We know we’re not the only ones who dream of a beautiful pantry. For some, there will be space in your home for a full butler’s pantry: a walk-in room ideally just off your kitchen. But don’t worry if you don’t have the square footage for that – with a bespoke kitchen there are many ways to build in some beautiful and practical pantry storage. Here are our tips on how to achieve the perfect pantry!
1. Show your designer exactly what you need. This might sound obvious, but your pantry will need to be unique to what you like to cook, your family’s storage requirements and the custom sizes of your cooking equipment and utensils. For example, you might want a bespoke spice rack designed. This can be achieved on the back of a door with “batwing doors”, as a display shelf, or a pull-out drawer. If you have lots of equipment to store, make sure there is specific shelving for these built to the exact heights of the items you already own. A crittal glazed pantry is a beautiful way to avoid closing off a space – but remember, that means you can’t use the pantry as a hiding place!
2. Maximise your space with distinct types of shelving. You might have the room for a walk-in pantry, complete with ladder to utilise high ceilings with tall shelving. If your walk-in pantry houses infrequently used items, such as holiday serving dishes, hide them on the top shelves. If you have a floor-to-ceiling space, think about a pull-out larder shelf. These are great for easy access, organisation and are able to fit a huge number of your kitchen staples in there, while simultaneously keeping them out of the way and out of sight when not required. If not, a pantry just could be an extra deep double cupboard that you can just step into. Consider a pantry that doubles as part of your everyday kitchen when open, using pocket doors, but can be closed up when you want to quickly hide the mess if an unexpected guest pops in for coffee!
3. Consider the use of the space. If you have a butler’s pantry, will you be storing your appliances, tableware and recipe books in there as well? If so, you’ll need to design an efficient storage system with fixed or adjustable shelving, & when it comes to FF&E you’ll need various storage items such as baskets and jars. The first step is to take inventory before discussing with your designer. You’ll likely want to design it with discrete sections for food items, preparation items and presentation items, so you can move through your pantry in order of what you require.
4. Design with cooking inspiration in mind! If you are a passionate cook, you’ll have your pantry stocked with all your regular ingredients, food prep items & go-to recipes. If your appliances, dried goods and recipe books are all housed together in your pantry - it’s the perfect place to head to if you can’t decide what to cook that evening.
5. Lastly, have some fun! Since your pantry is a way to hide all your bits and bobs, why not also make it an opportunity to experiment with design. Perhaps some mosaic flooring, a bright interior colour, or maybe some fun storage jars?
Happy chef-ing!