Lasting Kitchen Pantry Organization: 3 Tips That ACTUALLY Work

Ever felt like screaming after opening the kitchen pantry door?

Because this space of the home is used by so many people so frequently, it quickly becomes a hotbed for hot messes…fast!

As one of my clients and I stood in front of her kitchen pantry door, I totally understood her hesitation to open it. “I promise I just organized it,” she said. “I spent so much time on it, but I don’t know how to keep it from going back to the way it was.”

There’s nothing more disheartening than seeing your hard work gradually revert back to its former state of chaos. So, what do you do?

Here are 3 simple tips that will transform your organization efforts from short-term and temporary to permanently long-lasting:

1 | Make sure your organization is easy to use.

The most important thing to ask yourself as you organize is, “Will this be easy to put away?” If putting something away requires multiple steps—taking down a container with 2 hands, setting it down somewhere, and pulling off the lid—it may be too many steps for something you use regularly. This makes it challenging to keep your spaces tidy when you’re in a hurry or exhausted from a long day.

PRO TIP: Very few children are excited about keeping things organized, so if you have children in the home, consider that your organizational system is super simple and straightforward enough that it’s easy for them to keep up with, too.

2 | Use labels.

If you think labeling is just an added unnecessary step, I feel you! I used to think the same thing. However, I've learned the hard way how vital it is for keeping your spaces organized—even when you’re using clear organizers. Over time, the decisions you initially made about where to put things will fade, and you (and others in your home) will have to think about where something goes. This leads to hesitation when putting an item away, and rather than getting put where it belongs, it will often get tossed anywhere (or worse yet, not get put away at all).

3 | Dedicate regular time for tidying up.

I'm sorry to break it to you, but no space automatically stays organized without some effort to maintain it. However, the more routinely you stay on top of it, the simpler it is to keep up with. Even the easiest organization systems still need dedicated time scheduled for checking containers and putting items back in their designated places. Depending on the space and item(s), this may be a daily, weekly, or monthly task.

Remember the client at the beginning of this blog who struggled to keep her kitchen pantry organized long-term? Check out how she’s doing today:

“Kerri is fantastic! The pantry for our family of eight was a hot mess only a few days after clearing/reorganizing it on our own…again. Since Kerri has been by, our pantry has been easily together for months!”

Feeling overwhelmed by your kitchen pantry? Text or call me, and let's work on a solution for your home together.