Blessing #96 - My {dream} pantry

For a while now, one of the items on my "dream house" list is a good pantry. When we moved into the new house, I was thrilled to find that it had a pantry. Sure, it doesn't have a dishwasher (I've mentioned that a bunch lately haven't I), but it has a pantry!

I was so excited, but the pantry looked like this...



Random hooks sticking out alongside of mysterious chords running to a non-functioning antenna and shelves with fruity/flowerdy shelf paper.



Not like the pantries on my pinterest boards.



These pictures were taken right after we moved in, and I had just thrown a box of pantry items on the shelves in no particular order. (Yes, that is the box of cream of wheat from 2006 that I found in a cabinet.)

Originally, I did not plan on working on this project until after Christmas, but then I started to clean out the pantry, and I thought, "I might as well clean it to paint it." The next thing I knew, I had ripped all the shelves out and was stripping off the shelf paper.

One week of naptimes later, and my pantry looks like this...



I loOoOoOoOoOve the chalkboard. I could have made it look pretty for the picture, but right now, it's helping me keep all of our appointments straight. Eventually, this may be a calendar center, or I might put empty frames up and draw pictures inside them. I haven't settled on that yet.

The walls are "pebble gray" and the shelves and trim are a bright white. I thought about stenciling a pattern on the walls, but I was too tired by the time I got there. I did put some wrapping paper up at the back of the shelves to give it some interest for now.



This weekend, I spray painted the old hooks that were in the closet, and used them to hang some buckets. 1 is for chalk, 2 is for chip clips, and 3...I have no idea why I didn't get 3 buckets. I'll have to go back and get another one. I used an old clip board we had, fancied it up, and put it in the pantry. The idea is to write down what we need as we run out. First item on that list...paper for the clipboard.


(Sorry, I don't know why the picture is a weird color.)


The first step in my pantry makeover was cleaning and painting. Then I had to organize all the shelves. Organization does not come naturally for me. I have always been a more "creative" person than I am an "organized" person, but I am getting better.

I have learned that for me to keep stuff organized I need to containerize everything. I categorize like things and then throw them in a bin. The shelf stays organized and all I have to do is throw stuff in a bin.



All the water bottles are in the apple crate on the bottom shelf. It's not in this picture, but I use the space under these shelves to store Collin's high chair.

On the left side, I put breakfast on the top shelf, snacks on the second, canned goods and pasta on the third, and baking items on the bottom. (B can't reach the top two shelves that's why I put snacks and breakfast up there.)



One of the major problems with this pantry is the shelves are so deep tons of space is wasted. I decided to put all the pretty stuff in the front, and use the containers like cabinet doors to cover up the ugly stuff. Here is a shelf with a container pulled out.



I got all of those containers from the Dollar Tree! I spent $25 for all the blue cereal holders and the white crates in that pantry. It was soOoOoOoO well worth it. Shad is kind of neurotic about chips, cereal, and crackers staying fresh. He folds down the bag and then turns it on its side in the box. I never remembered to do that, and it always bugged him. Eight years into our marriage, $25 spent at the Dollar Tree, and we have finally settled that marital argument!



My vinyl cutter is currently out of commission (a very important piece got lost in the move), so I haven't made any labels for everything yet. While at JoAnne's, I picked up a pack of stickers to see what that would look like. I actually liked the kind of crazy look I got. I just ran out of stickers.



After my pantry makeover, I haven't closed the pantry door. I just leave it open, so I can enjoy my dream pantry.





Merry Christmas to me!

I'll be sharing this project with some of these wonderful sites.