The kitchen is generally considered the most challenging room in the house to build or remodel. Not only is the electrical, gas, and other utility infrastructure complex, but all the cabinetry and appliance sizes need to be exact. On top of that, the kitchen is often the heart of the home—a space where the homeowner has high expectations. This makes it even more challenging to create a design that delivers on all levels.
This is why kitchen pantry organization is often an afterthought. All too often, it ends up as a small closet off the kitchen that’s outfitted with a few shelves that look great—until you start living with them. Here are the top design mistakes we encounter when helping clients redesign their custom pantry storage systems.
Mistake #1: Generic shelving that doesn’t fit what you actually need to store
When most people buy or build a home, the pantry is often finished with fixed wooden shelves. While this looks great at first glance, it’s not ideal for most people. Fixed shelves don’t give you the flexibility to store different items as your needs and preferences change. It also leads to wasted space or incredibly inefficient use of space—like double-stacking cans on a larger shelf (which is a guaranteed way to keep buying things you already have, but don’t know it!).
With our pantry storage system, we custom design everything based on what you’re storing. And we always keep in mind not only the size of the items, but how frequently you need to access them. Which brings us to mistake #2…
Mistake #2: Designing just for Pinterest, not for functionality
When designing a custom pantry storage system, it’s important to be honest with yourself about your preferences and lifestyle. Yes, those glass jars filled with dry goods look chic on an Instagram feed. But if you’re the type of person who’s not going to keep up with putting your nuts, popcorn kernels, and spaghetti in them, then let’s design a custom kitchen pantry that matches the pace of your lifestyle.
One of the ways we do this is by incorporating a variety of elements into the design. This includes shelves, scoop drawers for easy access to cans, wire baskets for snack bags and produce, vertical shelves for sheet pans, and pull-out spice and wine racks. If you entertain often, we can create counter space for staging extra crockpots during parties. If you have kids, we can design an area where they can easily reach kid-friendly snacks.
This level of personalization ensures your pantry works for you—and makes appliance storage, grocery planning, and meal prepping easy and efficient.
Mistake #3: Forgetting about cleaning supplies
In many homes, the pantry doesn’t solely store kitchen supplies and dry food goods. It’s also where cleaning items—like brooms, small vacuums, and mops—get tucked away. If your pantry storage system wasn’t custom designed, you’ll likely end up trying to fit these items in a corner, attach them to a wall, or have them leaning haphazardly against the shelves.
We love to design broom closets within our custom pantry storage systems so that all cleaning supplies have a designated area. It’s also helpful to have an enclosed space to keep chemicals such as bleach safely stored away from food.
Why Custom Pantry Storage Systems Are Essential to Kitchen Remodels
Having a well-organized, well-designed pantry is essential to any kitchen remodel. Thinking through your needs and habits allows you to design a pantry storage system that makes daily meal prep and grocery shopping easier and more efficient.
If you’re interested in remodeling your pantry, give us a call at 970-846-7588 to schedule a free in-home design consultation.