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

Come join the fun! 

For the Love of Aprons!!

A few of my aprons are displayed in my laundry room.

I am a big fan of aprons!  I love them!  I don’t know if I just like to channel my inner Betty Crocker, Julia Child, or maybe Paula Deen, but I seriously have this thing for aprons!  It makes me feel like I have stepped back in time and I am a 1950's housewife (think June Cleaver).  I would add to my apron collection all the time if I had the money and more room to display them.   And if I wore them more than just once in a blue moon!  Actually, I do wear them occasionally when I am feeling very “Julia Child-ish”!  LOL Something about putting on an apron makes me feel like a chef!  To me food tastes better when I've cooked while wearing an apron :-)

Here are a few of my favorites:

This is my latest apron - it was a Christmas gift from my sister.  

I love the retro feel of it! 

Another gift from Nini - this one is from Anthropology.

Every Southern girl needs a monogrammed apron!

I found this vintage cutie at an antique store recently.  

I loved the ric-rac and dotted Swiss! 

What about you?  Do you agree with me that aprons are the perfect accessory to wear in the kitchen??? Do they make you feel like you are ready for "Chopped" or "Cupcake Wars"? 

This week I am joining the following: 

Inspiration Fridays - At the Picket Fence

Vintage Copper in the Kitchen

When we moved in our new house in July, I was so excited about the kitchen.  It was totally different than any kitchen I had ever had in the past.  I loved the rustic look of the cabinets and many other special elements, one being the light fixture/pot hanger.  I must admit though that I am not a fan of hanging every day pots and pans above my head.  To me, everyday cooking would be a inconvenience if the pots were on display.  I much prefer my pots and pans in a cabinet.  I did, however, want to utilize the pot hanger in some way, at some point.  Then one day a few months ago, I received my new issue of Delta magazine.  The most beautiful kitchen was featured in this month's edition. It seemed to be my kitchen on steroids..... it is amazing!!! Much more glamorous and worthy of a magazine spread than my much more "homey" kitchen, but you can still see similarities (one being the beautiful cypress cabinets). I noticed immediately the pots in the pictures and I knew that I wanted to start a collection of copper pieces for my kitchen.  I thought they would be the perfect finishing touch for my kitchen. 

Inspiration picture from Delta magazine. 

A few weeks ago, my friends Lynda and Diane and I went antique shopping.  Lucky for me, we found a booth in a local shop that had lots of wonderful, old copper pieces.  Lynda and I both bought a few pieces.  I was so excited about them!!!  Unfortunately for me, the pieces that I bought were too long for the pot rack.  The good news though is that my husband and I went back the next day and exchanged them for smaller pieces.  I was off to a great start!  The next week Jon and Seth and I were out running errands and Jon suggested we stop by the antique store again.  Woo Hoo!!  We found two more pieces that were perfect.  Now my pot rack is filled!  I love the finished product!!!  What do you think? 

The afternoon sun made taking pictures a little difficult.  

I really love these pieces - they are so old and really have character!  

Thanks for visiting Buttercup Bliss! 

This week I am joining the following:

Wow Us Wednesdays @ Savvy Southern Style

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @ Coastal Charm 

Open House Party @ No Minimalist Here

Tuesday's Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Inspiration Fridays - At the Picket Fence

A Simply Klassic Home

Christmas in the Kitchen

This week has been so much fun! I am loving the blogger block party! Today is the Christmas in the Kitchen party. I almost didn't write a post about our kitchen. It is small and it is the heart of our home - lots of action here each day! But because of that, it was decorated very simply for Christmas. I read a blog post from one of my favorite bloggers and she mentioned that she kept things simple in her kitchen because it is the hub of their home. She went on to say that her family does everything in the kitchen so she needed to keep it functional. That is so true at our home too! Seth does his homework here, our little family eats at the bar each night, I blog here.... you get the picture! So, I decided to take a cue from this very talented blogger and show my kitchen as it really is at Christmas. It is not over the top, because there is so much going on here and it is a cozy galley kitchen. I didn't want it to be overwhelming or have to move things around while I am packing lunches or cooking dinner. Part of blogging though it showing how things really are so.... here it is :-) Sweet and simple, but it is home!

My "dressy" Christmas dishes are Gail Pittman's "Hollylulah". I didn't use it for my Christmas table, but I did use a few pieces in the kitchen.

During the year this is filled with spatulas and other cooking utensils, but for the Christmas season I added fresh holly and other greenery.

I love this metal cross that I bought this year at the cutest little florist shop. It is made in Mississippi so of course that made it even more special.

I have had this platter for several years. You can tell by now that I really like traditional red and green for Christmas.

I enjoy pulling out my Southern Living Christmas books each year.

(Hmm... looks like my fruit basket is running a little low. I should probably be at the grocery right now. :-)

Aren't Command Strips just the greatest invention??? So useful during the holidays!

Just for fun - I got these at Hallmark recently.

As always, thanks for visiting Buttercup Bliss. I hope you enjoyed our very simple Christmas Kitchen.

Today I am linking to the following:

http://www.atthepicketfence.com/2011/12/blogger-block-partychristmas-in-kitchen.html

Our New Kitchen

I admitted in one of my very first blog posts that I am slightly obssessed with kitchens.  You can read that entry here.    It is my favorite room in our home... regardless of which house I happen to be living in at the time.  It must be true that the kitchen is the heart of the home.  I  am slowly sharing the rooms in our new home.  Today I thought I would show our new kitchen.  I know that when we made the decision to downsize we could certainly give up some things; however, I think our kitchen wasn't one of the areas in which we compromised.  Well, ok, I no longer have double ovens, but I gained a five burner gas range!!  I can live with that! 

The first picture above shows the kitchen when you are standing in the great room.  We eat most of our meals at the bar.  The cabinets are cypress, which I probably would never have chosen if I were choosing elements for a new kitchen, but I have to say I love them!!  I think they have a French Country feel that is casual and welcoming. 

This is what you see as you enter from our garage door.  

You can see my furry babies, Bentley and Clarabel, rambling around. 

The long cabinets at the end are the pantry.  Soon I will do a post on effectively organizing a small pantry. 

This is the view standing by the refrigerator looking back toward the back door entry.  It is definitely a galley kitchen, but the space is perfect for our small family.

I love the staggered cabinets because they allow me to display some of my treasures.  I love these little roosters. 

Another rooster :-)

These four pictures were in the breakfast room in our prior home.  We don't  have a separate breakfast room in this house, but I think they look perfect here!! I love hanging things veritically or in groups of four.... drives Jon nuts because he is usually the one trying to make them perfect.  :-)

One of my favorite cookbooks by Mississippi chef Robert St. John and illustrated by Mississippi artist Wyatt Waters. It is called A Southern Palate.  Did I mention that I love the gas cooktop?  Something about a gas range just makes me feel like a chef. 

Of course, a "coffee station" is a must!

This little oil painting of a rooster is one of my favorite items in the room.  It hangs on a tiny wall by the refrigerator just before you leave the kitchen.  It was painted for me by my very talented friend, Diane. 

Another view looking into the great room - This is how Clarabel

sits and watches me when I cook. 

 She is quite the Queen Bee!!

This cabinet was in our breakfast room in our last home.  Here, it fits perfectly in a space right beside the French doors that lead to the back porch. 

I usually try to keep fresh flowers on the counter by the sink.  It just seems "homey" to me!  If you look closely you can see a picture of Seth on his first Halloween - he was a Hershey's Kiss!!  Too cute!

Thank you so much for visiting my kitchen - the heart of our home!!!

This week I am linking to the following:

Debbie's Newbie Party at http://www.http//debbie-debbiedoos.blogspot.com/

Amaze Me Monday @ http://dittledattle.blogspot.com/

Met Monday @ http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com

Tuesday's Treasures @ www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.blogspot.com

Wow Us Wednesdays @ www.savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com

Feathered Nest Friday @  http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/

Home Sweet Home @ http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/

Roomspiration Kitchen Edition @ http://thediyshowoff.blogspot.com/

Room by Room - Kitchens @ http://cottageandvine.blogspot.com

Kitchen Love!

This beautiful kitchen is from Southern Accents.

OK – I will admit it, I love kitchens!  I don’t mean that I like kitchens; I mean I truly LOVE kitchens.  Now I should tell you right up front that this does not mean that I am an accomplished cook.  It means exactly what it says – I love kitchens.  I love kitchen magazines and I have been keeping clippings of pictures of kitchens (and to be truthful, pictures of other rooms too) for years!  This “idea” folder was so important to me that I grabbed it when we were evacuating before Hurricane Katrina.  In light of the important things that I forgot when we evacuated (or just sentimental things that I will miss forever), in retrospect, taking the decorating file seems somewhat goofy; however, when you are evacuating for a category 5 storm, one doesn’t always make the most logical decisions! 

My love of all things related to houses began early.  I remember feeling like such a “goob” (this word will certainly date me….) in college because I loved Southern Living, County Living, and Good Housekeeping magazines!  I read Glamour, Cosmo and other magazines as well, but I secretly adored house magazines. 

When I graduated from college and started teaching school I got my first apartment.  It was so much fun to decorate!   I lived in apartments for the first three years of my teaching career before I bought my first home.   I decided to buy a small, older home when I was twenty-five.  I was not married, nor was I dating anyone, but I still longed for a home, not an apartment, a HOME!  As luck would have it, I found the perfect older home in my home town in Mississippi.  It was located on the same street as the elementary school that I taught.  I felt so “grown-up” on the day I closed on my first place. 

Then the fun began!  My wonderful, talented mother and my father helped me create such a darling home!  My mother, who could do anything, helped transform a worn, outdated kitchen (picture white gold-flecked Formica countertops) into a totally cool kitchen!  Now, I should tell you that this was around 1989 and the “country” craze had seized the nation!  We replaced the floors, removed the old paneling, added a chair rail, stripped and repainted the cabinets, and created the perfect country kitchen.  I look back on the pink (yes, pink) chair rail and laugh!  At the time though, it was perfect!

I have lived in several houses since that time.  Each time I move I am most concerned with the kitchen as we look at houses.   It still ranks as the most important room in the house to me.   Each house, and consequently, each kitchen has each offered unique features that make them stand out.  When I moved to Hattiesburg, MS I bought a precious (there is no other word to describe this house) home, actually more of a cottage that had been built in the early forties.  I fell in love with the tall ceilings and hardwood floors.  While the kitchen was not perfect, it had creamy white cabinets that reached to the ceiling and it also had a dishwasher, something that had been lacking in my first home. 

The next home was the first one that my husband and I purchased together.  This kitchen had stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors in the kitchen.  The cabinets were not my favorite, but I loved the appliances so much I could live with the cabinets.  A relocation landed us in our next house and this kitchen had granite countertops!  Woo Hoo!  I was so happy!  (I once had a friend who told me her husband told her she could choose between granite countertops and breast implants and she (smart girl!) chose the granite!!! )  In my opinion, that was a no brainer! 

Sadly, this house was destroyed in Katrina (more on this later).  When we rebuilt, I was able to redo the kitchen the exactly the way I wanted – within certain parameters, of course.  My husband, Jon, said no to the Viking stove!  Someday, he said, maybe (I think he thinks I would have to be a gourmet cook to warrant purchasing a Viking), but this was not the house for it!  I did, however, have the most beautiful cabinets (maple with a cream stain and a coffee colored glaze). 

Our current home has a great kitchen, not perfect, but great!  I finally have double ovens!!  They are side-by-side which really makes me feel like a chef!  The cabinets have a cherry stain.  I would rather have a cream with a glaze or possibly a distressed black.  I have been hinting to Jon that we should “rough them up” and add a black glaze to make them more in line with the Traditional with a French County touch that I long for in my dream kitchen!  Hmmmm…. Maybe that will be my first “how-to” blog!  Stay tuned!!!

 This picture shows the breakfast room as well as the kitchen.

What do you think?  Should I try adding a black glaze?