Pantry Project Completed

15 years ago

I finally had the carpenter who renovated my walk-in closet help me with building my pantry. Like many of you, my pantry was a complete disorganized disaster. You'd think we were stocking up for a nuclear attack or the apocalypse with all the stuff I have, especially since it is only my husband and I in this house! LOL

After my closet was done, I was amazed at how clean and organized it stays (it was a mess too). That was such a weight off my shoulders, I decided I needed the same organization in my pantry.

Having a carpenter build what I wanted was much more economical than the "custom" closet companies. This was "really" custom. After using it for a few weeks I realized I really liked drawers so I had him make me some extra drawers, in place of shelves. I also had him build a pull out shelf for a basket that I really love. If I had it to do over again, I would have more pull out shelves. Of course, it's not too late...but then I would have to paint them all.

Here are my before and after pictures. My new pantry has made my life more organized. I feel less stressed and I can easily locate my items. In the "Before" photos, I have the can consolidator, but I hated the plastic construction. My carpenter made custom shelves to help hide the plastic parts and now I love it and the functionality it provides.

Hopefully I attach the photos correctly.

BEFORE PHOTOS OF PANTRY

AFTER PHOTOS OF PANTRY

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Comments (12)

mustangs81
15 years ago
OMG, serious pantry envy! I would hire your guy in a heartbeat. Do you open the door and stare at your project throughout the day?

Thanks for sharing and enjoy.
joann23456
15 years ago
WOW, is that ever nice! It must make you happy just to look at it!
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sonepi
Original Author
15 years ago
Yes it thrills me to the bone. Like my closet, whenever I open my pantry door, I just smile. As you can see, I still have a lot of stuff, but still have empty drawers and shelves. My carpenter was great. Once we got the design down, it was done in 4 days. I just had to get my painter in and then wait for that to dry before I could put my items back in. In the before pictures, it was pretty standard builder grade and shelves were sagging due to the weight.

The cost for my carpenter to pull out all the old shelves, build everything from scratch with real wood shelves, drawer pull-outs, vertical storage, raising the upper shelves (non-functional before since they were about 3 feet tall and could only hold a layers of items and making the shelves deeper cost about $950. Well worth the cost.

I think I am going to have him tackle my garage next. I just have the find the energy to clean out that catastrophic area. LOL
mustangs81
15 years ago
I didn't want to ask so thank you for sharing the cost of your project.
ontariomom
15 years ago
Wow! You and your carpenter did a great job! Thanks for sharing your pictures to inspire those of us who still need to reorganize. Can you tell me what kind of door is on the pantry (i.e. is it a bifold) and how large the interior of the pantry is?

Thanks,

Carol
sonepi
Original Author
15 years ago
Hi Ontario Mom. The door is a regular door, 24" and the measurements of the pantry are 5'8" x 4'6".

Hi Mustangs, glad I could help. I know prices are different in various areas of the country, but I was really happy with the price. I thought it was reasonable for the peace of mind. Also, it was much less expensive than the "custom closet" companies.
mustangs81
15 years ago
Sonepi, The guy was here today to install pull-out shelves in my base cabinets. He made them versus the other installers who ordered them pre-made from another company. For 8 shelves he charged $600. I showed him your project (making sure he saw the price you paid) and asked if that was something he could do. He said yes but suggested the systems they have at Ikea then he would install and make necessary adjustments. He said that was what he did in his house.
sonepi
Original Author
15 years ago
Hi Mustangs,
That sounds awfully expensive $600 for 8 shelves. I think my drawers were $30-35 and the pull-out shelves were maybe $15. I found my guy on Angie's List, under Carpenters. I think you should get some additional estimates. I haven't really checked out the Ikea store to look at their systems.
mustangs81
15 years ago
Thanks Sonepi!
timberframe4us
15 years ago
Do you know the brand of the can organizers? If I'm seeing the picture correctly, it's a system that you can adjust for various can heights (widths when stored that way).

It looks great.
thanks
melaska
15 years ago
timberframe...I think they are the Cansolidator Series. I've always been interested in something like this, too. I'll link it below.

We'll be building a house next Spring & will have a fairly large pantry so the free-standing system is very interesting. We live 300 miles from Anchorage & this would work well for us since we really stock up.

sonepi:

GREAT job on your pantry! Very effective use of space & your carpenter did a great job listening to your needs. How do you like using the rotation can organizer? Do you always use the same can in each slot?

Here is a link that might be useful: Cansolidator Series
leafy02
15 years ago
Lovely job! Sometimes it really is physical structures that are not conducive to organization, and it's terrific to have them changed to what works.I've been bitterly jealous of my mom's pantry for years, and now I envy you yours as well :)