5 EASY STEPS TO GETTING THE PANTRY OF YOUR DREAMS: QUICK PANTRY ORGANIZATION TIPS
Since the coronavirus lockdown started, there’s been a lot more pictures of perfectly organised pantries on Instagram. If I’d seen one before giving my pantry a makeover I would easily have thought the process must be hard!, but post-making it twice, I can tell you organising one is easy. I’ve simplified the process of getting your pantry organised so it's both Functional and Beautiful Pinterest-worthy.
Step One: Decide Container Type
When it comes to selecting your jars, functionality is key and certainly comes before aesthetics, unfortunately, lol, no use getting a fancy Jar if it isn’t going to serve your food item right?
Here’s what I suggest when deciding what containers to pick;
On a sheet of paper write down every single food item you need to store in your pantry
Beside every food item, write down what storage container you know would work best for storing that item. This could be a medium-sized airtight Jar to store your cereal, or a deep and open raffia basket to tuck away that rice flour you barely touch. Questions worth considering here are: to go airtight or not? to have an open or closed storage system? and more importantly, what container size?
Step Two: Go Shopping
I made up my pantry pre-COVID-19 lockdown so I was able to go in-store. I preferred it because there is just something about physically seeing what your options are and instantly knowing if it is the right fit or not. That being said, online shopping is not any different, it's just the added task of looking out for size specifications.
Now that you have a list of what you need to buy, it's really important you stick to the list while keeping it cute!. I know I said aesthetics are less important, but it’s a good idea to select the prettier range from the options you have. Remember we want to keep it “Cute” right?
PHOTO VIA ZARA HOME
Brands Like IKEA, Zara Home, and Amazon Home, make this easy with their sustainable wood and glass jar range which are so in-trend right now. As a thumb rule I'll say try to stick to the same theme where possible, so for instance, if you're sticking to the bamboo and glass range for your spices, try to ensure every spice is in one otherwise having one or more in a different container kind of interferes with the organised magical look
Jars with wooden lids are the trend to go these days….
Step Three: Consider a Shelf or Back-Wall makeover
This bit is optional but I promise you it can be the magic touch to your entire pantry.
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A back-Wall or Shelf makeover can range from only painting in your favorite colour to installing a contact paper with your favorite pattern. I’m particularly fond of the marble pattern so did not hesitate to install one on my shelves and back wall. I made a video on youtube how I installed Marble contact paper on my back wall and on pantry shelves .
Step Four: Labels
Labelling your jars is like the cherry on top of the cake. If you're reaching for “Pantry Goals” you might want to consider aesthetics when selecting your labels. What’s only important to consider is if you need them to be waterproof or not. It depends on how often you plan on washing them or if you simply don't mind re-labelling after the wash. Some popular options are the erasable white chalk pens, automated label makers; the Dymo brand is particularly popular on youtube.
A better option, if you don't want to go through the hassle of making labels, is to buy custom-made ones at online marketplaces like Etsy. I would label my containers before placing in the food items but it's okay to do the reverse if you prefer.
Step Five: Categorise, Arrange, Repeat
After you’ve transferred relevant food items into their containers you can now start to place and categorise the food items as you prefer. I have five layers in my pantry so I chose to categorise by layer. For instance, I have all my cereals and smoothie toppings on one layer and I have all my Nigerian food ingredients on one separate layer and all my dry grains and pasta on another so it's totally up to you.
If you have a small pantry you might choose to categorise by corners and try using space management storage systems like lazy susans to maximise your space.
And there you have it my lovelies, would any of you be trying these out? Let me know down below in the comments section. Feel free to also tag me on Instagram @theJenniferBello to see how it turned out.
Till then my lovelies see you in the next post.
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