There’s a little party going on in my pantry—except it’s not really a party, and the pantry is far too small for guests. Still, the space felt worth celebrating once we started tackling it. Tucked in the corner next to the fridge, this pantry had potential but needed a lot of help.
The photo above is the only “before” shot I could find with the door open. Between the dated wallpaper, the brown trim, and a jumble of food, it was obvious that the pantry wasn’t working for us. Our initial use of the space was far from organized—just a pile of bags on the floor and food shoved onto shelves—but having a proper pantry closet is a welcome change after years of relying on upper cabinets and a complicated pantry-cabinet contraption in our previous homes.
Over the first eight months of living with it, we developed a few practical ideas to improve function. The biggest change was deciding to move the microwave into the pantry. It’s not a conventional placement, but since we removed the bulky over-the-range microwave, putting it on the counter felt cluttered. We’d had success concealing a microwave behind a cabinet door in our last kitchen, so a deep pantry seemed like the ideal hidden spot—plenty of ventilation on the sides and back, and we could prop the door open while using it.
The only hitch: there was no electrical outlet inside the pantry. We solved that right before Christmas when our go-to electricians installed an outlet where we needed it for about $110. With power available, the microwave had a proper place to plug in, and the counters regained valuable space. The pantry instantly felt more useful.
Putting the microwave on a pantry shelf did require removing one of the original shelves. Our initial plan was to lower the bottom shelf to accommodate the microwave and return the shelf above to its original spot, but we’d already moved the trash can into the pantry on a trial basis, so lowering the shelf would have interfered with the can’s lid. The trash can has been fine in the pantry—sealed and unobtrusive—even with a sensitive nose in the house.
Rather than lower the microwave shelf, we put the missing shelf back above the microwave shelf, higher than before. That created a half-height shelf perfect for cans and smaller items that used to get lost in the back. To measure the gap I used a pasta sauce jar as a simple spacer so the shelf height would suit the items we planned to store.
Repositioning the shelves was straightforward. I pried off the old nail-in braces, marked level lines for the new placements, and screwed the braces back into the studs. It was a quick, low-tech solution—crowbar, level, screwdriver—and the whole process took about an hour. Most of that time was spent emptying the pantry, taking photos, and rediscovering forgotten snacks.
Once the new “short-items” shelf was in place, it felt like a small but meaningful upgrade. Those shorter items that used to clutter shelves now have a dedicated zone, and the microwave sits comfortably below without crowding the space.
We didn’t restock the pantry fully because there’s still more to do: priming and painting the interior, adding shelf liners or wipeable paper, and introducing storage systems to keep things tidy. We’re planning baskets and clear bins for groups like snacks, baking supplies, and breakfast items, and we may add door-mounted storage for frequently used items. Sherry has been eyeing cheerful, easy-to-clean shelf paper to brighten the space—so the pantry makeover is definitely a work in progress.
After we paint and let everything dry, we’ll restock and organize more thoughtfully, so the pantry looks as inviting as it does functional. For now, it’s satisfying to see the clean, empty shelves and imagine the organized system we’ll build.
How do you organize your pantry? Do you use bins, labels, or shelf risers? Have you pinned those dreamy, room-like pantries on Pinterest and wanted something similar? We’ve been collecting ideas and plan to share the finished result once we’ve painted, sorted, and styled the shelves. And if anyone’s throwing a pantry party, I’ll bring my friend Brick—he’s endlessly entertaining.
