You guys love the pantry that I built in 2019 when we remodeled our kitchen! Pantry content is by far the most popular on the blog & on Instagram and we get a lot of questions. You guys realize we’ve remodeled our entire house, right? Not just the pantry? In the two years that the pantry has been blowing up Pinterest & Instagram, several burning questions have been asked over and over again. So today’s post is all about you and your pantry questions answered!
Without further ado, your most popular pantry questions answered!
Question 1: What are the dimensions?
Our pantry space is 6 feet deep (right wall) by 5 feet wide (back wall). The ceiling height is 10′. Make sure you check out my detailed Pantry Build Blog Post, as that information and much more is in there.
Question 2: Where is the shelving from?/Why did you use an IKEA cabinet?
All of the shelving was custom built by me except for the appliance tower. For the appliances, we used two IKEA Sektion kitchen cabinet frames – one 18X24x90″ tall cabinet + an 18×20″ wall cabinet.
There were several reasons why we went with an IKEA cabinet for the appliance tower instead of building something custom. First, and most importantly, it was a shortcut. We also got a discount due to ordering these cabinets in our kitchen cabinet order during the IKEA Kitchen Sale.
The other big reason that we used IKEA cabinets for the appliance tower leads to pantry question 3.
Question 3: How did you make the appliance shelves the perfect size for the appliances?
The biggest difference between the appliance tower and the custom shelves that I built is that the IKEA cabinet has adjustable shelves. I wanted the appliance tower to have adjustable shelves so that I could maximize the storage for the appliances we have now, and those that we will have in the future.
While planning the pantry design, I measured the width of my widest appliance (the crock pot) and realized that an 18″ wide cabinet would work perfectly. The Sektion comes with one fixed shelf in the middle that doesn’t move (the one under the Ninja Foodi Grill). Additional shelves are sold in a 2 pack $18. We got those on sale because we ordered them during our Kitchen Sale order.
When I put the appliances away, I just added shelves where they wouldn’t waste space but I’d still be able to get the appliances out easily.
I keep these acrylic boxes behind each appliance to hold accessories. I also keep the cords neat with these command cord bundlers. They’re my favorite!
Question 4: Is that wallpaper?/Where is the wallpaper from?
This is a very popular pantry question! Some people think its been sponge-painted. It’s peel & stick wallpaper from Spoonflower! It was very easy to line up and install. Plus, it has this great texture & matte finish. I just love the dimension it gives the pantry!
Question 5: What is the countertop made from?
The countertop is a chevron walnut veneer from IKEA. This is the same countertop we used in our Built In Bar project in the living room.
It’s a beautiful piece, but since it’s not real butcher block. It does get dinged a bit because it is very soft. I did seal it with Waterlox to give it as much protection as possible, however, it does not protect it from surface dings.
Question 6: How do you reach the upper shelves?
Maximizing vertical space is always important. That’s valuable storage space that you don’t want to lose! Since I’m short (5’3″), I keep a 3 step ladder hanging on the DIY Farmhouse Wall Hooks that I built in 2020. That way, it’s always there.
To reach the very top shelf, I have to stand on the countertop. If you’re short like me, you’ll know that we are very used to that.
Question 7: Why is the Hershey’s Syrup so high?
Believe it or not, this pantry question comes up in every single pantry Instagram post that goes crazy!
The very top shelf of the pantry is for backstock condiments only, basically back up bottles. We shop at Sam’s for certain items, and we always have a back up of every item we use. I would much rather buy items when they are on sale or at their best price and then shop my pantry when its time to get the new bottle than pay full price for something. This is why we built such a big pantry in the first place!
The ceiling on the right wall of the pantry is actually at a 45 degree angle above that shelf because there’s an angled pipe behind it. So the right side of the shelf has things like jelly jars, peanut butter, salad dressing, and backups of other smaller jars.
Since the Hershey’s Syrup is too tall for the angled wall, it goes on the back wall side of that shelf.
Want to Know More?
Want to know more about my pantry? Make sure you don’t miss these blog posts full of details!
Any Other Questions?
That was fun! Maybe I should answer more of your burning pantry questions? Got one? Was there anything I missed that you wanted to know? Leave them in the comments below & stay tuned for Part 2!
Emily says
Did you paint the IKEA cabinet to match the shelves and crown molding? Or were the whites similar enough you didn’t have to? Thanks!
Stacy says
Hi Emily,
I did not paint the IKEA unit in the pantry, although I did trim it out and paint the trim. You can find more about that in the Pantry Build post linked in this post.
Hope that helps!
~Stacy
Katie says
Hello,
Love your pantry! Just wondering what size your elfa drawers are?
Stacy says
Hi Katie,
At the end of the post, I have all of my other Pantry related posts linked where you can find more information about the specific organizing products that I used, including the elfa drawers. Check this one –> https://www.stacyssavings.com/our-diy-custom-walk-in-pantry-progress-and-reveal/
Hope that helps!
Stacy
Chris says
Wow! Just found this panty. What an inspiration. Would it be possible to use IKEA 14.75” deep cabinet for the entire appliance tower instead of 24” deep?
Stacy says
Hi Chris,
Thank you! Yes, anything is possible! Use the components to fit your space. Just make sure you measure whatever you’re going to put in that space to make sure it will fit with that depth.
~Stacy
Emily says
Hi Stacy,
You pantry is definitely an inspiration! We are finalizing the plans for our own walk in/butlers and have a similar set up as yours. I’m wondering if you have any regrets about having all open shelving. Do you ever wish you could hide some things behind doors/draws? Aslo, do you leave the door open most of the time?
Stacy says
Hi Emily!
Nope, no regrets & yes the door is open all of the time.
Good Luck with your project!
~Stacy
Katie says
hi ! doing a pantry reno soon and going with the barn door too! where did you source yours? and did you match it to all the other doors or let it be different. thanks!
Stacy says
Hi Katie,
I purchased my barn door from build.com. Its just a shaker door so it blends well with my shaker cabinet doors, but they aren’t the same manufacturer.
Hope that helps!
~Stacy
Joanie Atkins says
So pretty! I’m in the process of redoing my pantry as well! Where did you get the sliding white baskets (if you don’t mind me asking )?
Thank you!!
Stacy says
That’s so exciting Joanie!
You can get the information for those drawers in my Pantry Organization post here —> https://www.stacyssavings.com/our-farmhouse-pantry-organization-reveal/
Plus, those drawers are currently on sale!
~Stacy
Debbie Adlrich says
Stacy. Your pantry is beautiful and nearly the same size as mine and very close to what I was looking for EXCEPT I REALLY want the shelves to be adjustable!! Now that you’ve lived with the pantry for awhile, do you wish you had made them adjustable? Why didn’t you do that to begin with? I know you said you planned out your container size, but it seems good foresight to make them adjustable- was it more money and more work than you thought necessary?
Your appliance shelves are deeper than your counter and cabinet. Im thinking of bringing the back wall lower cabinet out to the 20 inches of the appliance tower.. thoughts on that?
Great job! Thanks for sharing!!
Debbie
Stacy says
Hi Debbie!
It really only made sense to make the appliance shelves adjustable, which is why I went the IKEA route only for that part of the pantry. Since the upper shelves are L shaped, that would have been really difficult to make them adjustable. Same thing with the corner cabinet on the bottom. I suppose I could have made the center lower cabinet shelves adjustable, but I wanted them to match the elfa drawer shelves, so that wouldn’t have worked.
I’m really happy with the pantry after using it for 2 years. I wouldn’t add adjustability in the pantry shelves at all.
Thanks for your question!
~Stacy
Amber says
I am currently working on floor plans for our new build and would like to have a pantry similar to yours but I am caught up in my head on space. Do you ever wish that you had made your pantry larger or felt like 6×5 is not a large enough space?
Stacy says
Hi Amber,
How exciting! Congratulations on the new build!
No, my pantry is the perfect space for us. We maximized all of the space, including up to the 10′ ceiling. I do not need any more room. But, this is totally personal, so you do what’s best for you! My space is the perfect amount for our family.
~Stacy
Karen says
I love this space!!!! So you stacked the two cabinets to make the appliance tower? I have a laundry room that has two pantry cabinets and I’m determined to find a way to pull them out and do open shelving. No to convince the hubs……lol.
Stacy says
Hi Karen,
Yes, that’s how we did it. We used a similar process in the laundry room for our broom/vacuum closet, except we put cabinet doors on that one. Make sure you check out my laundry room remodel post to see that.
https://www.stacyssavings.com/laundry-room-remodel-reveal/
Good luck convincing your hubby! I don’t convince, I just do & ask for forgiveness later. If you already have a cabinet there, you might be able to remove the door and any face frame, and use that for your shelving.
~Stacy