7 Alternative Kitchen Storage Ideas

Have you ever found yourself collapsed on the kitchen floor with a mountain of clutter surrounding you, tears trickling down your cheeks? Well, maybe it hasn’t gotten quite this bad yet, but perhaps you would still love to bring some order to your kitchen and just don’t seem to have any space left.

It's amazing how quickly and inexpensively you can bring order to your kitchen space once again. This is without adding on, bashing out walls, or doing any other drastic home remodeling. There are numerous simple space and storage fixes that will rekindle the old love you had for the kitchen.

1. Pegboard for Essentials

Install a piece of pegboard if you have an empty wall. (The back of a door even works.) Pegboard is easy to find and cheap. With the help of some hooks, you can have all of your most important stuff right at your fingertips. This works really well for cooking tools, but can also hold all of your favorite pots and pans along with cups for cutlery and smaller tools. Get creative and paint your pegboard before installing.

2. Vintage Wine Crates for Cookbooks

Why not display vintage boxes on your wall and use them for unique cookbook storage? Not only can you have your cookbooks out where you can really enjoy them, but you may even be inspired to come up with some new and fabulous meals at your fingertips.

3. Magazine Racks Inside Cupboards

An easy way to keep your cutting boards and even small platters organized is to use magazine racks attached to the inside of your cupboards. These inexpensive wooden racks will keep all of your boards and platters safe and within easy reach.

4. Baskets for Seasonal Storage

Baskets are awesome. They come in so many shapes, sizes, materials, and colors. And, you can stash a basket just about anywhere. If you're lucky enough to have space above your cupboards, you can stick a few attractive baskets up there to hold things that you don’t need all that often, but still may want to keep around such as Christmas cookie cutters, entertaining dishware, and candlesticks.

5. Rolling Cart for Flexibility

The infamous rolling cart serves any number of purposes. It's great for extra dish towels, paper towels, oven mitts, etc. And, it can be easily tucked into a closet space and rolled out when needed. Rolling carts are inexpensive and come in a variety of drawer combinations depending on what you need. However, you can get a high-quality version if you want to keep it on display. This way, you can also use the top of the cart for added space.

6. Floor to Ceiling Custom Shelving

We don’t often utilize vertical space well, but in a small kitchen without a pantry, it's paramount that any extra empty space like this is turned into more usefulness. Look around in your kitchen for even a narrow space where you can custom build a very tall shelf to hold cans and other pantry essentials.

7. Employ a Spare Closet Elsewhere

Obviously, it's most handy to have a pantry right in the kitchen. However, if you don’t happen to be so lucky, look around your home for a spare closet you might be able to utilize. Perhaps you have extra linen or coat closet that you can transform into a pantry. Don’t worry too much that it isn’t right in your kitchen -- just be happy that you've found some extra space.

Other Tips for Maximizing Space

Use drawer organizers.

Invest in a pull-out drawer where you can store containers and cans.

Use a pot rack to free up space in your cupboards.

Hang cups using cup hooks under your cupboards.

Use a magnetic knife strip.

Use small plastic baskets in your fridge.