Kitchen Storage Solutions – Cupboard Organizer – Raised Shelves

I don’t know about you lot, but we always seem to run out of space in our kitchen. Everything seems to be nicely in order and then we buy something new and bah no space to store it 😦

Our kitchen furniture is the standard ones; the ones off the “shelf” and not made to measure or to any special order, which means that we didn’t choose the size of our cupboards. They are not so deep but they are tall. In an ideal world I would prefer them to be totally different – or at least not as tall as they are at this moment or maybe just having more shelves inside them, but we do not live in an ideal world so we have to deal with what we have.

But where there is a problem there is also usually a solution to it… we resolved our “problem” of wasting storage space with a range of raised shelves. They simply go inside your cupboard and double your space.

I find this solution brilliant. It is so much easier to reach for things when they aren’t stacking directly one on top of each other. So they offer more storage and ease of use and I love them!

We only use the straight inserts – the ones with just one extra surface but if you look around you will be able to find special stacking shelf racks which look like a step ladder (they might be especially useful for small cupboards filled with things like jars of preserves or spices). There is also a range specially designed for corner cupboards.

But this is not the end of the uses for this lovely little insert. We also use them outside of the cupboards. Mark likes to have his essential cooking things always handy, so they were taking valuable worktop space, but no more… we bought a range of narrow inserts and placed them along the side of the wall. This space wasn’t really used anyway as it is below the upper cupboards so access to this space isn’t all that great. This way we have doubled the storage space we would have without them and I think they look nicer too. On baking days he also tends to dismantle one to use it as a tent frame with a T-towel to cover breads and doughnuts as they are rising!

We even have one for our toaster, so we can hide a sandwich maker below 🙂

There are an infinite number of useful applications when you start to think about it.

Do you use raised shelves in your kitchen?

Do you have any space saving tips you would like to share?

Kitchen Storage Solution – Addis Clip & Close Food Containers

Every kitchen needs some special food containers, no matter how careful we try to be there are always some leftovers which need storing, but the food containers are not just for leftovers, are they?

Food manufacturers try to aid us with storage but their ideas aren’t always up to the task.

Have you ever bought a packed ham or a pack of sliced cheese in a “resealable” packaging? Did it work for you? As it goes its hardly ever working for me… I open the pack take the slice or two and after few unsuccessful attempts of resealing the packet, I just take the content and move it into a size appropriate container, to keep it fresh for longer.

I seem to always run out of food containers… maybe because of my slight OCD when it comes to segregation… I do not like it when certain things get mixed up… so they all need to be in their own separate little box 🙂

I received a lovely selection of Addis Clip & Close food containers and I must admit they do work much better than your standard food storage boxes with flat lids which you just push down. Clip & Close boxes are so much more secure, really there is no escape once you have placed something in it. Believe me there is nothing coming out of them once they are closed 😉

Addis offers an awesome selection of food containers. You can pick from small, round, rectangular, or square; they can hold liquids or dry foods (this one is specially designed with cereals in mind); size wise your choice ranges from 180ml going all the way up to 8.3l. The prices range from £1.99 for a small one up to £11.99 for the giant 8.3l one.

All Addis Clip & Close containers are 100% airtight thanks to an all around silicone seal and 4 clips on the lid. They are all dishwasher, freezer and microwave safe and BPA Free, which is a huge plus in my eyes. The scientists are still working to determine if BPA is or isn’t safe, and if it is at which dosage but until this verdict is out I prefer my plastics to be BPA free… just in case.

Food containers are a must have in every kitchen and it is important to invest in good quality boxes, after all these containers “look after” your food. I like to believe that the better the container the longer my food will stay fresh and sexy.

Do you find yourself running out of food containers all the time or is it just me?