This is our pantry. In the castle house we had a proper cupboard with a folding door big enough for the Small Girl to hide in - and in the house before that the pantry was so big two adults could comfortably hide in it. This cupboard is pathetic by comparison. I have to stand on a chair to peer into the top shelf and it's so deep that anything pushed to the back disappears as if into an abyss.
I have tried to maintain order, really I have. The Boy Wonder built a shelf when we moved in and that helped, at least for a while. I managed to corrall the spices into two shoeboxes (actually, they've been in those shoeboxes since we moved house) and I thought I had a handle on where things were. Alcohol, medicine and other heavy things that will cause a big mess if there's an earthquake are on the highest shelf, naturally, and the baking powder is in a rack on the door. But any other systems have disintegrated to the point that now I just come home from doing the shopping and sling stuff in wherever it will fit.
This has got to stop, I know. But how? Do you have a pantry? How do you organise it?
I just got home to a nice tidy house, went to put some groceries in the 'pantry' and I could have written the same post! I have to use a chair for the top shelf as well. I keep all the chocolate baking stuff and treats up the top so my son can't get to them :) I've decided one of the kitchen cupboards can be for spices and anything in a can. I hope you get some good advice, I need it too! x
ReplyDeleteGosh girls, when the urge to bake comes upon you, you just have to grab and toss - sieze the moment!
ReplyDeleteI bought some really cheap baskets from the plastic store, you know, the oblong ones that look like they belong to the filing. They are great for essence bottles, little packets etc. At least everything is corralled in one place and you can just lift them down. I do try to group my things a bit like flour and sugar together - but hey - the earth ain't going to stop turnng if it's not tidy. Enjoy life, housework always waits for you! If all else fails, take your glasses off - works for me!
Alison
My pantry and I have moments. A love-hate relationship. It's either anarchy on the shelfs or borderline OCD arrangements. Have you tried those cheap $3 Japanese shops? They're chock full of containers of all shapes & sizes for every purpose under the sun!
DeleteI went crazy with Sistema plasticware and a label maker a few months ago! When The Warehouse had it 1/2 price last week I got MORE! (There's generally a 1/2 price special on it somewhere every month or so.)I have a container for almost everything now and a couple of big ones for spice and odds and ends. My pantry is the only cupboard in my house that's organised and I love it. Wish I could be as enthusiastic about my wardrobe but I just don't feel the same!
ReplyDeleteQuite similar to mine!! Our shelves are starting to buckle too - just too much stuff!! I have NO suggestions for u at all!
ReplyDeleteWe're in the midst of "renovating" (ie. painting) our kitchen at the moment, and I'm going to do a before and after photo blog for you :) The pantry cupboards will be tightly closed for both photos (if I can get them to close, that is). Our cupboards are 'vintage' 1950s, and they obviously didn't make food very big back then....Even our Weetbix box can't stand up straight.
ReplyDeleteI hear your pain. ;)
seriously...? this is TIDY compared to the monster that lives behind my cupboard doors...
ReplyDeleteWe have a decent sized kitchen but stuff expands to fill the space available. I have overflow boxes of bakeware and foodstuffs in the wardrobes upstairs. Your shelves look well-organised compared to mine !!
ReplyDelete"Stuff expands to fit the space available" - ain't that the truth!
ReplyDeleteOh, I would so love a pantry, no wonder you miss them. I bought some very handy plastic baskets and put different bits and pieces in them so it's easy to find stuff and get things from the back etc. So all my various flours in one, sugars in another etc etc Generally means you can get more in a smaller space, but it's easier to find things. But really, I just want a PANTRY!!!
ReplyDeleteI love my pantry, a few years selling tupperware sorted it out, not that I am suggesting u go and sell or even buy a pantry load, you'd need a mortgage. Now I trawl the op shops for more containers along with buying props...now that is we're my chaos lies. A studio dedicated to photography with the floor littered with props I can't even get in, next project shelving Alli@peasepudding
ReplyDeleteSistema containers are the way to go! I'm just gradually sorting my pantry (baking section first) so it's not too much money to fork out at once!
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, but I know exactly what I have on the shelves and the general location, but boy, oh boy, the shelves are willy nilly. My philosophy is that that's what pantry shelves are supposed to look like ... my only strategy for keeping things somewhat fresh is to weed things toward the front every month or so and plan some dishes that use things up ... it's funny, though. As soon as I use things up that space seems to magically fill up with something else, so the whole affair is just as jumbled as before!
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, but I know exactly what I have on the shelves and the general location, but boy, oh boy, the shelves are willy nilly. My philosophy is that that's what pantry shelves are supposed to look like ... my only strategy for keeping things somewhat fresh is to weed things toward the front every month or so and plan some dishes that use things up ... it's funny, though. As soon as I use things up that space seems to magically fill up with something else, so the whole affair is just as jumbled as before!
ReplyDeleteWell, you are still doing it the right way.
ReplyDeletehouse cleaner in salt lake