Spring Cleaning: Spice Drawer Reorg

I hate clutter.  So when I designed my kitchen, I made sure there was enough space to stash away those items that would normally "clutter" my countertops.  Including the spice rack.  I use the drawer next to my stove to store my spices, which provides quick and easy access to my entire collection.  My spice drawer is already pretty organized, but I've been on the lookout for some new labels.  The labels that I currently use were given to me by my grandma, and are probably a good 40 years old.  And therefore, many spice labels were missing and some were only labeled with an initial (like Poppy Seeds had a 'P' and Oregano was marked with an 'O').  Thankfully, I didn't mix those two up...

The labels were hard to see clearly and many of them were peeling.

 I've been eyeing these adorable labels by Mignon Kitchen for a few months.  If you don't mind spending the cash, I would recommend ordering up these colorful labels for your own organized pantry.  I didn't want to spend $16 on something I could create myself so I set out on a mission to find cute labels that also happened to be free. 

That's when I came across Chalkboard Spice Jar Labels by Emily McDowell.  In case you haven't noticed, I enjoy a chalkboard or two. 

 

There's just something about the contrast of black and white that draws me to it.  Even better yet, her chalkboard labels can be downloaded here for free, and if you have more spices than whats listed on those labels, you can write your own here!  You can view other downloadable labels here.  I so love this site that I plan on labeling. everything. everywhere.

 

I only have 18 spice jars with gray tops that I got from Ikea a few years ago.  The set (Ikea Rationell Variera) has since been discontinued, so I was unable to grab a few more jars.  I didn't want to spend money on a new set, so I reused empty spice jars I have been saving.  The glass jars I had saved were all the same (from Trader Joe's or Spice Hunter), but the tops were both green and black. 

 

I removed all the plastic tops and spray painted them all the same color.  I only painted the outside of the caps not wanting the spices to come into contact with the paint, then I allowed them to dry for a full 24 hours before placing them onto the jars.  For the jars that still had the label on them I just soaked the outside of the jar in water for 5 minutes and the labels fell right off.

 

 

Using a 1 1/2" punch, I cut out the chalkboard labels.  Then sprayed each label with a mist of Spray Adhesive (I use this adhesive here).   Tip: use a set of old pliers to hold the label while you spray it with adhesive to keep your fingers from getting sticky.      

Here is the newly organized spice drawer: 

Stacking the new jars upright will allow me to add more spices to this drawer and still offer full view of all items.

 

 This was a sneaky way of adding more chalkboard to the kitchen. 

 

 

I can actually read the labels now too! 

I'm hoping the larger labels will also eliminate this conversation...

Justin - "Where is the Chili Powder?"
Me - "It's in the spice drawer."
Justin - "I don't see it"
Me - "It's in the spice drawer."
Justin - "It's not here"
Me - walk over to the spice drawer, grab the jar and hand Justin the Chili Powder
Justin - "Where is the Cayenne Pepper?"

Okay, maybe it won't help.  But if Justin's asking for these ingredients it means he's making my very favorite summertime recipe ever.  So I'll continue to grab the spices for him.  You can find a version of my favorite Aw Shucks Corn here (we use a mixture of Cayenne Pepper and Chili Powder rather than the Ancho Chile Powder...). 

 

I think there are two types of people in the world.  The type that love to label everything but still lose things...and the type that hate labeling but always know where everything is at.  What type are you??  

If I put a label on my phone that said "PHONE" I wonder if I would always know where it is....

Mary (Lost Phone Syndrome sufferer)

Linking up this week with the Inspire Me Please Linky Party #6.  Thank you for visiting!  If you haven't seen the other projects yet take a minute to browse the link party.