Are you ready for week two of our spring cleaning challenge?! This week we are focused on our pantry. Tonya from Sorted 30A is back with some tips for us!
“We’re all busy Moms! Being able to take a quick look to make a grocery list, or grab all of your ingredients to make dinner without searching or making a last-minute run to Publix is a huge time saver!
Ready to save time & money? Great! …let’s get your pantry organized!
Remove everything (yes, everything!) and give the pantry a good wipe down.
Get rid of any items that have expired and donate any that are still good but you won’t use.
Time to create zones: group your pantry items into categories…snacks, dinner, baking, seasonings & spices, etc. Now that you have your categories, determine where in the pantry they will go to be most convenient. Keep your daily use items within reach. *Mom tip: Consider adding a kids’ snack zone with healthy snacks and put it in on a shelf that they can reach so that they can grab one themselves. This will save you HOURS each week of answering the question “what can I have for a snack”!
Now the fun part….let’s put everything away. Using baskets or bins to contain your zones will keep everything in its place. You’ll know where to find exactly what you need and where groceries go when putting them away. If you have hard to reach areas use a turntable to keep everything accessible.
Decanting dry goods into clear containers might take a little more time, but is a great way to help maintain an organized pantry. While living in Indonesia we quickly learned, if you want to avoid geckos in your cereal boxes, you need to keep your pantry items in airtight containers. Decanting into pretty jars not only protects your ingredients from pests, it eliminates visual clutter in your pantry, allows you to see when your supply is running low, and keeps your food fresh longer.
Don’t forget to label both the baskets containing your zones as well as the jars holding your decanted items. You will quickly forget what’s inside and when it expires. Labels don’t have to be elaborate, but save your future self the stress and don’t skip this step!
Your organized pantry will save you time. Instead of rifling around your pantry looking for ingredients, you know exactly what you have and where it is, making meal prep and cooking more efficient. It will also save you money. No more buying items at the grocery store only to realize you had plenty at home. And no more finding long expired items you had completely forgotten about. With a quick glance you can see what you have and what you’re running low on. And by decluttering and organizing, you create more usable space resulting in the feeling of a bigger area.”
I am so excited about this week! I have visions of labels and bins and an organized pantry of my dreams. Don’t forget to tag us on social media as you organize your spaces! We want to cheer you on!
Want to catch up? Here is week one.
