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My spice cabinet had gotten so cluttered and full that I feared for my toes every time I opened the door. It was to the point that if I needed something I’d have to pull half of everything out just to find it. If this looks like a familiar sight to you, then you know what I’m talking about. I had to come up with a better method for spice cabinet organization!
Part of the problem was that the cabinet closest to the stove and the area where I prepped food was narrow. It made sense to store my spices in it but there wasn’t a ton of room for everything. And wow, did I have a lot of spices. I also had duplicates because it was so hard to find things. I’d buy more and then at some later date I’d find the original container. Super not cool.
I’ve been moving stuff around in the kitchen, trying to come up with an easier way to store everything. I’m really fortunate because I have 3 wide and deep drawers in my cabinets. After I’d reorganized some of the kitchen stuff I ended up with one entire drawer that was empty. And it just so happened to be below my current spice cabinet.
A light bulb went on and I decided that instead of putting all my spices in a cabinet, it would be so much better if I put them in a drawer where I could see everything at once!
So the solution to spice cabinet organization was…don’t use a cabinet. I just needed to find something to put the spices in so they would fit in the drawer. The containers they came in would be much too high. At one point, I considered buying plastic jars like they use for makeup or lotion. I wasn’t really enthused about plastic though. And the lids were sold separately too which seemed like a hassle.
I ended up using the quilted 4 oz jelly jar. They fit in the drawer perfectly, they were glass and the lids came with them. ?
I also used my label maker to print labels with the spice name on it for the lids. And if you needed any further proof that I’m really type-A, I arranged them all in the drawer alphabetically.
Make fun of me if you will. All I know is that when I need a certain spice, it only takes me a few seconds to find it instead of the minutes it used to take. It’s a lot easier to tell when I’m low on something too. And no more buying multiples because I can see right away if I have it or not!
I keep my measuring cups and spoons in this drawer too. It’s so convenient to grab the spice and the measuring spoon at the same time. Before I had to cross the kitchen to get to them. Every little step saved counts in my book. And the old spice cabinet didn’t go to waste. With all of the spices gone, it was a great place to keep my extracts.
I love projects like this because they’re relatively cheap and easy to do and add so much value and function.
If you’re struggling with spice cabinet organization too you might consider converting a drawer instead.
Be sure to check out 11 Genius Kitchen Organization Products You Need Now for more kitchen organization ideas!
