Every year in January and August, I have to change something in my house. I don’t know why. Something absolutely must be neater, more organized, prettier…just better! I always think that I am done, and then January or August rolls around again, and I find another project. This January, its to make my pantry a pretty couponer’s pantry.
My Pantry Remodel/Reorganization Project
Lately, I’ve found myself on Pinterest (you can follow me here) looking at pantries. This one is pinned and repinned and repinned again on everyone’s boards. It may be the most popular pantry on Pinterest. Its nice, as are most of the pantries on Pinterest. After all, you’re not going to put your overstuffed ugly pantry on there. But none of them really addressed a couponer/stockpiler’s needs. I mean, they have cookbooks and appliances in there taking up prime real estate. They only have two cans of soup for Pete’s sake!
But after seeing the pretty paint, labels, and containers, I knew that something had to be done to my boring, ugly and gross pantry. I knew that I could remodel my pantry to be pretty, but at the same time maximize the storage space for our stockpile. So I set out to have a pretty couponer’s pantry.
My Pantry Before
Here’s the before:
Being that we live in Texas, we have no basement, and the garage is off limits to food unless we want “friends” to move in. Plus, it gets hot in there. So the only dry food storage/stockpile place in the house is in the kitchen. Up until now, we’ve had the food stockpile in the pantry and in three different lower cabinets, including the one under the sink (our cleaning supplies are in upper cabinets).
What the Pantry Needs
In order to maximize the space, I needed to add a few shelves. Also, we had that trash can with no lid in there, and it just made the whole pantry gross. We would just throw stuff in there “to make baskets” instead of walking over and placing garbage in the can, and that would result in unintended splatter. Yuck. Plus, the 3 plastic 3 drawer bins that we had been using were breaking down, and one was difficult to access because of the curved wall, and we’d forget about stuff in there because we couldn’t see it. Overall, it was functional, but a functional disaster.
In order to fix these problems, I pulled everything out of the pantry. Everything. I stacked it on all of the counters and the kitchen table, and I cleaned, cleaned cleaned! I vacuumed each shelf, all along joints, the walls, the ceiling, scrubbed the shelves and the walls and the floor, taped everything and started painting.
Painting the Couponer’s Pantry
I knew I was going to have to repaint the shelves since they probably haven’t been painted since the house was built 13 years ago, so I decided to go with a navy blue to make the slightly off-white shelves really pop. I was leaning toward Charcoal for the walls, and then I decided that navy would go better with the decor in our house.
Since our pantry is at a diagonal angle and can been seen from our den, I used the navy that we have in our window cornices and put it in the pantry. I chose Behr Premium Plus in Peaceful Night. This paint also includes primer, so that was one less step I had to take. It took only two coats on a wall that was never really painted in the first place. I was impressed!
New Shelves & Paint
After painting the walls in my couponer’s pantry, I repainted the existing shelves and trim. This past weekend, my brother came over to install the new shelves (he has a mitre saw).
The pantry before had 4 built in shelves. There was about 3 feet of space below the last shelf to the floor, and two feet of space above the top shelf. I knew that I wanted to add two shelves under the bottom shelf (I never understood why there was so much open space there to begin with – its the same in our linen closet), and I decided to add only one shelf to one side of the pantry at the top. That way, I still had some space for tall items if I wanted to store tall things there.
It was important to me that the new shelves be as close to the originals as possible and look like they had always been there. I used MDF for the shelves, and I found trim casing that matched what the builder used for the support boards at Home Depot. Neil cut, glued, adhered, and screwed everything in place, and I caulked and painted. Those shelves aren’t going anywhere.
While you were watching the Super Bowl and eating yummy treats, I was painting the new shelves and getting this pantry ready to dry! I used oil-based Enamel on the shelves to match the rest of the trim in the house, and it took about 24 hours to dry. Then, I lined the shelves with white shelf paper for protection. This was not a quick project at all. It took almost 2 weeks start to finish.
Containers for Organizing
While the shelves were drying, I went through everything and threw out things that had expired. I also went to HomeGoods, Bed Bath & Beyond and World Market looking for OXO Pop Canisters
I also labeled all of the canisters with fun labels that I found for free on the internet. You can print the ones that I used here, or google free printable labels and there are a ton! I just used Photoshop to put the different words on the labels, and then used my Cricut to cut out the circles on label paper that I got at Staples (with my rewards).
These fun jars at World Market were just $14.99 each and are huge! I used my 15% off World Market Explorer Coupon to save a little bit additional. Enough to buy a pack of Gummy Dinosaurs for my little shopping companion! They work great to house loose candy, granola bars (get rid of the boxes!) and popcorn.
Couponer’s Pantry Categories
I sorted the pantry into categories by shelf. On each shelf, I made sure to put items that we use all of the time in the corner. That way, they wouldn’t be forgotten about since they get hidden from view with a corner pantry. The bottom shelf has canned goods. The second shelf is box stockpile (pastas, side dishes, crackers, cake mix).
The third shelf has a basket for cereal bags/chips/other open and bagged items (get rid of the open boxes! The bags are nicer looking and take up less space, just get some cute chip clamps). I also have a basket (HomeGoods) that has baby food pouches/toddler pouches, and other baby snacks. I picked up two of these boxes with the chalkboard on the sides at World Market (no longer available). They were a little pricey at $25, but they were perfect to hold things in packets, like Lipton sides, tuna, and spice mix packets, and you can label the outside! I need to pick up a chalkboard pen at Hobby Lobby and decide on what to write first. The fourth shelf has a box for small baking supplies as well as OXO Pop Canisters
The baking supply box is awesome! It may just be the best part of the pantry! It corrals all of those little things that you need for baking that you can’t really stack or contain, like honey, vanilla, oils, vinegars, jello boxes, all of that little stuff. I found the box at HomeGoods along with the bottles for the oils, vinegars and syrup! I used the same labels from the canisters on the bottles.
The fifth shelf has snacks and beans/rice/pasta. Again, the canisters rock! I get most of mine at Bed Bath & Beyond, and I always use a $5 off $15 coupon. My Bed Bath & Beyond stores take expired BB&B store coupons as well as expired Buy Buy Baby coupons, so I had a ton of $5/$15 coupons to use. By using these canisters, I can see when I’m running low on something. It also helps us to eat what we already have because we can see it (Cheez Its look good!). The sixth shelf has a chalkboard box for tea/drink mix packets, cookies, sweetener, and then there’s my Dawn dish soap. The Dawn is in there because it can’t go in the garage (it crystalizes in cold temps) and because I want to keep it out of reach from our kids.
The right side of the 6th shelf is where I left it original height. I had that spider web cupcake holder that I could not find a place to store, and this was perfect! I also use it for some larger cereal boxes and the SodaStream!
Last but not least, the seventh shelf at the very top houses our condiment/bottle stockpile. It’s a great way to use that space close to the ceiling that’s normally wasted. Before, we were stacking boxes all the way to the ceiling, and they would fall down on top of our heads. Now, we don’t have that problem.
Lunch Box Storage & Other Items
We always had this chrome hook for our lunch boxes, but it was on the wall inside the pantry, and it made it hard to get things from the far side of the pantry. I moved the hook to the door under the spice rack to eliminate that problem. It’s all about maximizing space!
One of the better decisions I made was to pick up this new trash can with a lid! Its a Storehouse stainless steel trash can that I picked up at HomeGoods for $40! It’s nice and big, and the step and lid means you HAVE to walk over there and place your garbage in the can. No more horrible basketball shots spraying stuff all over the pantry! Gross!
In addition to lining the shelves with shelf paper, I placed cabinet door felt pads left over from our refinishing project to the bottom of the boxes and baskets to protect the shelves. Also, I purposely put the bottom shelf as low as I possibly could, by putting the support trim directly above the baseboards, so that there was enough space to get a Swiffer Wet Jet under, but not enough space to store anything on the floor. I personally think places look more clean and neat when everything is off the ground.
Organized Couponer’s Pantry
Here’s the after all together:
The Budget
This couponer’s pantry remodel was not cheap. It probably cost me around $400. I spent about $130 in building materials & paint, and the rest was the accessories. You could definitely do it for less by using containers that you already own or ones from the Dollar Store. You could skip painting or use paint you already have. I wanted my pantry to be uniform with the canisters that I already had, plus decorative with the baskets and other accessories. My goal was to do this project as frugally as I could but still keeping my vision in tact by using Store Coupons and shopping discount stores where I could. I also had a $50 HomeGoods gift card that I got for Christmas.
Overall, I’m really happy with the way the pantry turned out! When my son saw the finished project for the first time, he said “it’s Mommy’s Store!” Hahaha!!
Everything has its place! This is also going to help tremendously with meal planning, as I know what we have and what we need to use. We’re hoping not to have to buy many groceries this month, only sticking to fresh items on our list. We still have some overflow stockpile in kitchen cabinets, but it’s taking up considerably less room than it was. After a little rearranging, I’m pretty sure I can get it down to 1 1/2 cabinets instead of 3!
Tips for Organizing Your Pantry
If you’re looking to spruce up your pantry, here are my tips:
- Completely Empty Your Pantry – This way you can get rid of things that are bad and take an inventory of what you have. If you’re going to install new shelves, it helps to plan them by knowing how tall your items are.
- Clean, Clean, and Clean Some More – Little Critters like to hide in pantries (totally gross) and they don’t like clean ones. When’s the last time your pantry has been cleaned out?
- Get Rid of Open Boxes – Invest in a little sack of chip clips like these
and get a basket to store your bags of cereal, chips and crackers. It looks better and you aren’t wasting space with half-empty boxes.
- Protect Your Shelves – Don’t spend time and energy making your shelves look nice only to have them get scratched or stained. Line your shelves with shelf paper
and use felt pads
on baskets and boxes. If a spill happens, you can peel up the liner and replace it with a clean sheet without damaging your shelf.
- Get Cute Containers – There are lots of places to find cool containers! Check IKEA, Walmart, Target, Container Store, HomeGoods, Bed Bath & Beyond, the Dollar Store, even your local Thrift Store or shop your house! Cute containers will help motivate you to keep your pantry neat and organized longer!
I hope, after seeing this pantry remodel, you can see that a Couponer’s Stockpile pantry doesn’t have to be ugly or haphazardly stuffed with food. It can be neat and pretty!
If you like this pantry remodel, please pin to Pinterest by using the button below! Thanks! Also, don’t forget to follow me on Instagram for more DIY and organizing tips!
Have you seen my new pantry at the new house? I built it from scratch and its very popular on Pinterest! Check out how I built it and how I organized it!
Want to see more of my Pinterest Projects? Check out the entire series here!
Lecia Lance says
I love how you did this. It would never stay that way in my house, but I will certainly try!
Stacy says
Thanks!
Trish F says
Wow, what a nice pantry. I wish I had one but we just rely on a long cabinet as our pantry and it just doesn’t have the room. Now that it has been a year and a half, I’m curious how well it has stood up to the test of time.
Calien Laure says
Wow. You did a fabulous job on your pantry. It looks very well put together and attractive. I must tell you, I am jealous! Every time I think I come up with a way to corral our stuff and get it ordered, it ends up completely disheveled. You have given me new hope, however, and I am going to tackle our pantry once again.
camilla says
You rock, girl! You have inspired me to do something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time… Just gotta buy the containers and make the labels myself and take time to do a makeover in my pantry. Mine doesn’t look too bad right now, but the labeling system and the see through containers are a great help. Thanks for sharing. I pinned your Pinterest Projects and can’t wait to see what else will inspire me to make some necessary changes in my house!
chrissy c says
Wow, your pantry looks great and is so organized! We are going to be moving soon and I will e using some of your ideas!
CHRISTIE ROBINSON says
It is very neat to have everything in an order such as the pics I seen above!!!!
I love an organized home & this is a real way to do it!!!! Inspires me.
Kristy S says
you have inspired me to try to clean out my pantry. Since I started couponing it has gotten a bit out of control
Greisy says
The containers are fabulous. good idea I need try This :0)
rachel rohde says
i love what you did with your pantry. i wish i had a pantry to organize. 🙂
tammy young says
wow i so need that
Monica C says
I have a lot of difficulty with figuring out how to store and organize a lot of stuff in a small space. You have a lot of great ideas that I’m going to use.
md kennedy says
It would be a miracle if I could get my pantry to look as organized as your BEFORE picture! Now that we’ve had some of those little critters, though, I guess it is time for me to make a good effort, and I love how you did it! Thanks for the ideas…
Patricia Miller says
What a wonderful job you’ve done on your pantry. I can only add that another resource for storage containers is QVC. They have many great containers of varying shapes and sizes in the Lock ‘n Lock products they sell.
Anita L says
I love doing projects like this myself and I can imagine how much effort you put into this. You did an awesome job! I love how everything is so neat and orderly. The see through containers are also very nice since you can see how much of that product you actually have. Since you’re keeping your trash can in there as well, your choice is new cans was very nice! Great job all the way around 🙂
Michelle Elizondo says
I only like clear containers so I can see inside.
jennie sanderson @jenpsht says
wow!!! Sooo organized! I’d love to stock up on items but we live in a rather small apartment with little to no storage, even if I organized it correctly I’d still have to get rid of some of my own or my child’s things to make room! Maybe when we move into a bigger place I can have a great stockpiled pantry! I’d love that!
Colleen Schindler says
Everything looks good! It is always nice to be organized. Gives you a peace of mind. Thanks for the tips on organization, hopefully I will be motivated soon and get it done as well!
Kate McAtee says
I know this post should encourage me to take hold of the reigns and reorganize my own pantry but… please, please, please will you come to my house and do exactly this! Haha! Really wonderful job! I’m jealous aaannnd now I feel lazy, haha.
Thanks!
Kate
Sweta Sonulkar says
Your pantry is neat,organized,decorated but this is your hardwork,time,energy and creativity that made you do this and helped a lot of women who dont have time and think it is waste doing this but your tips helped me too a lot for organizing stuffs and labelling them .Even my family members now know where is what as they can read and pick up the stuff easily and no falling of boxes on kids too.
Toni Cosgrove says
I love all that you did…the clear containers are so awesome. The baking basket is one of m favorite ideas as I often have a variety of things such as that.. One thing I have a terrible time with are the odd things we seem to have only a few of..like cranberyr sauce, croutons, etc
Stacy says
I always have a ton of cranberry sauce! I love it! You can make barbecue sauce with it!
Stacy says
And I keep my croutons in the basket with the cereal!
Kammie @ Sensual Appeal says
I love projects like that, make me feel so productive!
Maria Iemma says
I need to get organized and your pantry is the most beautiful one I’ve seen in a while. I specially love the labeled containers.
Stacy says
Thank you!
Rebecca Parsons says
I’m jealous I only wish my pantry was that organized. I have a shelf in the kitchen that everything goes on and it always looks so cluttered.
rebeccabasset says
Wow, what a great job! I also live in Texas and have a very small Pantry with plenty of room for more Shelves. And the basket Idea is great! Mostly it is a wreck in there. Thanks for the Post, Pictures and the Idea’s. Now I have to get in there and do some of these!
Thanks again!
Lanie says
Wow great organizing it looks great! I wish I had the patience to do that. I know we need to get similar containers and make better use of our space.
Pam H. says
I am so jealous. I need a pantry just like this. I love the amount of shelving space, and how easy it is for you to get to every item.
Rosie says
I have to ‘fess, when I first saw the “before” photo, I thought it looked pretty good – busted! Then seeing the other photos, it is so much better! It is Martha Stewart perfect, very inspiring! When you know your pantry can look this good, with such a small investment (esp compared to granite counters, appliances for a kitchen), this is pin money! It is a fun project that you could do a little at a time! I love the containers and want to do this.
sherry butcher says
WoW! Love the job you did. I have some storage behind my craft room but not much of a stockpile. I’ll get some shelf paper next trip to the dollar store. Tonight I’m cleaning things up and taking count of everything.
Tanya says
I love the space saving tips, I need to find containers like that …? Where did you get them, on your website ?
Stacy says
You can get them at lots of stores! I have a link in the post for Amazon.
Edna Myers says
This storage collection is amazing. It really cleans up the clutter!
Sherry Compton says
You put a lot of time, effort, dedication, and planning in this, but all your work definitely paid off It looks amazing! You have really utilized the little space you had. Love the organization with the clear jars and labels.
Bonnie Caselman says
I’d kill for that pantry! I’m so jealous!!
Stacy says
Haha! Thanks! It has a lot of space, but I’ve been fighting that corner for months. I forget about stuff back there. I should put the goldfish in the corner…
Colleen Boudreau says
That looks great! I wish we had a pantry.
Heather McCormick says
I need organization in my pantry like this…. Well , I have tried to do it, but never stays that way for long…lol
Karen Chayne Sanchez says
WOW! you have a pretty and neat organizers here. I would love to have mine too 🙂
mrvaio says
thanks for sharing, its very helpful
Cheryl Grandy says
It really helps to have the shelves spaced to hold specific sized items. Ready-made cupboards never seem to have enough shelves. You did a great job. I bet you feel great every time you look inside!
Stacy says
Thank you so much! Yes, it’s still pretty, 6 months later! Love looking in my pantry!
Shirley Carr says
OMG! I love that! I really need to do this!
Arlene Whitfield says
WOW! This pantry is my dream! I’m doing this!!! Awesome!
veronica lee says
Everything is so impeccably organized! Those containers are definitely life-changing! I love, love, love how neat and orderly everything is especially the spice rack behind the door. Great job!
Bianca Rogoveanu says
Nice!
Nena Sinclair says
I have a very small pantry. I wish it was a lot bigger! I’m so short on storage space. Your pantry looks great!
Kristina says
My pantry is larger than that and due to lack of organizing, I don’t think I have anywhere near as much in it! That is some impressive organization, I definitely could use some improvement on mine! Thanks for sharing!
Stacy says
I would kill for a larger pantry!!! You are so lucky!
Sunny says
Very nice! It gives me some inspiration. I definitely will be shopping for clear containers soon.
Tim says
Wow — very impressive re-org! I wish I had that much stuff in my pantry! 😉
precious mae says
I envy your space! I love it. Totally organized! Love your containers!
Alison says
WOW – can you come clean and fix my pantry closet!? I so need a make-over in ours – and now we have two more people living with us and I almost don’t know what to do. Thank you for these ideas – I will try to use them!
Stacy says
Haha! Yes! I love organizing!
Gabriel Rossi says
Everything is so organized, I liked so much the clean containers with labels and how everything is disposed.
Tina says
I really love how organized this is. I wish I had a pantry to organize but sadly I don’t but I do need to organize my cabinets which is a chore that I have been putting off for some time now. Thank you for sharing this wonderful post.
april willard says
That’s great! It looks amazing Makes me wish I had a food pantry closet I literally have nothing!
Cathy Shaw says
I live in a small one-bedroom apartment and I am pantryless, alas. But I love this type of organization project. Once I even wallpapered a utility closet!
Meyia J. says
Man, with my sis going coupon-crazy, our house needs organization and space like that! Nice.
Stacy says
Thanks! It definitely helps when you have a stockpile to have everything neat and organized. Keep the stuff that expires first at the front, and the stuff with later dates at the back so that you rotate through it before it goes bad. Good luck!
Helga says
That is so well organized and it inspires me!
RANDY FULGHAM says
THIS IS A NICE PANTRY,,I NEED A BIGGER PANTRY,BUT THAT WONT HAPPEN –I LIVE IN A APARTMENT
aniket singh says
i love the way u have arrange small container…..awesome cleanness….and specially that container in which chocolate has kept…….i will love to organise my home like this……awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stephanie says
Impressive organization!
Tiffany says
Love the organization, especially the jars. I need to do this!
Stacy says
Thank you! You should! You know, 6 months later, it still looks like that!
Linda Petteys says
Great job with your pantry. I don’t have a full pantry just a big cupboard in the kitchen but being in upstate NY do have a cellar with shelves for storage. I have plenty of other kitchen DIY projects scheduled though.
Stacy says
You’re so lucky! I wish we could have a basement here!
Tina Seagraves says
Wish I was that organized. Nice!
Stacy says
Thanks!
Cynthia Brooks says
Aewsome pantry. We do not have a pantry. The closest we have is our tall food rack with 25 gallon containers for dry bulk items like beans.
Vesper says
looks really good, always wanted a separate pantry
Stacy says
Thanks!
Thomas Bellamy says
I need help in organizing my pantry and this will help me.
Stacy says
Glad I could help! Thanks for stopping by!
bella says
I like the spice rack behind the door I need to do this to keep the spice all together. Thanks for the idea.
Stacy says
We got that at the Container Store several years ago, and it may have been the best decision we ever made. All of those little bottles are hard to contain! Although, in my next house, I want one of those shallow pullout drawer spice racks under the stove…
Lisa Brown says
Wow, great pantry transformation. It looks so much nicer. Makes you happy to walk into it every day.
Stacy says
Thank you so much! It definitely doesn’t bother me anymore when my husband leaves the door open.
Peggy Hopkins says
That is an amazing job. I really like the container and basket ideas.
Stacy says
Thanks!
Kitty says
Wow, you have such an impressive stash of food in your pantry! The labels look neat too!
lisa says
I love the clear containers with labels too. I clean my pantry every other month and it is quite small. I now use other storage areas in the kitchen for extra purchased items. I tried using the cabinets above the microwave but have learned that the items up there have a distinctly different smell. not in a good way. My only guess it that it’s because they are above the microwave and stove and the heat must be changing the chemistry of the products. So I don’t keep much up there anymore except for tea bags!
Stacy says
Hmm. That’s strange. Maybe it’s the waves from the microwave! I would probably find a better place for that stuff too!
Kristal says
I love how everything is so organized. The containers are fabulous. I’ll have to look into doing something similar when we get moved to a bigger place.
Stacy says
Thank you so much! Those containers will change your life! Thanks for visiting!