OUR DIY PANTRY!!

allie • Apr 03, 2018

Well, the one project we wanted to get done this winter is finally complete! And that’s a good thing because we have a cabin remodel we are going to start going on as soon as the weather cooperates! But as many of you farmhouse peeps can relate with me on is that true old farmhouse’s just do not have much for storage! And although we gutted our house and started fresh, there were no great areas to take room for to make extra storage! We wanted all the square feet to live in! So, when we put on our addition and added a real basement with a staircase to get to it, we were able to eliminate the old trap door dungeon entry way we used to use to get to our basement! And that then created some useless square footage that was begging to be turned into a PANTRY!!!! Which is a huge deal for my smaller-ish kitchen!! So I thought I’d show you how we created our pantry and how I made it “cute” because even a pantry can be cute:)

So to start I thought I would show you the space that used to occupy this “nook.”

It’s a little fuzzy, but this nook used to be useless space that had a doorway on the right to the dungeon cellar. I painted the back wall in chalkboard paint to give it some character and we added an arch to make it look purposeful.  But it really was useless.  Ryan did all of the hard construction and took the old (100 year old original to the farmhouse door) and moved it to the archway.  We covered up the arch with trim, patched the floors, and the pantry was ready for me to make her pretty;)

I love that it looks like it was always there.  And it actually brightened up the kitchen a bit by getting rid of the dark corner!

Now for the fun.  I started by planking the wall on the left and the right.  It covered up a lot of the imperfections and also made it super easy for me to screw things into without anchoring them!

We always use 1/4′ plywood to do our planking/shiplap.  I wrote up a tutorial a few years ago and you can find it here.  We rip it down into 6″ strips and use a finish nailer and glue to put it up.  Also, a nickel is the perfect spacer to use to make it look like actual shiplap and not just a cheap knockoff!

and now for the paint…

This process is truly so simple once you get the plywood ripped down!  This wall probably look me about 30 minutes to finish!  I then planked the back wall and got to start installing my Ikea pantry unit!

I first saw this pantry system when I was walking through ikea, and I immediately fell in love.  I love that you can personalize it to your space, you can buy each component separate, and lets be real…it’s ikea, so it’s cheap!  It’s called the Ivar system and I’ll link it up shortly.

It comes in natural wood, which allows you to paint/stain it whatever you want. Or leave it natural! All up to you:) I stained ours with Minwax’s special walnut stain. I also loved that you can buy a system, like above, or you can buy each piece each individually and customize it exactly how you want! I chose to customize mine. I ended up buying two of these, which are the Ivar side unit. 

and two of the shorter ones.  The tall one is only $12/piece and the shorter ones are only $10.  I then bought these shelves to go in them.  They are amazing because they just clip right in.

and then you get to accesorize it with all of the fun add ons, like these drawers…

and these baskets for only $3!

but I think my favorite are these cute little labels that clip on…and you get 2 for $1!

o

I highly recommend seeing these in person at a store if you can, but if you can’t, I was amazed at how inexpensive shipping was.  I had to order a few more of the tall side units and shelves, and threw in a few more accesories and shipping was only $12.

Okay, now for the pictures…

I tried to make the most of every square inch…and was quite impressed with how much I could fit in this tiny space!  I got most of the containers from Ikea as well, but found similar ones here.   And I printed labels out for some of my containers, but if you don’t want to do that, you can find super affordable chalkboard labels  here.  

We left an opening at perfect height to move our microwave in here so I can make a fun custom hood over our stove. I’m not sure when that will happen….but at least I’m prepared right? :)

We keep fruit and veggies in the drawers, and baking supplies down below.  I just love having a spot to put all of my big pots, pans, and kitchen utensils that were currently in our front closet or hidden below in drawers.  It has made life much easier:)

One of my favorite things is this cute whiteboard calendar from Hobby Lobby and these metal racks to hold my pots and pans and lids!  Oh, and that paper towel holder was life changing:):)

My favorite part is that when the pantry door is open, it flows with the rest of the house.  So silly, I know:)  But that’s how my brain works :)

Ps, lets talk about that little light I added there.  Don’t let it fool you, it does serve a purpose.  The kids use it all the time to create a little fort under the stairs;)  That is also an ikea find.

Amazingly the pantry has managed to stay looking this way for over a month now.  I know, I surprised myself with that one! But let me not fool you too much…this is the picture that I didn’t show you!

This is what hides right around the corner.  Hey, it can’t all look good right?!?  I’m hoping we can sheet rock and plank the rest of it, but that isn’t going to happen anytime too soon, and I’m okay with that.  For now, I’m enjoying a walk in pantry that looks good from two out of the four angles :):):)

Oh, and just in case you too needed a pantry sign, you can come to our shop Whimsy Green and buy one for yourself;)

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