Farmhouse Kitchen Pantry Organization

When we began designing Old Salt Farm, we started with a set of house plans that I found after hours and hours of searching. I liked the plan a lot, but there were quite a few things that I wanted to change, including the pantry. The plan had a very small pantry, and we needed it to be much larger. I originally wanted a walk-in pantry, but it just didn’t work with the plan without making major structural changes. Instead I created an entire wall of pantry–14 total feet consisting of two 7 foot sections. I love how much room there is, and the double set of barn doors add the perfect touch to the whole space. It ended up being exactly right! Once we moved in, I was able to do some kitchen pantry organization, using some of my favorite containers and crates. I’m excited to share all the details with you!

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Kitchen Pantry Design

First up…the barn doors. We built them to fit once the drywall was finished, but we did prepare ahead of time by having the framers put in extra studs where the hardware would be. Each door is nearly seven feet long, and they’re heavy, so they needed all the support we could give them. They’re stained with Minwax’s Provincial, but I put it on pretty lightly, then rubbed it off immediately, so it would give it more of a weathered look.

You’ll notice that there isn’t a wall on either side for the barn doors to roll across, so these are actually called bypass sliding barn doors. It means they slide in front of each other, which makes it nice when you want a sliding barn door but don’t have the wall space! The doors needed bypass barn door hardware, but we found some for a really good price. (Here’s another great one! )

We put shiplap on the inside walls of the pantry–I wanted to give it a little extra something, and I knew that would do it!

I decided to stain the shelves instead of painting them white, just like in our laundry room. From past experience, I know what a pain it is to try and keep white shelves white and clean!

Kitchen Pantry Organization

I have room for everything I need–I use the white bins for all of our school lunch supplies, like chips, fruit, and snacks, plus bins for bread, seasonings, baking supplies, pasta, and more. The clear containers are for cereal, flour & sugar, oats, rice, beans, popcorn kernels, etc. I LOVE these white bins. LOVE LOVE. They come in two different sizes, and they’re both awesome. They are a great size, fit well side-to-side, and are super easy to wipe out and clean. I like the shorter ones for the kids’ lunch stuff, because they pack their own lunches, and it’s easier for them to reach in and get what the need. The taller ones are nice because they hide everything that’s in there, just making it all look nice and neat!

I store a few canned goods on the very top shelf, plus a few larger containers. We keep most of our food storage in the basement, so I can keep these shelves open for the things we use the most.

I used these chalkboard labels for the fronts of all my bins and containers, and I LOVE LOVE them. I have to be able to wash labels I use, and these go in the dishwasher! Plus, if I change my mind about what I want in the containers, it’s super easy to wipe off the chalk (I use a chalk marker to make it last longer) and start again.

The crates are perfect for potatoes, onions, paper goods, and juice boxes for my kids’ lunches. I have room for a couple more if I need them.

The mixer was originally intended to go on a shelf, but I forgot to measure it before we installed the shelves, and it’s just about 1/4 inch too tall! I was so mad at myself for forgetting to do it–lesson learned! It still works where it’s at, so it’s fine, but still!

The other side of the pantry is for all of my serving dishes, cake stands, party supplies (paper straws, paper plates, napkins, etc.), baking items like sprinkles and cookie cutters, place mats, beverage containers, milk bottles & mason jars (most are in the basement, but I keep a few on hand here), pails, and more. I absolutely love having it all right at my fingertips, and I use it daily.

I absolutely love everything about the barn doors and pantries! Kitchen pantry organization makes such a difference, and worth the time it takes, I promise! Once it’s done, it’s so much easier to maintain and stay on top of.

If you’re curious about the chalkboard wall, I wrote a whole post about why I love it so much! If you have any other questions, leave it here in the comments, or email me at simplykierste@yahoo.com, and I’ll address it in my post!