacing. Below are some examples of ones I used.

My Favorite Acrylic Divider Organizers

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The Transformation

Remember, we are trying to minimize the cost of this makeshift pantry, so be creative and look around your home to find the right item before buying anything. And here is the result.

7 Ways to Transform a Hall Closet into a Pantry

With minimal cost and maximum space, the closet can now hold more food and supplies than ever! We were so happy with this pantry and used it for many years until recently, when we remodeled the kitchen. I hope this inspires you to transform a space in your home into a pantry that works for you.

Now it's your turn. Did you transform the hall closet into a pantry? How did you do it? Please leave a comment below.

7 Ways to Transform a Hall Closet into a Pantry

Here is additional expert advice on transforming a coat closet into a pantry. Feel free to check them as well.

HOW I TRANSFORMED A COAT CLOSET INTO A PANTRY

How to Transform a Closet into a Pantry

8 Ways to Create a Pantry in even the smallest kitchen

Please note the link above are affiliate links through Amazon (affiliate), and at no additional cost to you, I will receive affiliate fees if you click through and decide to make a purchase.

7 ways to transform a hall closet into a pantry
7 Ways to Transform a Hall Closet into a Pantry
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About Sabrina Quairoli

I love sharing my passion for organizing life and home. I hope you get inspired when visiting my home organizing tips, quick weeknight recipes, party planning ideas, and DIY organizing projects. Visit the About Me page to read my story.

Comments

  1. Liana George says

    I love your creativity here! I once transformed a large hall closet into a small office for me - it was wonderful! Thanks for showing us that creativity is only limited by our imaginations!

  2. Stacey Agin Murray says

    We use large bins for pretzels and tortilla chips in our house, too! I use OXO POP Containers. So easy for my kids to easily open and close them. Before our kitchen renovation, the previous owners had added pull-out shelves to a skinny broom closet in our tiny kitchen. That was a lifesaver, but I, also had most of my pantry items in our basement. Good for exercise--not for cooking! Now, post-renovation, I have a walk-in pantry with a light that goes on when you open the door. It is Pantry Paradise!

    • Sabrina Quairoli says

      That sounds lovely. Thanks for stopping by and sharing.

  3. Julie Stobbe says

    I transformed my closet at the back entry into a pantry. Part of it is stilled used for shoes but most of it is used for small appliances and extra food supplies. This leaves space in my kitchen to have things I use on a regular basis close at hand. We mounted tracking on the wall that allowed us to insert brackets to hold shelves and easily adjust the spacing between the shelves as needed.

    • Sabrina Quairoli says

      Great job, Julie. It goes to show that even if your space isn't the way you want it, you can change it. Thanks for stopping by and sharing.

  4. Seana Turner says

    I will never understand anyone who designs a kitchen without a pantry! I love this transformation. I have a client who did the same thing. She wasn't really using the closet because they typically entered from the back of the house. At the same time, the kitchen and closet were right next to each other. It was the perfect solution!

    • Sabrina Quairoli says

      I don't understand it either. It was close to the kitchen but really? When we had the house built, there wasn't even an option to add it. Ugh.

      We redesigned our kitchen a few years ago and I made sure I added a shallow floor to ceiling pantry. I now use this space for cleaning supplies storage and our DIY emergency kit. It's great because, over the years, I just changed the content and removed two drawers. When you have a good system in place, changing the content is super easy.

      Thanks for stopping by.