Spice Organization Ideas and Tips

Spice organization ideas and tips to keep your kitchen cooking spices in order, up-to-date, and looking pretty!

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SPICE ORGANIZATION IDEAS & TIPS

With the new year, we naturally want to make a fresh start and resolve to make changes in our lives!  From diet and lifestyle changes to getting organized in our lives and home, it’s what we do each January!  And, it doesn’t happen overnight.  But, we can take small steps in these areas and that’s progress.  When we updated our kitchen last year, I didn’t just focus on how the space looked; but also on how it functioned.  And, I made some changes.  Today, I wanted to share one thing that we did to update our spices, get them organized AND looking pretty!  

 

ARE YOUR SPICES OUT OF DATE?

I don’t know about you, but I had not gone through my spices in years.  How long do those dried spices really last anyway?  According to McCormick, “dried seasoning, herbs and spices in jars last 1 – 2 years.”   I went through all of my spices last January and threw away any that were outdated!  And, I hate to admit that most were!  Of course, the spices I use the most were good, but things that I don’t use as often were many years out of date!  Yikes!!!   So, I would suggest going through your spices once a year and throw away any that are outdated!  Also, if there are spices that you really don’t use, don’t bother replacing them!  

WAYS TO ORGANIZE THOSE SPICES

Now, get those spices organized!  There are so many ways to do this!  There are spice racks, lazy Susans, wall storage, drawer storage, cabinet door storage and more!   And, I can’t tell you what is best for you!  You need to evaluate your own kitchen space and decide what would work best for you!   I don’t have a lot of kitchen counter space, and don’t like a lot of clutter on my countertops.  So, I decided against any organization ideas like that.  Same goes for wall storage.  I just don’t have it available in my small kitchen. 

I think drawer spice organizers are fantastic, but I only have three drawers in my entire kitchen!  So, giving up one drawer just for spices wasn’t going to happen.  I could have gone with an inside cabinet door solution, but instead opted for creating a larger pantry door organizer that would not only store my kitchen cooking spices, but also other cooking foods and supplies. 

 

 

Here is what we built.  It is similar to the built in craft closet storage in my office and I shared those building plans in that post!  And, I saw this pantry door organizer built by my friend, Lori from The Stonybrook House and showed it to Mark and we adapted it for our needs.  This is a pretty easy building project and Lori is so good and showing that. 

 

 

Then, I recently saw these acrylic spice shelves that can be added to the inside of a pantry door.  So, if you aren’t into DIY, these spice shelves would be a great option for you!

 

SPICE JARS AND LABELS

I could have simply stopped there, but I took it one step further and gave my spices a cohesive clean look with new glass jars and pretty labels!  Here are the jars that I purchased on Amazon!  Mine have gold lids, but those are sold out and I’m not sure if they will bring them back.  

Then, I purchased these pretty labels from Paper & Pear Labels on Etsy. 

After using them for a year now, I have to say that I’m pretty impressed by them!  I’ve gotten them wet (I’m not the neatest cook or baker, ha, ha!), but they look as good as they day I purchased them!   These labels come in different styles and sizes.  I ordered the 1.25″ x 2.25″ White Standard Labels 60 count.  The 60 count gives you most every spice you would ever want.  But, you can also get label customization for an additional cost.   Once I had all of my spices in their new jars with pretty labels, I wrote the spice purchase date on these white round dot labels and put it on the bottom of each jar. 

 

And, you’ll notice in the photos that I do have some things like sugar sprinkles and Everything Bagel from Trader Joe’s in their original jars.  And, that’s okay with me!  Because, Function is Key!  More than anything, I hope these spice organization tips have inspired you!  And, I’d love to hear if you have a unique way that you organize your kitchen cooking spices!