A home pantry is quite an old fashioned notion, but one that has definitely become trendy again in recent years thanks to Pinterest, Instagram and blogs. A perfectly stocked pantry is any domestic goddesses dream, no rifling through tiny kitchen cupboards or digging through drawers. Instead you have shelves of perfectly organised products and plenty of space to keep your dried goods and store cupboard ingredients.
Creating a pantry isn’t just practical, it can save you a fair bit of money too. When you have a designated space to put excess purchases it means you can buy things when they’re on offer and stock up. You can also create inexpensive meals right from the store cupboard when you’re low on fresh ingredients. Whether you’re an avid home cook or baker, interior obsessed or just want your kitchen to be more organised here are a few ways to create the perfect pantry
1. Locate a Suitable Space –
If you already have a built in pantry, a boiler cupboard or general separate area in your kitchen that you can section off then you’re one step ahead. But if not, there’s no need to panic or give up your dreams of an amazing looking pantry. Any downstairs storage cupboard can fit the bill, for example you could clear out an old shoe and coat cupboard. Wasted space under your stairs can easily be transformed into your dream pantry by enclosing it off with some doors.
2. Fit The Shelves –
Solid, premade shelves tend to be quite expensive- especially in this case as you are probably going to need quite a few of them. You’re much better off buying the materials and making them yourself, that way they’ll be the perfect size and can be cut around any awkward bends or corners. Specialists like George Hill timber merchants will have all of the materials you need, then it’s just a case of picking up some inexpensive brackets to mount them on the walls. Fit rows of shelves right the way up to the ceiling to make the most of the space.
3. Find The Right Storage –
Once you have all of your shelves set up, now comes the fun part. Organising it all! You could use baskets, boxes or storage bins for packets and smaller jars. Large glass or plastic lidded jars make handy containers for storing bulky dried food, plus it will keep it fresher than simply resealing a bag. You want things to be as easy to access as possible, so have a think about the types of products you’re going to be storing in your pantry and the best way to set it all up.
4. Label Everything –
The danger with decanting things into other jars is not remembering exactly what’s in the jar later down the line. It’s so easy to get things like plain, self raising and bread flour mixed up- and if you use the wrong one in a recipe it will end in your creation being a complete flop! Get some labels, or use a label maker to make sure you know exactly what everything is. Make a note of the use by date on there (even if it’s not for a really long time) and any other important information you might need such as allergy information.
Have you got a pantry in your home? I’d love to hear your tips!
Love, Charlotte x
*This is a collaborative post