Pantry Solutions {Before and After}

Transform a small walk-in pantry with simple pantry solutions including utility-based and space-saving products, the Can Rotator, and bins.

This post was sponsored by Pantry Storage Solutions. All opinions expressed are my own.

Do you have a pantry that looks like this? I’m a little embarrassed to even be showing you mine before the space-saving, organizing overhaul happened but here it is anyway.

We remodeled our Kitchen last year which included ditching the VERY small closet pantry to upgrade to a much larger (but still considered small) WALK-IN pantry.

I love the new pantry… it holds crazy amounts of stuff. I actually didn’t realize how much I had stuffed in there until I pulled everything out to organize and declutter.

Yikes! Seriously.

BUILDING YOUR OWN PANTRY SHELVES:

Building the pantry shelves wasn’t hard but did take some time. They are definitely not perfect but they do a great job. We made sure to look at what we’d like to store in our kitchen pantry and spaced the shelves accordingly.

PRO TIP #1: Leave enough space between the floor and the first shelf to fit 5-gallon buckets. We store flour, sugar, rice, whole grain wheat, and steel-cut oats in 5-gallon buckets. Keeping these buckets at the bottom of the pantry makes for very quick access if I need to refill the smaller containers (I pull out of the pantry when baking or cooking).

The shelf spacing in our pantry range from 10 inches to 16 inches. The shelf right above the floor (where I store the 5-gallon buckets) is 20 inches.

PRO TIP #2: Make sure to account for the shelf thickness in your measurements. If you use 3/4 inch thick wood to make the shelf, the wood itself will take away from the spacing between each shelf.

I did make the mistake of not accounting for this and am unable to store my Kitchen Aid mixer on the pantry shelf due to it being 3/4 inch to low. Learn from my mistake (I will never make that mistake again).

HOW TO ORGANIZE A PANTRY:

Everyone is different so you have to find what works for you.

PRO TIP #3: Organize your pantry based on how frequently you use an item. Place items you use frequently or daily on lower to mid-range shelves for easier access and less used items at the top (harder-to-reach place).

I have certain items I wanted easy or hard access specifically for our girls. We wanted easy access to cereal for our girls. That way they can pour their own cereal if they’d like to. We also wanted treats out of reach and healthier snacks within easier reach.

We dedicated a portion of the bottom shelf to kids’ snacks and items we wanted them to be able to access themselves. I also installed some super cool dry food dispensers for cereal.

Fantastically, I found the convenient dry food dispensers on Amazon. I did make some adjustments to make 5 dispensers fit in the space we had instead of only three (we go through a lot of cereal).

The dispensers came in a pack of 3 mounted to a single plate of metal. I removed the metal plate and mounted the dispensers directly on the support wood that’s anchored into the studs.

PANTRY CAN HOLDERS:

One of the biggest game-changers in the whole pantry was the first in, first out rotating can system. These babies are awesome. High-quality, durable and are going to last forever!

I was able to remove all boxes of cans on the floor to be stored on the wall in these amazing can holders.

We planned to build a can holder (from wood-thank you Pinterest) but with hubby super busy with work and me busy being mom, house cleaner, laundry doer, yard worker, content creator, etc… there wasn’t a lot of time we wanted to dedicate to house projects like a DIY can holder.

The space we had was limited so we needed to maximize every inch of it. The Can Rotator System from Pantry Storage Solutions was amazing at doing this. This is a picture of the space we planned for can storage (before the upgrade).

I’m so glad I didn’t spend hours and hours building a DIY can holder and this is why.

When I discovered Pantry Storage Solutions on Facebook I knew I had found what I was looking for. The company has perfected the design and recently launched its product nation-wide (based in the US) via a website.

The Can Rotator system is high quality and industrial grade (aka very sturdy) with a very sleek design. Each can rotator can sit against the next removing almost all gaps (no 1/2 or 1-inch wood pieces between each can holder). I really can’t say enough about them!

The can holders hold up to 8-9 regular soup cans (depending on size of can). They also offer an extension piece that allows for an additional 4 cans to be added to the line.

If you’d like to learn more about the Can Rotator System by Pantry Can Storage, you can do so HERE. I highly recommend them for the value and price.

And that’s how you utilize every last inch! *wink*

MAXIMIZE AND UTILIZE:

LAZY SUSANS

Our small walk-in pantry is “L” shaped. This created a deep corner. To avoid losing items in the corners I utilized lazy susans on a couple of the lower, shelves.

This allows highly used items such as chicken bouillon or spaghetti sauce to be in easy access. A lazy Susan gives you the ability to spin a tray to access items that may have been in the “back.”

BINS AND TUBS:

Organize like items into bins or tubs. This creates an organizational system that helps you and others find what you are looking for quicker.

I used the less expensive bins and tubs I could find at walmart. I believe the smallest bins I used were 88 cents (bin and lid). The medium size was around $3 a bin.

INEXPENSIVE PLASTIC DRAWER SYSTEM:

Use plastic drawer systems for items that may be similar but in large quantity.

I used drawers for my spices and canning lids, rings, and tools. This allowed me to have all like items together without having to rummage through a larger bin.

LABELS:

So, you’ve gone through all the effort to make your pantry organized, functional and pretty. ADD SOME LABELS!

Labels are all three of those things: organizational, functional AND pretty!

I love when my husband asks, “where is the_________?” and I can reply with a snarky “it’s in the pantry, read the labels” as I snicker under my breathe. Tehe.

Seriously though, labels can add a beautiful yet functional touch to any pantry.

If you’d like to use some of the labels I designed for my pantry, feel free to use this FREE PRINTABLE PANTRY LABELS. I printed these labels on full-sheet sticker paper then I punched them out using a circle 2.5-inch punch.

BEFORE AND AFTER PANTRY ORGANIZATION:

And now for what you’ve been waiting for… drum roll please!

The before and after photos of my messy, crazy pantry turned beautiful and functional.

I’m so incredibly pleased. P.S. Notice there are no more boxes of cans sitting on the floor. Thank you Pantry Can Storage.

KEY POINTS I LEARNED DURING THIS PROCESS:

1. Remove any unwanted or less used items from your kitchen pantry to a long term storage place (a storage room in the basement or large bin stored elsewhere).
2. Priority pantry placement. Place items you use daily in easy access and kid-friendly items where kids can reach them.
3. Be willing and ready to spend a little money on organizational products (space-saving can holders, bins, drawers, lazy susans).
4. Use cute labels because they are CUTE and functional.

That’s it for today, my friends! I hope you enjoyed this little Pantry organization DIY.