4 pantry game-changers from the Container Storefeatured
Everybody’s trouble spot: The Pantry
I’ll admit it: I used to be the biggest naysayer when it came to pantry containers. Like, I’m supposed to “decant” everything into boxes of roughly the same shape and size just to show everyone how together my Snack Game is? Really?
Turns out, really.
Because it’s not just for snacks. (And/or showing off. Not entirely.) It’s also for visibility- a.k.a. Not Buying A Third Box of Crackers, Will You Please Just LOOK First- and also for the continued freshness of said item.
Related: Before I had children, I never realized how difficult it actually was to close a box of cereal or bag of chips. We must be talking, like, scaling Mount Everest proportions of difficult. Why else are they never fully closed?
Anyway.
I love going to the Container Store and I love their continuously evolving kitchen solutions. Tall canisters with extra wide mouths for pouring? Stackable snackables? (Couldn’t resist.) I’m all in.
That said, the urge to run to any awesome store and get carried away with potential storage systems is a very real one. Resist it. I’m not kidding. If you head in and get swayed by floor to corner shelving units when you know your wall real estate is skinny, you’ll be in Sadsville (and Brokesville). Same with buying teensy tiny fabric-covered boxes that fit maybe half of one shoe.
You need a spot for both shoes.
So. Before you set foot in any glorious store, do your homework. Or, more accurately, your kitchen work. Measure the shelves (twice). Take copious notes of what you’d like to actually contain. (And be realistic.) Then- oh then- pull everything out and stage it in front of the space where it should live. (And take more notes on what kind of containers the new arrangements would require.) Then you get to go online and browse or, if you trust yourself, into the store to browse.
Got a pantry cabinet that’s wide and not super deep?
In the “before,” it’s a downright jumble of baking supplies, tall cereal boxes, and useful (yet easily lost) things like tin foil and plastic baggies. So, basically, anything that’s too unwieldy to live anywhere else. I wonder why this cabinet isn’t the bastion of efficiency?
But then we’ve got the “after,” a beautiful array of cereal, snacks, and snack-storage. That’s it. This spot has become command central for stuff the kids can- and should- access by themselves. Early morning breakfasts, packable snacks for school (and the containers to put them in), and grab n’ go treats for the whole family.
Pro tools: The 5.3 quart Décor Tellfresh Cereal Server, or “Store n’ Pour” (great for easily pourable snacks like popcorn and pretzels, too!), with a wide, wide, easily secured mouth; and the 8in by 11.25in by 6in InterDesign Pantry Binz or “Linus”, with perfectly sized handles for pulling out the exact snack you want– and only that.
What about tall, skinny cabinet spaces?
Over here on the lefthand-side pic, we’ve got…well, a little bit of everything, really. Baking stuff, cooking stuff, vitamins, and treats. (I suspect that a certain member of the household shoved treats in each cabinet so that every time a cabinet was opened, a treat could be pulled down. But I’m not naming names or pointing fingers.)
And after? Baking stuff, cooking stuff, canned goods, and a pared-down amount of vitamins (the kind that are taken at least twice a day and need to be on hand). That’s it! This was a prime time to toss out expired or unloved condiments, oils, and baking supplies, and keep flours and sugars in their own skinny (and super duper secure) canisters.
Pro tools: The 4 quart PrepWorks ProKeeper. We got six of ’em– and labeled them up right- and found that all six could live in harmony up there on the top shelf. (Occasionally used ones, like tapioca flour and the like could be rotated as needed- and the ones containing important things like, ahem, sugar is front n’ center.)
“But I have a really small pantry cabinet up high…”
You know what this one’s perfect for? Things you really don’t want at hand- and eye- level. We’re talking occasional desserts, cookies not for sharing (Samoas are currency and small children do not properly discern), and special stuff like cocoa and marshmallows. Those teensy shelves over the stove and up by the ceiling are beyond perfect for this. Before, however, this one was being jammed with, well, everything. So even if you wanted a treat, it probably wasn’t going to work out for you. (Isn’t that sad?)
But- oh- after: We consolidated, stacked, and got every last cookie up in this joint. It’s surreptitious efficiency at its finest and it’s a thing of beauty.
Pro tools: The real secret weapon up here was the 10.25in by 9.25in by 4in InterDesign Cabinet Organizer (a.k.a. the large Linus spice rack). Think clear, plastic risers with little shelves built to secure those loose cocoa packets and small bags of marshmallows. Nothing got lost, everything felt so seen, and snacks were enjoyed by all.
And, really, isn’t that the whole darn point?
What’s your kitchen pantry situation?
Comment below!
