Designer Nina Ward calls herself the “Pantry Princess.” Learn why in this guest blog where Nina tells us about her obsession with organized pantries.
I admit it. I am obsessed with pantries! When I hear someone has problem with their existing pantry situation, my heart flutters and skips a beat! Why? Well, inside I know this an area where my ShelfGenie pantry solutions can really shine. After all, this is an opportunity to create a beautifully organized and functional space! A place someone can fill with everything they need to make a delicious recipe or where they can store their favorite snacks.
For me, designing my clients’ pantries is like waving a magic wand and doing a trick. It’s not exactly magic but I literally transform a clients’ pantry and turn their pain and frustration into happiness and joy. Sometimes the best part of this experience is seeing the reaction of my clients’ friends and families once the pantry has been transformed. The clients are so excited to share their new pantry that they show it off like a new trophy. Their pride is my pride and I’m so proud to work with ShelfGenie where I can make such a positive impact on clients’ lives!
So how do I create these transformations? One of my tricks is to create “zones” within the pantry for various purposes. For instance, I am a huge fan of having the snacks in a place where kiddos, big and small, can reach them. I also like to group similar food items by type. For example, pastas and rice “live” together and all the canned goods “live” together.
I also always recommend that clients use storage containers for dry goods such as flour, sugar, and mixes. For additional organization, I like to use pantry dividers from ShelfGenie to help group similar items together¾or to keep them separate. I really spend a lot of time with my clients where I get to know about their cooking and food buying style. This helps me determine how to best organize their space to meet their needs.
Often times, I like to include “scoops” on the front of pantry pull-out shelves for ease of use. One of my favorite pantries of all time was actually created recently. I used ShelfGenie white-painted Glide Out solutions. It was clean, neat, and organized. Exactly what a client wants their pantry to be like!
