That's it, I just simply STINK at organizing

[DawnM]

I brought some tall bins from my previous house, where I didn't really have a pantry, and have been filling them with labels for my pantry.  My pantry is, unfortunately, closet sized, and DEEP, so it isn't the lovely narrow shelving all the way around to see things nicely just placed on the shelf.

And the shelves are narrower in the back than the front, think corner shelving type.

I have:

Breakfast items (cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix, etc...) 

Snacks (chips, cookies, bagged snacks)

Onions, garlic, potatoes

dog treats and supplies

PB/Honey/PB2/Jelly in a smaller sized bin

Pasta/Sauce

Healthier options (quinoa, hemp, seeds, nuts)

and a few other bins.

My problem?  My stuff isn't so neat and tidy that it fits in the bins well.  The breakfast bin has about 1/3 extra stuff that I stuffed behind it, which isn't practical.

My snacks are stuffed and hard to get to

PB/Jelly is heavy and hard to move to get to what you want

DH wants the potatoes, onions, etc....separate so they take up 6" high of a 2 foot clearance, and lay out to take up the entire shelf.

I would order more bins, etc....but I am afraid I will run into the same issue.

I am just not good at organizing.  I have been watching YouTube videos but nothing really works for me so far.

This is just a vent.  Eventually it will work itself out, but in the meantime......UGH.

[DawnM]

Here is the organizing so far.  Ignore the bottom full of vitamins and meds, those still need to be moved:

This is my attempt at organizing.  I stink.  Tall white containers have breakfast, baking, and snacks.  Not labeled yet.

[PrincessMommy]

I'll commiserate with you!!  I suck at organization and I've also been watching YouTube videos.    I'm so tired of people telling me all the great things I can do with stuff from Ikea or the Dollar Store... 🤔

 

I hope you figure it out.  

[PrincessMommy]

Does the bottom shelf come out?  IF so I would be tempted to take it out and put in one or two of these:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-5214BL-Construction-Mobility/dp/B003LU23WE/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=small+cart+mesh&qid=1563028358&s=gateway&sr=8-8

 

I did that at my old house with a similar pantry.  I didn't put the wheels on (didn't fit) and I loved that I had pull-out shelves.    I got the idea... off Youtube LOL! 

 

Edited July 13, 2019 by PrincessMommy

[marbel]

I hate organizing too. so I am commiserating.  I do find that containers are most helpful if they are clear so I can see what's in them; I just find that easier than labeling.  And I just ditched my last wicker basket, what a waste of space those were for me!   

Of course, who wants to go out and buy all new containers?  No one!

[DawnM]

9 minutes ago, PrincessMommy said:

Does the bottom shelf come out?  IF so I would be tempted to take it out and put in one or two of these:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-5214BL-Construction-Mobility/dp/B003LU23WE/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=small+cart+mesh&qid=1563028358&s=gateway&sr=8-8

 

I did that at my old house with a similar pantry.  I didn't put the wheels on (didn't fit) and I loved that I had pull-out shelves.    I got the idea... off Youtube LOL! 

 

 

I think that would be a lot of dead space, unless I buy 3 of them, which I really don't want to spend that kind of $$ on right now.

And I don't know if it comes out!  I need to go check.

[DawnM]

1 minute ago, marbel said:

I hate organizing too. so I am commiserating.  I do find that containers are most helpful if they are clear so I can see what's in them; I just find that easier than labeling.  And I just ditched my last wicker basket, what a waste of space those were for me!   

Of course, who wants to go out and buy all new containers?  No one!

 

IKR?  

My friend told me to go to the Container store.  She spent $700 on her son's closet, and won't even tell me how much she spent on her kitchen organization.  And she spent a ton on her bonus room.  She told me it was $300 for one of the spots, but won't tell me how much she spent on the rest.

UGH!   I need to spend $$, but this is one area I hope not to spend too much right now.  

[mmasc]

I would ditch the white containers, personally. I like to be able to see what’s in my pantry. For little packets of things, you could put them into a low profile basket/container to keep them together.  Also, I discovered in my last house that a see-through shoe holder over the inside of the pantry door holds TONS of stuff! All those things that are in boxes that take up lots of room—granola bars, trail mix, nuts, pb crackers, etc. 

good luck! 

[PrincessMommy]

That one is pricey.  I don't think I bought that one exactly, but one like it.  I doubt I would pay $85 for one either! 

 

[PrincessMommy]

okay, I found the lady who recommended the shelves from years ago.  My response about the carts reminded me of her.   She also recommended lazy susans for shelves.  I purchased a couple at that time that *just* fit my shelves.  It worked just okay... mainly due to non-compliance from other family members 🙄

Of course, it only worked for a few types of items, of which I only a few of - things like peanut butter/jelly type containers as well as oils, sauces, etc. that come in glass jars.  It didn't work for box type things like rice-a-roni, mac/cheese boxes.  

Here's her video, if you're at all interested...otherwise skip (obviously!  😄)

Edited July 13, 2019 by PrincessMommy

[mmasc]

29 minutes ago, DawnM said:

I brought some tall bins from my previous house, where I didn't really have a pantry, and have been filling them with labels for my pantry.  My pantry is, unfortunately, closet sized, and DEEP, so it isn't the lovely narrow shelving all the way around to see things nicely just placed on the shelf.

And the shelves are narrower in the back than the front, think corner shelving type.

I have:

Breakfast items (cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix, etc...) 

Snacks (chips, cookies, bagged snacks)

Onions, garlic, potatoes

dog treats and supplies

PB/Honey/PB2/Jelly in a smaller sized bin

Pasta/Sauce

Healthier options (quinoa, hemp, seeds, nuts)

and a few other bins.

My problem?  My stuff isn't so neat and tidy that it fits in the bins well.  The breakfast bin has about 1/3 extra stuff that I stuffed behind it, which isn't practical.

My snacks are stuffed and hard to get to

PB/Jelly is heavy and hard to move to get to what you want

DH wants the potatoes, onions, etc....separate so they take up 6" high of a 2 foot clearance, and lay out to take up the entire shelf.

I would order more bins, etc....but I am afraid I will run into the same issue.

I am just not good at organizing.  I have been watching YouTube videos but nothing really works for me so far.

This is just a vent.  Eventually it will work itself out, but in the meantime......UGH.

I group my stuff in my pantry together like you’ve got it above. But I leave it visible. I know your shelves are deep, but I’d try to put dry goods together, oils/vinegars/condiments etc together, cans together, baking together, etc. From your list, if the shelf is deep I might put pancake mix at the back with cereal in front for example. I’d take all the snacks and put them in an over the door hang-thing. I’d put my dog treats/snacks/etc under my kitchen sink cabinet. I’d put the fresh veggies you listed in a bowl on the counter. I really think the bins are making it a bit harder, imho. 

[Junie]

(((DawnM)))

The problem (at least to me) seems to be a lack of adequate space, not your organizational skills.  Your pantry seems too small for the amount of groceries that you have.   Maybe shopping differently would help so that you wouldn't have as much inventory at the same time.

I actually like your containers.  I would put the taller ones down lower -- maybe on the floor -- so that you can see into them.

Also, I would take out anything that does not have to be stored in the pantry.  If it's not food, find another location for it.

 

[regentrude]

I would get rid of the bins for all packaged items and stack the items themselves so they are clearly visible.

Potatoes/onions etc I'd store in a shallow basket.

Edited July 13, 2019 by regentrude

[DawnM]

1 hour ago, mmasc said:

I group my stuff in my pantry together like you’ve got it above. But I leave it visible. I know your shelves are deep, but I’d try to put dry goods together, oils/vinegars/condiments etc together, cans together, baking together, etc. From your list, if the shelf is deep I might put pancake mix at the back with cereal in front for example. I’d take all the snacks and put them in an over the door hang-thing. I’d put my dog treats/snacks/etc under my kitchen sink cabinet. I’d put the fresh veggies you listed in a bowl on the counter. I really think the bins are making it a bit harder, imho. 

 

I want nothing else on my counter.  It will have to find another spot.

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, DawnM said:

DH wants the potatoes, onions, etc....separate so they take up 6" high of a 2 foot clearance, and lay out to take up the entire shelf.

 

 

I have one bin, similar to this one, that is on the floor in the pantry. I use one side of it for onions, garlic and shallots and the other side for potatoes. I think mine is a bit smaller than this, though. Would something like this help?

[DawnM]

31 minutes ago, Junie said:

(((DawnM)))

The problem (at least to me) seems to be a lack of adequate space, not your organizational skills.  Your pantry seems too small for the amount of groceries that you have.   Maybe shopping differently would help so that you wouldn't have as much inventory at the same time.

I actually like your containers.  I would put the taller ones down lower -- maybe on the floor -- so that you can see into them.

Also, I would take out anything that does not have to be stored in the pantry.  If it's not food, find another location for it.

 

 

I know!  DH and I were shaking our heads this am.  This house is larger than our last house, but we can't fit everything we used to have in our last house.  It is weird.

And yes, the Costco stock up trips will have to be curbed.  I have a problem.  I know I do.

[DawnM]

1 minute ago, TechWife said:

 

I have one bin, similar to this one, that is on the floor in the pantry. I use one side of it for onions, garlic and shallots and the other side for potatoes. I think mine is a bit smaller than this, though. Would something like this help?

 

Maybe!  It might also help for DH not to buy onions and garlic and such at COSTCO!  We go through an onion a week at most.  

[DawnM]

DH just reminded me that we have a Rec room with a bar area  and quite a few more cupboard that are still empty.  He suggested putting surplus of snack and such in there for now.  We already keep all sodas in that mini-fridge in there since our fridge is only counter depth,.  I told the boys ALL drinks except milk and OJ need to go in that fridge.

[TechWife]

1 minute ago, DawnM said:

 

Maybe!  It might also help for DH not to buy onions and garlic and such at COSTCO!  We go through an onion a week at most.  

 

Oh, my. I can't imagine how long it would take us to go through a bag of onions from Costco! I just can't buy food there for our small family. It's great for paper goods, cleaning products and OTC meds, but we just don't go through food fast enough to buy food there. In our new house, I will have space for a deep freeze and then we will be able to buy some meats there, which I look forward to. I would love to not have to go to the grocery for things like that so frequently & it would greatly help with menu planning. But, then again, we are a small family, so it might not be such a good idea .

[Suzanne in ABQ]

I am more of a shelf labeler, myself.  I would not use the bins.  They just make it impossible to see what you have. You don't want to hide your food.  That will be a major source of frustration every single time you or your family members are looking for something (especially in the scenario where you don't know what you're looking for, but you'll know it when you see it).  You'll be digging through bins endlessly, the smaller stuff will always be at the bottom, and some stuff will get crushed and/or lost in the deep bins. Besides, it will be a pain to put everything away, so your family members won't want to do it, and it could cause endless battles trying to get them to comply.  Marie Kondo (KonMari Method of tidying) says that you need to make things easy to put away, otherwise you (and your family) won't want to do it, and things will get cluttered.

To keep bags and loose items from falling off the shelf or getting mixed up, instead of bins, you could use short tray-like containment.  These can be cardboard box lids (which can be covered with Contact Paper to look better), or short baskets. Whatever they are, the sides shouldn't be more than about 2 inches high.  

I might create some stepped shelving for the smaller stuff to raise up the items in the rear so I can see them.  You don't have to buy the shelves.  They can be made with shoeboxes, placed upside down, at the backs of the pantry shelves.   Use these for things like peanut butter, canned goods, condiments, etc.  

I'd have all the boxes together, side by side, likes books on a shelf.

I would sort items like with like, and stick labels to the shelves.  (I have used labels in the house, when I was first teaching my family where to put things, but I don't need them anymore).

Definitely get the meds out of the pantry, and put the potatoes and onions on the floor (especially if it's cool -- maybe not if it's a heated floor).  The tall cereal boxes and protein powder can go on the floor as well.  

If you have a lot of canned goods, line them up front to back with like, so a row of soups (going back), a row of canned fruit, a row of canned tomatoes, a row of other veggies, etc.  At the front of each row, label the shelf (Soup, Fruit, Tomatoes, Veggies).  

Do the same for other groupings.  I can't see what you have in your bins, but you might have "Snacks", "Crackers", "Chips", "Spreads", "Condiments",  as groupings, and label the shelves where they go.

 

ETA: a picture of my pantry.  It's a 3 ft. cupboard, and the shelves are 2 ft. deep!  I cleaned it out recently, and organized it.  I can see everything. 

Pantry.pdfy.pdf

 

Edited July 13, 2019 by Suzanne in ABQ
Added photo

[PrincessMommy]

2 minutes ago, TechWife said:

 

Oh, my. I can't imagine how long it would take us to go through a bag of onions from Costco! I just can't buy food there for our small family. It's great for paper goods, cleaning products and OTC meds, but we just don't go through food fast enough to buy food there. In our new house, I will have space for a deep freeze and then we will be able to buy some meats there, which I look forward to. I would love to not have to go to the grocery for things like that so frequently & it would greatly help with menu planning. But, then again, we are a small family, so it might not be such a good idea .

There was a time when I shopped fairly regularly at Sam's (like Costco).  That time has past.  I find I can save just as much money (if not more sometimes) at the regular grocery store when things are on sale.  My kids are almost all out of the house now.

The only time I shop at Sam's is when I'm feeding a crowd - which is about 1-2x per year. 

[Sherry in OH]

Your pantry shelving setup looks similar to the initial setup in our previous house.  We removed the shelving and installed new shelves along the walls perpendicular to the doorway.  The individual shelves were shorter but because we had two sets, we actually had more usable shelving space.  This allowed me to designate a snack shelf, a cereal and cracker shelf, canned good shelf, etc.   I only used bins on a few of high shelves to corral small, infrequently accessed items.   We ran a single narrow shallow shelf along the back wall at the height of the highest shelf.  It was just wide enough for a single row of items.   We installed a coat hook bar under that shelf for aprons and grilling utensils.  

A pantry that had been awkward to use became a very nice walk-in pantry.  

[PeterPan]

36 minutes ago, DawnM said:

And yes, the Costco stock up trips will have to be curbed.

Can things go in the garage?

I'm with the others that I'd ditch the white bins and just put things on the shelves. I like the open wire racks under the bottom shelf idea. Can your supplements go over by the sink? That's where you take them. The pantry just is so odd. Is that a wine rack above your frig? If you're not using it (haha, I don't drink), you could put on doors and have chips there. Or just leave it open and have chips. Those are the worst in that pantry. The jars, etc. will be ok when you get them laid out and organized. And I agree, a shelf for breakfast, a shelf for snacks, etc. You also have a big cab to the left of  your sink that could be good for food. I store all my low frequency dishes in the basement.

Sorry your new house is stressing you! Remember, it's always first use or last use when deciding location. So like if they eat chips at the table, maybe put a cute pie safe over there.

[PrincessMommy]

24 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

Can things go in the garage?

I'm with the others that I'd ditch the white bins and just put things on the shelves. I like the open wire racks under the bottom shelf idea. Can your supplements go over by the sink? That's where you take them. The pantry just is so odd. Is that a wine rack above your frig? If you're not using it (haha, I don't drink), you could put on doors and have chips there. Or just leave it open and have chips. Those are the worst in that pantry. The jars, etc. will be ok when you get them laid out and organized. And I agree, a shelf for breakfast, a shelf for snacks, etc. You also have a big cab to the left of  your sink that could be good for food. I store all my low frequency dishes in the basement.

Sorry your new house is stressing you! Remember, it's always first use or last use when deciding location. So like if they eat chips at the table, maybe put a cute pie safe over there.

This made me laugh thinking about my son.  He eats chips at his computer whilst gaming.  If I put a pie cabinet and mini fridge over there he'd never get up 😄

Edited July 13, 2019 by PrincessMommy

[DawnM]

3 minutes ago, Suzanne in ABQ said:

I am more of a shelf labeler, myself.  I would not use the bins.  They just make it impossible to see what you have. You don't want to hide your food.  That will be a major source of frustration every single time you or your family members are looking for something (especially in the scenario where you don't know what you're looking for, but you'll know it when you see it).  You'll be digging through bins endlessly, the smaller stuff will always be at the bottom, and some stuff will get crushed and/or lost in the deep bins. Besides, it will be a pain to put everything away, so your family members won't want to do it, and it could cause endless battles trying to get them to comply.  Marie Kondo (KonMari Method of tidying) says that you need to make things easy to put away, otherwise you (and your family) won't want to do it, and things will get cluttered.

To keep bags and loose items from falling off the shelf or getting mixed up, instead of bins, you could use short tray-like containment.  These can be cardboard box lids (which can be covered with Contact Paper to look better), or short baskets. Whatever they are, the sides shouldn't be more than about 2 inches high.  

I might create some stepped shelving for the smaller stuff to raise up the items in the rear so I can see them.  You don't have to buy the shelves.  They can be made with shoeboxes, placed upside down, at the backs of the pantry shelves.   Use these for things like peanut butter, canned goods, condiments, etc.  

I'd have all the boxes together, side by side, likes books on a shelf.

I would sort items like with like, and stick labels to the shelves.  (I have used labels in the house, when I was first teaching my family where to put things, but I don't need them anymore).

Definitely get the meds out of the pantry, and put the potatoes and onions on the floor (especially if it's cool -- maybe not if it's a heated floor).  The tall cereal boxes and protein powder can go on the floor as well.  

If you have a lot of canned goods, line them up front to back with like, so a row of soups (going back), a row of canned fruit, a row of canned tomatoes, a row of other veggies, etc.  At the front of each row, label the shelf (Soup, Fruit, Tomatoes, Veggies).  

Do the same for other groupings.  I can't see what you have in your bins, but you might have "Snacks", "Crackers", "Chips", "Spreads", "Condiments",  as groupings, and label the shelves where they go.

 

If I put anything short in there, everything will just fall all over the place.  Those tall bins are filled.  I will at least have to wait until we eat through what we have.  

[DawnM]

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

Can things go in the garage?

I'm with the others that I'd ditch the white bins and just put things on the shelves. I like the open wire racks under the bottom shelf idea. Can your supplements go over by the sink? That's where you take them. The pantry just is so odd. Is that a wine rack above your frig? If you're not using it (haha, I don't drink), you could put on doors and have chips there. Or just leave it open and have chips. Those are the worst in that pantry. The jars, etc. will be ok when you get them laid out and organized. And I agree, a shelf for breakfast, a shelf for snacks, etc. You also have a big cab to the left of  your sink that could be good for food. I store all my low frequency dishes in the basement.

Sorry your new house is stressing you! Remember, it's always first use or last use when deciding location. So like if they eat chips at the table, maybe put a cute pie safe over there.

 

I don't even know what a pie safe is.  

Meds have already moved, that is why I said to ignore them, that isn't where they were going to stay.

Yes, it is a wine rack, but it has no bottom, so I would need to install an entire cabinet up there with a bottom and back and doors.  That will not be happening anytime soon.  The fridge is cabinet depth and behind it is some space taht goes to an air intake, so things could fall back there and that would not be good.

No basement in this house.

Garage, maybe, but not now, it is still packed with stuff we haven't put away yet.

Edited July 13, 2019 by DawnM

[PrincessMommy]

Here's a link:

Pie Safe

[DawnM]

3 minutes ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

I stink at it too so you have my total commiseration. 

FWIW when we hired the professional organizers to come here, they were both adamant about not buying anything for storage/organization. They said most of the times those just add to the clutter and if you do actually need to use something most people have plenty around the house that can be used instead of buying something else. 

That's all well and good, but I still had to pay someone to figure out all of that for me, LOL. 🙂  But they found plenty of things in the house that did work, so they were right there and I ended up with a huge stack of storage containers afterwards that are sitting unused now. 

 

I hired someone in my last house.  She is the one who helped me purge and stage for selling too.  She says she will come and help me do it once I am settled.  We still have quite a bit of work to do before I can have her in here.  But at some point she will come in.

She actually said the same thing about buying more bins.  

Those tall white bins really need to go in other cabinets and hold things like parts for the mixer and all of my cookie making supplies and such, which is a much better use for them, but I was trying to organize the mess in the pantry for now.

[DawnM]

Just now, PrincessMommy said:

Here's a link:

Pie Safe

 

Oh, no, no room for that.  

[PrincessMommy]

2 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

I stink at it too so you have my total commiseration. 

FWIW when we hired the professional organizers to come here, they were both adamant about not buying anything for storage/organization. They said most of the times those just add to the clutter and if you do actually need to use something most people have plenty around the house that can be used instead of buying something else. 

That's all well and good, but I still had to pay someone to figure out all of that for me, LOL. 🙂  But they found plenty of things in the house that did work, so they were right there and I ended up with a huge stack of storage containers afterwards that are sitting unused now. 

I'd love to know what kind of things I might already have that can be used for storage?

[DawnM]

31 minutes ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

She walked around our house and found baskets, boxes, jars, Tupperware, random plastic containers I had in the kitchen..... All sorts of stuff. Some of it was sitting out as “decor” and she made it actually purposeful. Like she took a basket I had in the living room with some decor type balls on it, replaced basket with some random bowl I never use- put the ball things on it and then used the basket for me to organize my perfume and make up that stays sitting out on my counter. Things like that. 

She used shoeboxes without the lids as caddies to organize smaller supplies in jars. You can apparently wrap them in paper or fabric if you’re crafty that way. What she did not use were Sterlite containers or the things I had previously bought that were organizers of any sort. 

Honestly, I think I’m spatially challenged, so I couldn’t do this on my own if I tried. I cannot visualize the sizes needed for which spaces. So for me, I’d rather keep hiring people than buy more stuff. I could drop hundreds in The Containers Store, come home with a carload and be just as overwhelmed and unorganized in a week. I’m gifted like that, LOL. 

 

My organizer did something similar.  I had baskets all over for things like umbrellas, scarves and such and they matched but were in different parts of the house.  She took those out, found other spaces for them (scarves tied around hangers instead so I could see them, umbrellas on a shelf in the garage, etc...) and took the baskets and put them on the bookshelves with "like" things in them.  One became the dog toy basket.  It was fun to watch my dog go in and take out her 3 favorites just to have them out!  she didn't much care for the new system!  She preferred my haphazard ways where her toys could stay out anywhere all the time.

[Carol in Cal.]

2 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

All sorts of stuff. Some of it was sitting out as “decor” and she made it actually purposeful.

It is amazing how much clutter I can accumulate right *next to* empty containers.

Having said that, it is also amazing how much nicer clutter looks when it is is in containers, even open ones.  I have a uselessly deep corner area in my kitchen countertops, and lots of various kinds of food that others want to be able to find without having to open anything.  This was a crazy mess until I found 3 open, medium depth baskets that did not match but looked nice together.  I put breads in one, savory dry stuff (crackers and chex mix and such) in another, and sweet dry stuff (cookies and the odd roll of lifesavers) in the third.  This now looks inviting and intentional, and it's easy to pull one basket forward to paw through it, and then push it back out of the way.  I wish I had thought of this long ago.  

My latest find, and I am super happy about this--an antique dark walnut cabinet, the size of a short armoire.  It has carving on the doors, and looks all Germanic barbarians in style.  Someone had put two levels of hanger rods in it, and the antique store guy is going to take out the lower one and put in a shelf that looks like it was always in there.  Then I'm going to hang all my strawberry tablecloths on hangers from the top rod, and put my strawberry napkins and towels on the shelf below them.  This will look awesome open or closed, it will fill a spot that I had been fretting over for a long time, it is massive enough to put right next to the protruding wall oven/cabinet/drawers that sticks out into the great room (unlike my original idea--a hunter's cabinet, which would have been dwarfed there), and it will get my tablecloths stored without being wrinkled from being piled on shelves AND off of my weaving loom, the function of which is currently blocked by laid out tablecloths that I want to keep from wrinkling.  So tickled to have found this.  It will be delivered in two weeks. 

Edited July 13, 2019 by Carol in Cal.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

5 hours ago, DawnM said:

 

If I put anything short in there, everything will just fall all over the place.  Those tall bins are filled.  I will at least have to wait until we eat through what we have.  

 

Is everything in the bins open already?  If not, you could keep the unopened products in the bins (on the floor, or someplace else), and display the open containers on the shelves to make them more accessible and appealing.  Then, as those get consumed, replace them with the food from the bins.

[Laurie]

My pantry cupboard is smaller than yours and also has oddly shaped shelves.  Since you have just moved into a new home I would be careful about pantry moths and stay away from open bins and opt instead for lidded containers for anything that larvae could get into.   We had pantry moths many years ago and it was awful...they can chew through unopened plastic bags!  In case you haven't dealt with them before,  you have to clean really thoroughly....I had to carefully clean every little hole from the adjustable shelves.  After that, I wanted to make sure we never got them again so I invested heavily in Lock&Lock containers in a variety of sizes to store anything  (open or unopened) not in cans or jars.   

I understand what you're trying to achieve with your bins and baskets,  but for me open containers (accessible to bugs) are pretty useless and I'd use them for storing non-food items somewhere else.  

Good luck to you!  I'm not good at organizing things either.

 

[DawnM]

52 minutes ago, Suzanne in ABQ said:

 

Is everything in the bins open already?  If not, you could keep the unopened products in the bins (on the floor, or someplace else), and display the open containers on the shelves to make them more accessible and appealing.  Then, as those get consumed, replace them with the food from the bins.

 

Most of everything is opened except the top shelf where I obviously purchased a boatload of popcorn bags.  

[Carrie12345]

See, to me, the white bins are PERFECT, though I’d keep them lower and use the baskets higher.  Keeping like-baskets together makes a difference all by itself.  

If you want to try avoiding new bins (at least for now), I’d focus on the soft packaged stuff and let the boxed and canned stuff “live free”, lined up neatly.  I don’t think you’re off to a terrible start, I just want to group the like-baskets every time I see the picture, lol.

”Getting to know” the space and how it functions for you is important before shelling out cash.

ETA:  Organization isn’t about being Pinterest pretty.  It’s about making a space function well, and THEN you can think about making it pretty.

Edited July 14, 2019 by Carrie12345

[historically accurate]

19 hours ago, Sherry in OH said:

Your pantry shelving setup looks similar to the initial setup in our previous house.  We removed the shelving and installed new shelves along the walls perpendicular to the doorway.  The individual shelves were shorter but because we had two sets, we actually had more usable shelving space.  This allowed me to designate a snack shelf, a cereal and cracker shelf, canned good shelf, etc.   I only used bins on a few of high shelves to corral small, infrequently accessed items.   We ran a single narrow shallow shelf along the back wall at the height of the highest shelf.  It was just wide enough for a single row of items.   We installed a coat hook bar under that shelf for aprons and grilling utensils.  

A pantry that had been awkward to use became a very nice walk-in pantry.  

This is what we have - a deeper pantry that has shelves on the side. It is deep enough to step into, and it is pretty wide. We put a rack that is similar to these shelves on the back wall - it holds muffin liners, all the extra condiment bottles, etc. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Style-Selections-18-in-L-x-76-65-in-H-x-5-in-D-Steel-Wall-Mounted-Shelving/50115511

 

Edit: Added a picture.  Just measured my pantry - it is a hair under 2 feet deep. It looks like your pantry isn't quite as deep (hard to tell in a pic), but the setup may still give you more room.

Edited July 14, 2019 by beckyjo

[DawnM]

Thanks for all the pantry pictures! 

You guys have really helped me think this through more.

Our pantry shelves go back into a narrower section in the back and are U shaped, so I don't think we can do much with them in terms of changing them other than to maybe cut a U into the wood that is there to make it narrower all the way around.  

I am interested in getting something behind the door though.  I would prefer something bolted in, and have been looking at things online that might even hold all my wraps and bags.  I am sure they are pricey.  

Something like this:

 

Or this:

 

 

And by cutting it into a U, I mean something like this, but rounded:

 

And I am quite sure that whatever I do for the back of this pantry door, I will want to do on my closets as well! DH will have some projects coming up!

Edited July 14, 2019 by DawnM

[DawnM]

for those of you with things you stick over the door, does it show on the other side?

[alisoncooks]

That first photo looks like the BEKVÄM spice racks from ikea. They're like $5 each. 

[DawnM]

22 minutes ago, alisoncooks said:

That first photo looks like the BEKVÄM spice racks from ikea. They're like $5 each. 

 

Now you have me googling:

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/craft-ideas/g3252/ikea-bekvam-spice-rack-hacks/

[DawnM]

4 minutes ago, Plum said:

Just the over the door hooks show.

The only problem with adding weight to the door is that it causes the door to hang differently. My kitchen pantry door always wants to close.

I’d love to hang some of those IKEA spice racks on the door, but I checked and they aren’t wide enough for a jar of peanut butter or most things I have stored in the over the door shoe organizer. 

 

Do you think this is because of general weight added to the door or do you think it is because it is hanging from the top and kind of pulling?

[Carrie12345]

34 minutes ago, DawnM said:

for those of you with things you stick over the door, does it show on the other side?

I have one on my laundry closet door, with hooks that do come ove the other side.  It was necessary because my door is hollow. You can probably do just an interior installation on a solid wood door.

[ktgrok]

23 hours ago, DawnM said:

 

IKR?  

My friend told me to go to the Container store.  She spent $700 on her son's closet, and won't even tell me how much she spent on her kitchen organization.  And she spent a ton on her bonus room.  She told me it was $300 for one of the spots, but won't tell me how much she spent on the rest.

UGH!   I need to spend $$, but this is one area I hope not to spend too much right now.  

OMG!!!! For 700 bucks you could pay someone to come clean and organize that closet every other week for a year, lol!

[DawnM]

4 hours ago, Ktgrok said:

OMG!!!! For 700 bucks you could pay someone to come clean and organize that closet every other week for a year, lol!

 

IKR?

Edited July 14, 2019 by DawnM

[mmasc]

1 hour ago, DawnM said:

for those of you with things you stick over the door, does it show on the other side?

The hooks show

[caedmyn]

23 hours ago, Suzanne in ABQ said:

To keep bags and loose items from falling off the shelf or getting mixed up, instead of bins, you could use short tray-like containment.  These can be cardboard box lids (which can be covered with Contact Paper to look better), or short baskets. Whatever they are, the sides shouldn't be more than about 2 inches high.  

If you have a lot of canned goods, line them up front to back with like, so a row of soups (going back), a row of canned fruit, a row of canned tomatoes, a row of other veggies, etc.  At the front of each row, label the shelf (Soup, Fruit, Tomatoes, Veggies).  

 

 

I would also ditch the bins and go with more tray-like containers, and fewer of them.  I found short & good sized plastic "bins" at Dollar Tree to use for this.  I'd mainly put stuff that comes in bags (like bulk foods or snack foods that comes in bags) in those, and maybe extra spices and things like seasoning packets and tuna salad packets.  Actually I used small short bins (about 5"x8" or smaller) from Walmart for seasoning packets.  Use your bigger baskets for potatoes and onions, and put them wherever you like.  I like mine on the floor but you could really put them wherever. 

I organize by category (so all the baking stuff is together, all the sauces and condiments are together, etc).  I wouldn't bother with labels personally, just organize for your categories and then keep putting stuff in the same places.  Our old house had a deeper pantry and it worked fine to do make rows going back several items deep.  I rarely had trouble finding things (and then it was usually because DH shoved things in random places).  The only issue I can see with a deep pantry is for the highest shelves where you can't reach anything that's not at the front, or if the spaces between shelves aren't tall enough to allow you to reach in and grab things from the back, but yours are plenty tall.  It doesn't seem like the closet being wider at the front than the back would really be an issue either even if it looks odd--just make a few extra shallow rows at the front.  U-shaped shelves seem like they would just be a hassle.

It looks like part of the shelves are behind the doorway (to the right of the door), so one thing you might consider is placing items in that area facing sideways instead of facing forward.  So stack the rows of cans that are off to the right of the door so that the row faces the left side of the closet instead of the front of the cupboard.  I hope that makes sense.  Our old house had some an area to the side of the door like that and it had extra short narrow shelves in that area and that's how I organized those.  I think you could do that even if it's all on the same shelf, and it would be easier to see and grab the thing that are to the side of the door that way.

If you have more food than you can fit in the pantry right now without the baskets, or you don't want to stack things, maybe move everything that won't fit right now into the unused cupboards that you mentioned were in a different part of the house.

 

Edited July 14, 2019 by caedmyn

[BusyMom5]

I would get rid of the white baskets- they are too bulky and you can't see what's in them.  I would keep bins in the bottom for potatoes, onions, ect.  Then, on the shelves, I would group like things just sitting on the shelves.  I have a large family and do buy in bulk.  I've been 'looking' for extra space and found it in my laundry room!  I cleaned out shelves that were used for other thngs, and started a secondary pantry for big bulk items.  For example I buy big bulk graham crackers, so the big box goes in the laundry room, and I pull out one small box at a time in my kitchen.  I say look around your house and find other inventive areas for storing food.  Maybe a spare bedroom closet?

[Pen]

 

I’m still at a cardboard boxes for bins stage, so all of your pics look lovely! And,  @DawnM your situation looks far more organized than mine!

I like the way those U cut out shelves look.  Maybe leave top one Whole for bulky stuff like the chips and crackers.

can you add shelves for shorter height stuff?

 

 

[PrincessMommy]

I love the U-shaped shelving idea!