Organizing your Pantry Closet

When you hear someone say that they are organizing their closet, usually visions of clothing piles come to mind. But, there are many other types of closets that can use some organizational TLC. One of them is the pantry closet, we all have good intentions when we purchase food to eat it, unfortunately this always doesn’t happen. Don’t let those open, have eaten boxes of Cream of Wheat stay in there forever taking up space – throw them out!

A lot of the same tips for organizing a bedroom closet apply to organizing a pantry closet. If you aren’t eating it – don’t keep it and group like items together. In addition, keep only food items or related paper products such as napkins in the pantry. Keep appliances, pots and pans, and cleaning products in separate locations.

When you are sorting through the contents, keep an eye on expiration dates and toss out anything that is past its prime. The same goes for opened boxes of food that no one likes or eats. If you have unopened food items that aren’t going to be eaten but you know are perfectly fine, donate them to the local food bank or pass them on to a neighbor.

Make use of all the space you can. If you find that you are tight on space, consider hanging wire baskets or shelving on the back of the door to increase your storage space. Browse through home hardware catalogs or talk to an in store expert to get additional ideas on ways to maximize your pantry space while making everything easily accessible to the entire family. If food you buy comes in bulky, hard to store containers buy plastic storage bins that make it easier to get the food and store it. Cereal and pasta are both great examples to use plastic storage bins for.