Hands up high if you’ve ever bulk-bought a helluva load of seeds from the grocery store in order to launch gung-ho into the seed cycling lifestyle, then promptly lost your vigour for seed-cycling, put them at the back of the pantry, forgotten about them and wound up with a heap of rancid seeds that cost the earth? GUILTY.
Well, it doesn’t have to be this way. With a few organisational hacks and tricks, you can stock your pantry full of things you’ll, well, actually use, without creating a heap of waste. Plus, they’ll help you ninja your way to a super-quick dinner thanks to the fact you won’t be wading through scores of half-empty popcorn packets that expired in 2015.
Here’s how to organise your pantry to save a whole heap of time and money:
1. Use clear storage containers
Turns out, it really helps to be able to see what you’re dealing with when it comes to actually using the items in your pantry. Yup, we were surprised too. Using clear, glass storage containers lets you know exactly what you’ve got to work with, so you can identify what you need and simply take it off of the shelf without needing a search warrant. Which leads us on to…
Image via Unsplash user @ellaolsson
2. Label everything
If you’re anything like me, a label maker is a staple lifestyle item. Like; keys, wallet, phone, label maker. There’s basically nothing it can’t do (except everything that isn’t making labels, but that’s hardly the point). Labelling your fancy new clear jars will mean that everything is in its place, and no digging around is necessary.
It’ll also make it a LOT easier to see when things need replenishing, which ensures that you don’t have three half-used packets of pearl barley floating around. And an extra tip: make sure you label the dates. Ain’t nobody got time for five year old lentils.
3. Group things together
And put ‘em in trays! This ensures easy access to everything, and again makes it a lot easier to keep track of what needs replacing. For example, into your natural beauty supplements and powders? Put ‘em in a clear tray (and label it, obvs) so they’re all in one place when it comes to making your morning smoothie.
Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash
4. Conduct a pantry survey every three months
Spend a little time every three months or so giving your pantry some TLC. This will allow you to take stock of what you’ve got, notice what needs topping up and most importantly, what needs chucking out. If you’re holding onto the jar of boysenberry jam that you got at your cousins wedding last year and you still haven’t used it, it might be worth de-cluttering from your pantry. This will create space and save you a heap of time in the long run.
5. Install door storage
Sure it sounds a little bit ‘too grown up’ and ‘too hard basket’, but putting racks on the doors is a godsend for pantry organisation. It’s the perfect storage spot for spices, sauces and smaller goods, meaning they don’t get lost at the back or strewn across three shelves, and you don’t wind up with four lots of paprika.