Wednesday, July 3, 2013

One Good Way to Store the Spices: The Spice Drawer

spice drawer, with containers labeled on the lids

If you've got a drawer you can dedicate to spices, that can be a wonderful way to store them. The photo above, used with permission, shows you how Brandie Kajino created her own spice drawer; you can read all the details on her delightful blog, Spoon And Saucer. Since Brandie had some problems with a prior magnetic system, she likes using the drawer because the containers "can't FALL from the drawer."

And Brandie's not alone in her fondness for this approach; let me point you to some other sites which show lovely spice drawers.

Kavita had jars left over from an old magnetic system, and used them in her spice drawer. Unlike most other people using this approach, she didn't label the tops of the containers — but the lids are transparent. She says: "I like being able to just pick out spices by looking at them, but in case I forget which is which, I've written the name on the side!"

Unsophisticook used old baby food jars in her spice drawer, as did Kaylan.

Jill MacCorkle went with "food-grade metal tins with clear tops." She says her drawer makes her feel "all organized and Martha-like" but "mostly it makes cooking easier and more fun."

And Jaime used 4-oz mason jars. She also lined the drawer with polka dot wrapping paper, which gives it quite a festive look.

Of course, there are many other ways to store the spices, too. More on that in an upcoming post.

Related Posts:
Zero Gravity Magnetic Spice Rack
Storing the Spices: 10 Spice Rack Options

3 comments:

JustGail said...

I can't wait for more spice storage ideas. Especially for spice collections that are in a variety of bottle shapes. Right now I have bottles in a drawer and several plastic totes in another cabinet. Mostly organized alphabetically.

I'm not sure I want to buy special bottles, considering there's a good chance they'll end up tossed out when someone empties them. I also don't have counter or wall space for a spice storage unit. Although I *do* like that ferris wheel one from an earlier post.

Barbara @ BabyBloggingBoomer said...

Jeri, I don't cook so I don't use spices but I love to read your posts, even on things that don't pertain to me. Keep up the good work. I always enjoy your ideas.

Claire Josefine said...

Years ago, I bought two wooden diamond-shaped racks at CostPlus -- kind of like wine racks, but smaller -- that I placed one on top of the other. I found a bunch of empty Spice Island sized jars so that everything fits uniformly, and keep my spices in the diagonal spaces, alphabetically. (I wrote the name of each spice on the lid for easy ID.) When I need to replenish a spice, I turn the jar bottom-side out to remind myself. Because I buy my herbs from the bulk bins, I never have to deal with irregular container shapes. The whole thing lives on my counter, next to the stove, for quick and easy access.