Simplify Your Kitchen: The Spice Jar Project

Living in a 150 year old Capitol Hill townhouse has it quirks, especially when it comes to the unique architectural features you find in cabinetry and hardware.  One of my favorite quirks in our house is the picture frame window cabinet in our kitchen.

When we moved in, the obvious solution was to put dishes and glassware in the cabinet for both use and display. But then I had a different idea, what if we approached that cabinet in a country grocery store concept?

We could put our best cooking ingredients on display in glass canisters with hand-written and chalkboard labels. We would see all of our cooking ingredients clearly labeled in one place, which would majorly simplify cooking a meal. Also, the varying colors and textures in the cooking ingredients would provide a serious pop of color to the kitchen decor.


Now came the real challenge, how could I complete this project on a budget? I gave myself $100 for this pantry transformation. The bulk of this project would be the spice jars, because I had over 40 spices to repackage. With that in mind, I sought out the perfect spice jar first.

From both a budget and quality perspective, the Rajtan Spice Jars from IKEA were by far the best bang for my buck. They come in a pack of 4 for $3.49. With my left over dollars I purchased a few great Italian made hermetic jars with chalkboard labels for my sugar, flour, panko crumbs, etc.

See below for tips & tricks on tackling your own spice jar project!

What You'll Need
Small White Writable Labels
Fine Point Black Sharpee Pen
Rajtan Spice Jars from IKEA
Small Funnel

The Process
Step One: Clean out your existing spice cabinet. Get rid of anything expired. Make a list of each spice so you know how many jars you need to purchase.

Step Two: Decide where and how you are going to display the spices.  For my kitchen, I needed to purchase small acrylic shelves from The Container Store to put inside my window pane cabinet.  The shelves allow me to see the spices in tiers, making each spice visible without having to dig to the back of the cabinet.

Step Two: Purchase spice jars. As stated above, the best deal by far is the Rajtan Spice Jars from IKEA. The screw-on caps create a tight seal so your spices stay fresh and crisp in storage.

Step Three: Wash the spice jars the evening before and let them air dry over night.  You want to avoid any moisture staying in the jars.

Step Four: Write out each spice name on the labels so they are ready to place on the canister after jarring.

Step Five: Pour carefully, use a small funnel if needed, each spice into the jars.  Stick on the appropriate label.

Step Six: Stage and organize your now beautifully jarred and labeled spices however you like.

Step Seven: Find your favorite pinned recipe on Pinterest and get cooking in your newly simplified kitchen.

Happy Hilling!
S.