Other People's Pantries #155

From Tiffany (Sew Scrappy), in Oceanside, California:

As you can see, I tend to use my pantry not only to house the large amounts of food that my family of 6 goes through, but also a catch-all for many other things (candles, paper goods, Wilton cake pans, etc).

Just out of sight on the left wall (behind the bins), I hang brooms, mops, dog leashes, and things of this nature.

My favorite thing about my pantry, other than the space, are my labeled pasta and cooking goods. For this, I used some of the many candle jars that I have burned through.

After cleaning and sanitizing them, I filled them and then used an old-fashioned dymo labeler to make the tags. I love how easier they are to remove when I need to do so, and ADORE the white on black look.

Finally, I keep my spices in the cabinet just to the left of the oven and in a rotating rack on the counter next to the oven, for easy access.

I’d love to hear some feedback for ways that I can make my pantry better! (I know…change that shelf liner!  *shiver* I put that in 10 years ago when we moved in and have hated for the last 9-½.)

On Saturdays, for more than three years, we've been peeking into Other People's Pantries all around the world.

*There are three more pantries to share. If you'd like this feature to continue -- if you've been meaning to send your photos but haven't gotten around to it -- please send in your pantry photos. Here's how.

And, please put your camera to work on Market to Pantry, alternating on Saturdays with Other People's Pantries.

*There is one more market to share. Show us your favorite supermarket, farmers' market, ethnic market, big box store or roadside stand. We'd love to see where you shop for food.  Here's how.

Comments

Very well organized. The candle jars, what a great idea. The shelf paper's not so bad...

Your pantry is really very nice and the candle jar is simply brilliant.....i would never have thought of using them like that plus its amazing that the scent doesnt linger.

Thanks for sharing

Candle Jar idea is great! LOVE all the space and storage! Very Nice, thanks for sharing!

I love the glass jars! What a lovely pantry too.

Your pantry is just perfect. I don't think that you could improve it in anyway! Love how you reused the candle jars.

Looks like great organization already - actually like your shelf paper - as I looked at the pictures I thought HMMM wonder where she got that - one man's trash is another man's treasure. :)

Great idea to reuse the candle jars. How do you get all of the candle residue out? I'm envious of all of the space!

I think it's a gorgeous pantry! I gave up on shelf paper long ago. I just thorougly wipe down my wooden shelves periodically. I like the wood a lot better. I'm doing a pantry post on Tuesday myself (mine will be on the importance of the pantry), so your pantry will be inspiration for straightening mine before I take photos--thanks!

Shirley

I adore this pantry! I, too, use the Dymo labeler, but use the white tape with black lettering :-) The candle jar re-use is a great idea!

@Susan H: I bring a pasta pot of water to a simmer and dip in my candle jars and float them til the residue is melted. Then I pull out (use tongs or gloves to protect your hands from the hot water) , rinse and buff clean with a dish towel.

Candle jars = brilliant!

I.Want.Your.Pantry! What I would give for all that space. Fantastic.

Glass jars are the best! The shelf paper is not that bad, it lends a "homey" touch and isn't that what a pantry is for? You have a wonderful pantry, thanks for sharing.

I LOVE the candle jar idea. Brilliant!

Thank you for your kind comments! You have all made me feel better about the shelf liner. :)
@Susan H, I do almost exactly what Shirley@gfe suggests. The only things that I do differently are the "before" and "after". Before I boil the jars, I put it on a candle melter to melt the wax so that I can pour out as much wax as possible; and after I clean any residual wax out, I run them through 2 sanitary wash cycles on my dishwasher.

What I wouldn't give for a pantry like this. Space, organization, creativity! Maybe in the next house...

Lots of shelves my personal dream pantry

Beautiful pantry! Before I went through all the work of removing the shelf paper I would just cover it over with a non-adhesive variety. As for removing wax from glass I put the item in the freezer and the wax will shrink and you can easily remove it, but I've never tried this method with jars, but it works beautifully with candlesticks, votives, and straight sided containers.

Well I'm green with envy at the size of your pantry, it looks perfect to me.

wow, these are some very well organised pantries.

Nice pantry! I actually like the shelf liner.

And thanks for all the tips on cleaning out the candle jars! I have some items I need to put into something besides the boxes they came in.

First off I could just put a chair in your pantry and hang out it is so spacious. (read: jealous)
LOVE the jars and old school labeling and think you may have just started a "run on supplies" from ebay!

Pantry is wonderful and full of good ideas. I'm a great label fan, but I've gone to using labels that are reusable. Can buy them online. While they are not as pretty, they make it easier to change the use of a container. I use them for EVERYTHING to recycle things, the same catalyst for your wonderful idea about candle jars!

I'd love to reuse my candle jars, can you tell me how to remove all the wax that's left in the jar?