spicing things up

One of my favorite organizational tools that we incorporated into our kitchen is the Ikea Grundtal system. Our galley kitchen is fairly common as far as NY apartments go, and I wanted to free up as much counter space as possible (kitchen real estate that was sorely lacking in our last apartment). We installed two rods spanning one entire wall, and use it to hold two dish racks, a basket for dish soap and sponge, paper towel holder, a spice rack, and an 'odds and ends' basket. We also purchased a few extra sets of S hooks for anything that might need to be hung in a pinch.

We especially love the dish rack and spice shelf. No longer will we need to deal with a grimy dish tray...our racks can simply be unhooked and cleaned in the dishwasher. The spice shelf finally lets me keep my spices in plain view. However, I soon ran into a problem. Spice jars were stuffed end-to-end on the shelves, and looked sloppy! I would constantly knock the basil over while trying to reach for the cinnamon. Plus my type A side hated that the jars weren't uniform in size and shape.

After reading the tips from SmittenKitchen and DomesticDaddy, I decided to order 24 Libby spice jars. Thanks to my new Amazon Prime status (students get a year free....once my year is up I will probably renew), they were in my hands 2 days later.

Getting 24 labels off the bottoms was easy...I placed the jars in a rimmed cookie sheet and poured in a shallow layer of water. 30 minutes later, I could quickly swipe off the label (and glue), leaving clean glass behind. I printed labels using clear Avery mailing labels, and cut them down to size with my second most prized possession from the wedding behind Husband paper cutter.

These jars aren't a perfect fit, but they are a marked improvement. Not all spice jar contents will exactly fit in the Libbys. Meaning I have a few tablespoons of this and that shoved in my back cabinets. Also, only 4 Libbys will fit on the Grundtal shelves. I displayed my most used spices, and carefully stacked the remainder in the pantry/kitchen storage/Griffin supply storage closet.

PS - Transferring the spices is messy business. Do it on some paper towels.

PPS - It's almost impossible to apply the labels straight and uniform unless you have the steady hands of a surgeon (I do not).

PPPS - I am seriously considering ordering bigger versions of these jars for misc. kitchen food stuff. We spotted these at the bar of a local restaurant, housing mint leaves ready to be muddled for mojitos!

BEFORE (this was halfway through dividing and discarding, oops)

AFTER (that top row is pretty steady, despite how precarious it looks)