Organizing a Tiny Pantry

This beautiful pantry is from Country Living. 

OK, I will admit it.  I have pantry envy from time to time..... especially when I see some of the gorgeous, huge, professional quality kitchens and pantries that are often shared on some of my favorite blogs and in kitchen magazines.   I mean these pantries are drool worthy!!! Seriously, there are some amazing pantries out there!  You should really visit For the Love of a House and Sugar Pie Farm House and check out their pantries.   Can you say beautiful???  I love kitchens and pantries; however, neither my kitchen nor my pantry is large. (To see our kitchen, you can look at this post here.) They are both perfect for our family though!  We are a small family of three so technically a tremendous pantry is not exactly a must have. Our small pantry is "just right".  The key is keeping it organized.  Lucky for me, I LOVE to organize anything!  Straight rows and having things exactly where they should be makes me really happy!  Weird, huh??  I know I sound a little OCD, but truly, life if just better when things are organized!!  (On a side note:  A consultant who works with our school district was meeting with me in my office one day.  I noticed he kept looking around while we talked.  He finally said, "you really like things neat don't you?".  He pointed out my bookshelves, the items on my desk and the office in general.  I just laughed and said, "just a little bit".)


Anyway, I thought I would share how I organized my pantry.  There may be others out there who don't have walk in, bedroom-sized pantries who still like to keep an adequate supply of food staples on hand.  I like to feel like I have items on hand to cook without having to run to the grocery constantly.  I do grocery shop weekly, but that is typically for fresh fruits and veggies and meats.  

This is our pantry.  It is at the end of our kitchen. 

As you can tell, the top row is filled with glass canisters that are filled with flour, sugar, corn meal, tea bags and other baking supplies. The next shelf has olive oil, assorted vinegars, and items such as Pam, Baker's Joy, Bisquick, etc.  I also have a small metal basket that holds seasoning packages and salad dressing mixes.  Next I have jams, jellies (homemade, of course) honey, etc. Baskets on the next shelf hold potatoes and onions.  The other basket keeps marshmallows, pecans, chocolate chips and other items close at hand. 

You can also see that I do not want to run out of paper towels.  

Just a closer look.  It is so much neater (no messy bags) when baking items are in clear glass jars.  I made the labels out of sheet size clear labels from Avery.  To make sure I always have the items I need, I make a note in my phone when I see that I am low on something.  That way, the next time I am at the grocery I can pick up any items that I need.  

The right side of the pantry holds rices, pastas, canned goods, etc. 

The bottom shelf on the right is perfect for storing our lunch boxes.  We have a wide variety:  Lands End for Seth, Harley for Jon and Vera Bradley and Brighton for me.  Apparently we have a thing for lunch boxes :-)

I did not share the items that are stored in the top section of the pantry.  I keep my griddle, crock pot, "fry daddy" and other large items that are not used daily out of the way in this area.On the other side of the kitchen I have a cabinet that holds snack foods (chips, granola bars, Pop-Tarts, items for Seth's lunch, etc.)  We also have a bread drawer and a spice drawer that is in the perfect spot - right under my gas cook-top.  All in all, it is easy to keep everything in its place.  

I would love to hear your ideas of how you organize your pantry.  Doesn't it feel good to know you have the necessary items on hand and easy to find if you decide to whip up something delicious? 

As always, thanks for visiting Buttercup Bliss! 

Lisa  

This week I am joining the following parties:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence

Grace At Home @ Imparting Grace

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