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Have you ever walked into your pantry (Affiliate Link) and wondered, “Where are my ….?” while rearranging cans and jars to see if you can find what you want, meanwhile growing more and more frustrated with the clutter? The lack of a system in a pantry (Affiliate Link) constantly being moved around is frustrating and what many of my clients always encounter. Luckily, I made a list of what to keep in your pantry (Affiliate Link) and included some tips for organizing these items for easy access.
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Essential items to keep in an organized pantry
Canned food:
Sort the cans and jarred food by type, veggies, pasta, legumes, and tomato sauce (Affiliate Link). Using an organizer like tier shelves (Affiliate Link) works nicely. But you can also use a canned organizer like this one.
Pasta and Rice products:
Group the pasta and rice products together. I find that boxes (Affiliate Link) easily fall over, so placing them in a clear bin as this one works well too.
Paper products: Like paper towels.
Make a place on the shelf for paper towels to remove these items from the floor and, at a glance, quickly determine if you need these items. Check out these handy paper towel holders for a pantry (Affiliate Link) shelf.
Tablecloths and cloth napkins
You can hang them on a towel rack on the door or place them on the shelf with the cloth napkins (Affiliate Link).
Having enough room in your pantry (Affiliate Link) to hold these items helps give you space back in your dining room or kitchen drawer. These hangers allow you to hang the tablecloths in your pantry (Affiliate Link) or hallway closet.
Platters and party supplies: paper napkins, plates, forks, knives, etc…
Keep all the party supplies together for quick inventory for your next party. Using something like this to stand up the platters (Affiliate Link) makes it easier to retrieve with less risk of injuring yourself when getting the platter (Affiliate Link) from the bottom.
Small Appliances:
These items are usually not used often. Place them in one location in your pantry (Affiliate Link). Not too high if they are heavy. If you have wire shelving (Affiliate Link) in your pantry (Affiliate Link), these plastic shelf liners will help keep your small appliances (Affiliate Link) from falling into the openings.
Additional Tips to Organize Your Pantry:
Buy extra supplies:
Buy extra supplies to save money and store these items in your pantry (Affiliate Link). Some items that last for weeks are cereal, snacks, herbs, spices (Affiliate Link), extra juice, water, soda, and condiments.
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Now, where should you place these items?
The image below shows which shelf would be best used for which item. The role of thumb is heavy items, and frequently used items should be closer to the floor. Lighter items and infrequently used items can be stored on the top shelf.
Find more posts about pantry organization below:
- Crafty Over the Door Hanging Organizers to Maximize your Kitchen Space
- Create a Complete Baking Supplies Zone with this Checklist and Tips
- 15 Things to Toss for a Stress-Free Pantry
- 7 Ways to Transform a Hall Closet Into Pantry
- The Best Way To Label Mason Jars
- How to Make a DIY Chalkboard Pantry Doors
- Top 20 Pantry Organizing Tips Your Family Will Love
- DIY Organizing Projects to Keep the Kitchen Running Smoothly
To help maintain the organized pantry (Affiliate Link), don't forget to label (Affiliate Link) the areas! Label (Affiliate Link) each shelf section to describe the type of items below there. This will make it easier for you to remember where each category is placed.
And finally, remember that each pantry (Affiliate Link) should be designed for each family. No one pantry (Affiliate Link) will be the same. The goal is to make the pantry easy to get what you want and maintain the system. If your pantry (Affiliate Link) isn't easy to maintain, it should be modified and simplified. Think simply, and don't worry about making it supper categorized. I hope this helps you get your pantry (Affiliate Link) organized.
Let's continue the conversation; please share your tips on organizing your pantry (Affiliate Link) in the comments below. I would love to hear from you.
Please note these are affiliate links through Amazon, and at no additional cost, I will earn affiliate fees if you decide to make a purchase.
Stacey Agin Murray says
I have bought a bunch of OXO POP Containers to organize my pantry. They keep food fresh and allow my kids to take their own snacks without needing assistance. It's one of my favorite organizing products in my pantry. I also use magazine holders to contain my oils and vinegar--got them very inexpensively in IKEA!
Janet Barclay says
Labelling the shelves is especially important if kids or other family members will be accessing the pantry. Even if the person who puts the groceries away knows where everything goes, it's not always obvious to anyone else!
Liana George says
Great list of essentials and products. Pantry organization can impact a person and family in so many ways, so it's critical to have the pantry stocked and accessible. Thanks for the ideas1
Linda Samuels says
I've never seen that under the shelf paper towel holder before. What a terrific product and so easy to install! I love the under the shelf baskets that function similarly, but a paper towel holder...WOW! Pantries can easily get out of control. That includes housing food that's long past its expiration date. Keeping the space organized, using the suggestions you gave, really helps. I also like the clear bin you showed to group like with like. Those types of bins also makes it easier to access what you need without creating more chaos.
Seana Turner says
The biggest challenge is when you don't even have a pantry. I feel like we went through a season of home design where pantries were "out." This was too bad, as they are such functional spaces. I love the 3-tier organizer you suggested at the bottom. That is useful in so many spaces where you want to store smaller things in a large space. I also often recommend the Closet maid organizer a lot. That is an incredible amount of storage, and if someone doesn't have a pantry, it can hang on the back of the door to the basement.
Susan says
Perfect timing. I'm planning on cleaning out reorganizing my pantry very soon. Love the tips and suggestions.
Sabrina Quairoli says
Awesome! Have fun. =)
Rose M Griffith says
I just did my winter clean out/organizing of the pantry, Sabrina. I kept your tips from the linen closet blog in mind. Things are in bin, and labeled with my new label maker! It's so much easier now. Thanks.
Sabrina says
So glad you cleared out your pantry sucessfully and that this helped.