ORGANIZING MY KITCHEN PANTRY ON A BUDGET

I’ve put off this project for far too long and I have decided I can’t take it any more. Time for an organized pantry! You know you can relate to this – the overwhelming feeling of anxiety you get when you open the pantry door (or any closet or cupboard for that matter) and see that giant mess of boxes, bags, bottles and cans that scream ‘organize me now!’ whenever you reach for something.

After close to 8 years of living in our home, I am tackling this monstrosity once and for all. It’s not my ‘dream pantry’ in any way, and frankly, organizing costs money – something I’ve never wanted to spend on, because I don’t love this little pantry. Now is the time to get on top if it though, because I open this door multiple times a day and I want serenity when I’m looking for something. So, I’m challenging myself to this small, but very might makeover and I’m going all in…it’s time I reward myself with an organized pantry! Now – my question to you, is what space in your home can you tackle and reorganize? Start small like I am, and you can organize too…are you with me?! Let’s do this! 

*Affiliate links are provided in this post for your shopping convenience – while I make a small commission on these items, it’s no extra cost to you!

I am a neatfreak and perfectionist, I admit it. I hate clutter of any kind, and I am constantly after everyone in our family to clean up after themselves. From unmade beds to dirty dishes, you see everything in our home from many different angles. Dirty dishes do not sit in our sink, and mail gets sorted out on a daily basis. You can read all about my post, daily hacks to keep our lives organized.

I have no problem keeping up with the day-to-day stuff. It’s these ‘bigger issues’ that give me the stress. Our home is an open concept floorpan, and is a good size, but not huge, therefore everything is visible from almost everywhere else. Below is the perfect example – our kitchen is open to the family room, and when we have friends and family over, I just don’t want to have to excuse the mess in my pantry when I need to open the door for something.
As I mentioned above, it is by no means my dream pantry and in a perfect world, it would be a separate room altogether, or at least a walk-in pantry…that’ll be the next house, right? What it does have to offer, is ample space for what it holds, it’s just the organized pantry I would like.

The shelves are 19″ deep, the height is 9 feet and the width is about 34″ – so there is a lot of room to hold everything I nee to keep in here. I’m also crossing my fingers I can even get a few more items packed in as well.

Just looking at these photos gives me a headache! I will get this done though, and I know you can too.From the plethora of reusable shopping bags and plastic bags, to unpainted mdf shelf brackets, this little pantry is in dire need of getting a pretty little makeover.

I plan to give it a fresh coat of paint, purge unesccary items, and find the perfect storage solution for everything – all on a budget.
There are so many things without a designated home – chip bags on the floor, leftover halloween candy (which should be in the garbage by now), bottled water, baking supplies, potatoes, pasta, oils, canned goods.

I will admit, I’ve been lazy and have almost completely let this pantry go. I gave up on trying to keep it neat and tidy which has now snowballed into nothing but stress. I know that sounds dramatic, but trust me, I need organization to stay sane. And this is only the beginning.

I have many more spaces to tackle in our home, but I know this pantry will bring me some peace, since it’s the one I deal with on a daily basis. One space at time, I plan to bang this house into tip top shape.

There’s a lot of room above this top shelf, so if possible, I’d like to add another shelf, about half the depth, to hold items that don’t get used often.

Are you getting stressed looking in here yet? And I bet you thought our home was so organized…I’m pretty good at hiding it, right?

Remember Monica’s secret closet on friends? Then you know what I mean ;)Below is a little inspiration I found on Pinterest, from InStyle magazine – it’s a little bare, I admit, but I love the simple idea of baskets, clear containers and bins.

I’m going to be heading out in the next couple of days to see what I can find, that won’t break the bank. I plan to head to the dollar store and local hardware stores and hopefully I’ll find all sorts of goodies.

I’ll be looking for a system for the back of the door as well. I’m not sure what I’ll be storing there just yet, but it’s definitely something that’s needed badly.

I’ve linked to a range of storage items below, all at different price points – I’m hoping I’ll be able to score some of these so I can get this project underway this weekend!
SCROLL AND TAP THE PHOTOS TO SHOP:

I’ll be sharing an update next week on my organized pantry, so stay tuned! I may be able to tackle this project in one weekend…so you may get to see the reveal as soon as next week. I hope you’ll be inspired to do the same and organize right alongside me. Fingers crossed, I can get it all done and have a brand new pantry the next time you visit. xo

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