Designing the Perfect Pantry
Pantry design was top of my list when I started the building process. I wanted it to be beautiful but also functional at the same time. While also keeping in mind that I have three children, cook a lot, and love to can.
When you begin searching the internet for inspiration you can’t help but become overwhelmed. There are so many pantries I fell in love with, but I can’t build all of them. I only had one pantry and on top of that it had to fit into the space we had designated for a pantry.
Pantry Design Decision Making
First, I knew I wanted a room that was large enough to comfortably walk into. With ten foot ceilings I knew a step ladder would be required to reach up high. I wanted floor space to move about and not feel like only one person could go in at a time.
Next, is always the concept of cost. As much as we want to avoid the idea of cost while building and just do whatever we want. That is not reality. Built in cabinets are one of the most expensive parts of building. For me that is a more important thing to do on the front end and then down grade your floors or tile. I can always change my floors down the road, but most people don’t want to go back in and add a whole built in room.
I am so thankful that I chose to do built in cabinetry. However, adding drawers also add to the cost. We are a family that tries to stick with the 80/20 rule as far as eating goes. So while I love to cook from scratch most of the time, I also love some snack foods. I wanted to have a few drawers to hide bags of chips and boxes of snack foods.
While entering the pantry you are met with beautiful antique double doors. Added bead board in the backs of each shelf to create a textured background. Brass cupped handles to add a pop of color. The choice of paint color is edgecomb gray by Benjamin Moore.
Organizing Your Pantry
There are all types of people. I am the type that loves the aesthetic and will pour my foods into canisters to create a beautiful look. While this may seem crazy to lots, how can you not love the look of clear containers, baskets, and labels.
I have many favorites for ways that I like to house all my food in my pantry. The first of those is baskets. This is a better option for hiding certain packaged items. I love these baskets from target, here.
There are so many choices for glass jars all over the internet. I don’t think you could really pick a bad one. Le parfait is one of my favorites! You can find them a lot of times at Costco, but they also have them on Amazon as well, here.
Some other favorites include large gallon glass containers for my flour. A cute idea is to use tea cups in the jars to add a pop of color and use to scoop out your flour. Those jars are found here.
The possibilities are endless. Cereal containers, spice racks, canned goods shelf, and a beautiful bread box. Those are all linked. Last, I created labels on Etsy to add to the front of each container. While this may seem silly for something like chocolate chips it’s very helpful.
Flours look alike, baking powder and soda look alike. So while you can tell what jar has oatmeal some things you need labeled. It’s beautiful and makes me happy to look at every day!!! You can find the labels I used here.
Before and After of the Pantry
This is my dream pantry come to life!! Please go look at my other home design processes here.
