Why This U-Shaped Spice Rack Will Finally Fix Your Kitchen Storage Problem
Unless you have a new kitchen built to your every specification and need, adequate storage for food and pantry items can be tricky. On one hand, large cabinets can hold more overall but are often incompatible with storing smaller items like spices, condiments, and shakers. These smaller vials and jars can get lost in a sea of canned goods, bags, and packages. As a result, you can never quite easily find them when you need them. The fix to this problem may be simpler than you think. Blogger Gabi Ralea demonstrates how to make a U-shaped shelf using a 5-inch board and wooden dowels that sit snugly on the cabinet's existing adjustment holes with the help of some additional metal pegs.
Since it sits at the perimeter of the existing cabinet and below or above an existing shelf, you can easily see the range of spices at a glance. It also leaves the cabinet's center open to store taller items as before while doubling the shelf space for shorter items. Even better, it's an inexpensive project requiring only lumber, wood dowels, paint, sandpaper, glue, and a drill.
Creating a U-shaped shelf in your cabinet
Begin by measuring the sides of the cabinet to determine the size of the boards to cut. You will need two side pieces of equal length, slightly smaller than the depth of the cabinet. Another piece that will span the back will be the width of the cabinet minus the width of the two side pieces to form a U-shape. Once the boards are cut, sand and paint them your desired shade.
To attach the boards, drill three holes in the side pieces where the boards meet, pushing in the wood dowels with a hammer. Mark the ends of the middle piece to guide where to put the corresponding holes, then push it all together, using a little wood glue in each hole for a secure hold. To mount the shelf, decide your desired height above or below existing shelves and use the pre-drilled adjustment holes in the cabinet to add small metal dowels or pegs for the new shelf to rest on at the corners.
Ready-made racks and shelves
While this DIY is a fun way to create a custom shelf, you can also buy a pre-made Spicy Shelf Deluxe ($19.88) made of durable rubber from Amazon that uses legs to rest in the base of the cabinet and offers three attached shelves. The shelves are available in several sizes to fit the depth of larger and smaller cabinets and are adjustable in width. To create a similar effect with shelves or racks in other materials, try a trio of adhesive shelves ($19.74) from Amazon along the perimeter of the cabinet to make a similar U-shaped upper tier to create an organized spice cabinet.
Since these shelves are removable, they are a great way to gain additional and functional room in rentals, which often lack cabinet space. They're also an excellent solution for larger pantries to keep shelves or cabinets organized and neat, placing smaller items up and off the other shelves where they get lost among larger containers and packaging. While excellent in the kitchen, these U-shaped shelves also work great in cupboards in any room, particularly the bathroom, for small toiletries and grooming items.