Mini-makeovers at Home

Perfect organization!

One of the things that I love most about my home is adding to, organizing, and making over areas of it. It's a rental house, so I can't change anything major and everything is builder basic, but it's still the first house I've ever lived in as an adult and it's my home.

After a recent shopping trip to The Container Store, I decided to put two of my finds to use in purging and reorganizing my cooking and baking supply cupboards.

Not only did I create separate zones for cooking and baking supplies, but I also corralled smaller items into clear bins and two adorable little French Corningware baking dishes from thrift stores that, while aesthetically pleasing, have never been the right size for me to use for cooking. I have to admit, I love having them hold my cooking extracts, chocolate chips, and frosting tips!

My favorite thing, however, is the expandable spice shelf. For the first time ever, I can actually see all of my spices without needing to move any of them out of the way.

Prior to achieving this cute cupboard setup, however, it looked like a total mess.

The finds: Spice shelf and sugar container

Baking zone! 

There wasn't much semblance of order, and it was difficult to see everything that was in there. I also had things I never used, like cans of evaporated milk and an old hourglass measuring cup. I emptied out the whole thing, putting aside anything I knew I'd never use again to either donate or dispose, and wiped down the shelves and cupboard doors. I also looked around my kitchen to see where else I could store my cookbooks, coffee, and bulky extra bags of baking supplies.

I had a narrow cupboard with place mats and plate chargers in it that I emptied into my tablecloth and candle drawer in my bar armoire, and used that for the cookbooks. While I was in a hyper-organization mode, I rearranged my pantry to take advantage of the black storage bins from Target, one for tea and coffee since I already had lots of tea in there, and the other for small baking items, like cupcake tins, dried cranberries, and stevia. On the shelf next to it, I placed my large bags of sugar and flour.

With those items in new homes, I had the space to make a zone for frequently used baking items, all of my containers, and the new spice shelves. The end result: wonderful.

In under two hours, I made over this area into a space I adore. It was definitely worth the fuss.

The Before: Crowded and disorganized

The After: Up-close cupboard interior