If you are looking for mason jar pantry organization ideas, you’ve come to the right place. Glass jars an excellent way to organize and store your dry foods.
So, up until this point, aside from a few decluttering posts, I’ve tried to stay away from the organization articles? Why is that, you ask?
I thought I wasn’t good at organizing. I’ll be the first one to say that my housekeeping skills could use some serious work. Frankly, I’m still a major work in process, even at 37 years old.
But, when I thought about it, I realized I’m not actually BAD at organization. What I am BAD at, is keeping up with my organization systems. The truth is, I can come up with ways to organize many areas of my home. And I do it from time to time.
But then, maintaining it is a whole other ballgame.
So, here’s the deal. I can share with you some ways to organize areas in your home. Just don’t ask me how to be disciplined enough to KEEP it organized.
Today I’m going to share with you how to use glass jars for pantry organization. However, the first thing you will notice is that my mason jars are not actually IN my pantry. I don’t have a huge pantry so I keep that reserved for more of the ugly canned food. The mason jars are pretty enough that I can leave them out in the open. I actually adore the look of dry goods in glass jars on open shelves.
The benefit of glass jars is that it keeps critters and bugs out of it. I mean, I generally don’t have mice crawling to the second shelf on my kitchen wall, but if it’s in my pantry that may be another story. This IS an old farmhouse, afterall.
MASON JAR FOOD STORAGE
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As you can see, my shelf was looking a little rough, so it was time I spruced it up.
The first thing I did was grab my trusty labeller. Can we talk about how there is a serious satisfaction with labelling things? Like, the moment I have a labeller in my hand I want to label ALL THE THINGS.
So, this is the type of labeller I have.
It’s a cheaper one, but I didn’t want the fancier ones because I LOVE the vintage look that this labeller gives. If you don’t have a labeller and want one like this, be sure to grab it here.
Next, grab some jars. Here’s the thing about this kind of method. You can use whatever jars you want! I don’t mind if mine don’t all match so you’ll see that I have a variety of shapes and sizes and even lids. But if you prefer a more uniformed look, grab ones that all match.
I’ve used some mason jars but I also have old pickle jars, and other jars I’ve collected along the way.
I filled up all the jars, and added labels to new ones.
I also love that I can see what is in each jar just by glancing up and looking at my shelf.
I also use glass jars for my spice rack. Here’s the thing about spice rack jars -why are they so small? I want to a jar that is big enough to pour the whole bag of spices in.
So, years ago I started keeping salsa jars after we ate all the salsa out of them. I washed them out, tore off the label, and poured my spice bags into them. They are big enough for the whole bag of spice so they are perfect!
If you don’t have a spice rack or shelf to store your spice jars on, you could always place them in a jar, laying down. It’s whatever works with what you have in your home.
Also, if you are looking for something different label-wise, you can use a chalk paint marker with black chalk labels, or printable labels like these ones.
WHAT ABOUT THE LEFTOVER SPICES OR GRAINS THAT DON’T FIT INTO THE JAR?
As I said above, my spice jars are big enough to fit the whole bag of spice. However, if your jars are small, or you have extra grains that didn’t fit into your jars like quinoa, rice, dried cranberries, and more, you can store the extras in an airtight large plastic container in your pantry or a cupboard. Just seal up your packages that the dry goods came in.
WHAT ABOUT BULK GRAINS?
What do you do if you buy some things in huge bulk quantities? For example, we buy flour, sugar, and oats in massive 10 kg bags.
We use food grade buckets. While you can buy them at various places, like Amazon, I scored an amazing deal at our local wine making store. They were selling old food-grade buckets for a dollar a piece! There’s no way you can get a steal like that anywhere else.
While I got the buckets for an insanely good price, the lids not so much. However, these lids will last me a lifetime and are worth the price.
They are called Gamma Seal Lids and they are airtight and critter proof. But the best part is that you attach the one part of the lid onto the top with a hammer so that you can screw the top part in when opening and closing it. I don’t know about you but I have some really bad memories of trying to pry lids off of buckets.
Why do they hurt your fingers so much? While I am exceptionally frugal, these are one of the best investments I’ve ever made. I’ve had these lids for over 10 years now and they are still going strong!
I stick these buckets underneath the shelf in my pantry. Also, side note: Do you notice the cotton ball in this picture? I put peppermint essential oil on the cotton ball to keep the mice away. 🙂
MASON JAR FOOD STORAGE WILL SPRUCE UP YOUR PANTRY
Glass jars like mason jars add a beautiful and practical element to any pantry or shelf for food storage. It can also reduce the amount of packaging if you buy some of the items at a bulk food store. Som bulk food stores even allow you to bring your own jars eliminating even more packaging.
Use whatever pantry jars you want, but if you are looking for some mason jars, you can grab them here.
Do you use glass jars in your pantry or for food storage? Or do you use something else that you find very effective that has worked for you? What is your favorite way to store food in an organized way in your home? Leave it in the comments below. 🙂
