Organizing Your Spice Cupboard for $25

One of the things that I vowed to myself when we moved that was I was going to get organized. (Shut up.) No more living like we did at the other house because it was totally out of control. And when I envisioned organized, I meant really organized. You know, the kind of organization where everything … I mean EVERYTHING … has a place (even if it’s not in its place all the time). And, if it doesn’t have a place, then it was going–thrown away, donated, sold at a garage sale. Whatever. I can’t live in disorganization any longer. It’s making me crazy.

My spice cabinet made me especially insane at the other house. We had two “Lazy Susans” which ended up just being a free for all–things thrown here and there–and I was never able to find the spice that I needed without spending 10 minutes spinning those things ’round and ’round. I also hate how spices come in so many different containers–glass, plastic, those little tin cans that make you feel like you’re in the 1950s. So, I decided my first big project at the new house was to organized my spice cabinet by putting them all into the same containers and labeling them–side AND top. (It always annoyed me that the labels were never on the top of spices, too.)

First, decide what kind of containers you need. This will be dictated mainly by where your spices will be stored. If you’re putting them in a drawer, the containers will obviously be different sizes/shapes from a cupboard. My spice cabinet is really in a cabinet, so I knew I wanted round, flat, plastic containers. I looked online and in stores and let me tell you, they aren’t cheap. I needed a budget-friendly alternative, so I started to scour the dollar and overstock stores and … BINGO! I found the perfect container, exactly what I was looking for, at Big Lots with an awesome price tag of  three containers for the bargain of $1.80. (WAY! I know.) The thing that I loved about these particular containers is that they have locking lids. (And, let’s face it, how many times a year do you use those spices? Exactly.) I ended up purchasing enough containers that cost me right around $25.

I then simply transferred my spices to each container and used mailing labels to affix handwritten names to the side and the top. This sounds time-consuming, but it actually only took me a little over an hour. (I spent way more time trying to find the perfect containers.) I pulled up a news show on the iPad and transferred away. It went pretty fast.

Voilà! A perfectly organized spice cabinet where I can actually find what I need at a moment’s notice.

A couple of times a day, I pass the cabinet, open it and smile. Ahhh, the sweet smell of … organization.

(Don’t laugh, but I’m thinking about alphabetizing them. Too much?)

Container info: The containers I found at Big Lots–Mini Locking Lid Containers, Round, Set of 3–were from Resourceful Products, Inc. of Discovery, Inc. in CA. (The label has an email address of discoveryinc1@aol.com.)

Tags: budget, organized

Category: Cool Stuff, Feature