How to Plan a Walk In Pantry: Top Tips From Custom Design Experts

Wondering how to plan a walk-in pantry? Our experts weigh in on how to create one that’s as photogenic as it is convenient.

There is no time like the present to start getting organized. At least, that’s what you tell yourself nearly every weekend. But, between your morning commutes to work after dropping the kids off at school and visiting your folks’ home the next county over one to two evenings a week, the weekends have become sacred do-nothing-if-possible spaces. Of course, with kids, doing nothing is never easily accomplished.

Something has got to give, though—especially in the kitchen. The pantry, in particular, is so disorganized and cluttered that it’s hard to move around, much less find anything you need. Instead of continuing to surf the internet, gazing longingly at photos of walk-in pantries that are as elegant as they are organized, you’ve decided you have to find a way to do something about yours. 

To help you achieve this seemingly impossible feat, we’ve got several tips on how to plan a walk-in pantry that might also make your kitchen photo-worthy.

How to Plan a Walk-In Pantry That is Elegant and Organized

It should come as no surprise that your walk-in pantry is as disorganized and cluttered as it is. Most pantries, even smaller reach-in pantries, get messy—and not only because big families in busy households don’t have the time or energy to keep everything neat and tidy. The fact is that optimizing the storage space in your kitchen may have been the designer’s priority when your home was first built, but the pantry still wasn’t designed with your individual needs in mind. 

In order to make your walk-in pantry your own, consider implementing the following ideas that custom design experts use:

• Adjustable horizontal shelves. Nothing creates disorganization quite like shoving items of different sizes onto fixed shelves. You end up having to lay tall boxes and bottles on their sides, stack small cans and containers on top of each other, and cram bags of dried beans, black rice, and potato chips wherever you can. Before long, you don’t know where the tomato sauce is or how you’re going to get to it. The beauty of incorporating adjustable shelving is that the ideal shelf heights in the pantry get determined by the items being stored. So, not only is it easy to store cereal boxes together without wasting space, it becomes easier to find and reach them. Plus, as your storage needs shift to accommodate an upcoming party or addition to the family, your shelves can shift, too.

• Pull-out bins and baskets. Pull-out bins and baskets are great for items that don’t fit well on shelves, but that need to be kept in plain sight even when stored. Potatoes and onions, apples and bananas, even packaged snacks for the kids’ lunches are perfect examples. Clean linens, like hand towels, that are frequently used also store nicely in a pull-out bin, as do napkins, coffee filters, and other paper products. Pull-out bins and baskets also help to keep bulk purchases of these products off the floor of your walk-in pantry.

• Slide-out bottle and spice racks. Slide-out bottle and spice racks give you the right amount of space to safely store fragile items you don’t want to put on a shelf or in a bin. Whether you have a glass of wine with dinner or simply use it to cook, a wine rack that slides out keeps your favorite vintages at arm’s length. Glass bottled water is more secure (and accessible) here, too. And, narrow, grooved racks created specifically for spices frees up more space in your pantry for storing things that are a lot larger.

• Floor-to-ceiling lazy Susans. Since there is often no getting around storing some items behind others, adding a floor-to-ceiling lazy Susan puts all of them in better reach. It also helps you make use of hard-to-utilize spaces like the corners of your pantry. In fact, the inclusion of revolving corner shelving to your pantry can be a game-changer for the whole family. Pickles, condiments, bags of cookies, and tea no longer get lost behind large jars of peanut butter and pasta. Unused corners stop filling up with plastic bags, dust, and who-knows-what-else, too. 

• Chrome hooks. As easy and simple as adding chrome hooks to your walk-in pantry sounds, it’s an accessory often skipped when the pantry itself gets too packed. But, by adding quality chrome hooks both on the walls and at the ends of the shelves, otherwise neglected small and narrow spaces get organized, too. Aprons, cooking utensils, and reusable shopping bags can get a home of their own. The broom and dustpan, as well as kitchen rags for cleaning, can also get up off the floor.

When it comes to finding solutions to help reduce kitchen clutter, remodeling your pantry is a great place to start. The DIY approach, however, can be overwhelming—especially once you start piecing together standard-sized units that don’t perfectly fit your pantry’s dimensions. The end result may more-or-less work, but it won’t be attractive. It may not make the best use of all the available space, either. Calling in a custom design expert to help you plan your walk-in pantry can solve all of these problems and actually get your long put-off remodeling project in motion.

Walk Into an Expert Remodel and Breathe Easy

Every aspect of how to plan a walk-in pantry should help you breathe easy, from how well your supplies are stored to how easily you can access what you need the moment you need it. There’s no reason the way things are organized shouldn’t feel elegant, too, or that the storage system itself shouldn’t be beautiful to view. With a custom-designed walk-in pantry built for you by Closet America, that’s precisely what you’ll get.

You’ll also get a punctual, efficient installation and an industry-leading transferable double lifetime warranty that helps to add value to your house. But, we won’t do anything until you’ve chosen the finishes, colors, and accent pieces that work for you and have approved the interactive 3D model that your personal designer creates. Of course, once all is said and done, we’re confident you’ll love your new pantry—not just because it’s uniquely yours, but because your weekends will once again be truly free. 

Planning a redesign of your walk-in pantry is as easy as scheduling your free design consultation with one of our experts. Don’t wait any longer for a remodel that is beautiful and organized. Contact Closet America today!

Lead image source: Shutterstock