I originally got the idea to display our spices when The Home Edit organized our kitchen. But, as you can see, our spice collection has grown quite a bit since that time. Cooking, especially international recipes, is one of Jeremy’s hobbies and in the process we had accumulated quite a large spice collection.
Before we organized our spices, we were hiding them in a cabinet. It was too full and hard to find things, which is the worst when it comes to food storage because if you don’t remember what you have you end up rebuying things you already have.
So we ordered these matching spice jars from Amazon and used my old school DYMO label maker to label them. The first time we did it, it took several hours of the two of us swapping jars and labeling. Now, to maintain it we add new jars about once a season, as well as replenish any that are low.
Jeremy has recently organized them by region, which is so cute and nerdy.
You can see here, on the more close-up photo, that I have some hand-labeled (washi tape + sharpie) jars too. I misplaced my label maker and honestly, I think this looks cool too.
If you have a big collection in your kitchen, I highly recommend using it as decor instead of trying to hide it. I’m so glad we did it. It’s both functional and beautiful.
Thanks so much for reading! xx – Elsie
22 Comments
I love that you put all your spices in uniform containers – it makes everything look so good and so much neater! I love the final look of the shelf – but I’m too lazy myself so I just hide all my mismatched containers in closed shelving instead, haha!! 🙂
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Just make sure you buy in small enough amounts that the exposure to light doesn’t degrade the spices!
I’m planning something similar for my kitchen. My husband and I use a lot of spices but have a tiny dark pantry, so it’s time to get them out and in front of us. Thanks for sharing!
I definitely wouldn’t store my spices in the light! They’ll lose their flavor (and sometimes color) much faster this way than stored in a dark place. Maybe there are some amber or opaque bottles that would be a better solution for this set-up.
Hi Elsie! I love when spices are displayed and this looks so pretty! We don’t have open shelving in our kitchen currently, but plan to add a bunch when we remodel. Question, are you guys buying spices primarily in bulk? I find that, with most store bought spices, the full contents of the jar will not fit in my pretty jars, so I’m left with a small amount left in the original container which is a pain to store.
Hi!
We don’t buy any spices in bulk, we just buy small jars so a lot of the time they fit perfectly in these jars. The only thing we use so much of that it would make sense to buy in bulk is garlic powder- it runs out all the time.
When we have a LOT of extra we sometimes keep it in a tiny cabinet down below- but it’s very full (and tiny!) so we try not to save stuff we aren’t sure we’ll use. xx!
I think Taylor means, do you buy your spices from the bulk section of the store? That’s how I refill mine — I have the tare weight and the sku on each of my jars so it’s super easy (and SO much cheaper) to go to my local shop and re-fill as needed!
Oh my! How beautifully organised. Superb
Totally off-topic, but I have that same espresso maker, and I love it sooooo much! It has ruined all other coffee for me. Ha!
I’m curious, is that silver thing on the wall a tap? The thing between your stove and range hood.
It’s a pot filler (just a faucet for your stove) I got it because every fancy kitchen on Pinterest had one, but we hardly ever use it to be honest! LOL
Your kitchen is so satisfying to look at! Love the way you organized your spices as well.
The spices look great on display and soooo much easier to find what you’re looking for. I’m jealous. Mine are all shoved in a cabinet and I can never find anything.
It’s SO worth the extra work! :))
I don’t have a ton of wall space in my kitchen, but I love this idea!
Ana, you live in a loft. You could have a floor to vaulted ceiling spice collection….
😉
Honestly, was just thinking about how I can organise my spices. This is giving me so much inspo!!! Love!!
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xx
Light degrades spices so while it looks great, they really should be hidden in a dark space.
Cute and Nerdy. 🙂 That’s the highest compliment you could pay anyone!
Would love a nerdy little Instagram Stories segment on how you keep open shelving clean.
Obviously dusting, but how often, any tricks? Hacks? Or do we all just need to hire a cleaning service quarterly to do deep cleaning, and maintain by light dusting? Love to see how others handle things that require a bit more maintenance.
I am obsessed with these spice jars and labels!!
Im moving to a new apartment soon and my cabinet is overflowing with spices in different bottles. How lovely to have them all looking like yours!
Thanks for the inspiration!
I would love to see a post of Jeremy’s favorite international dishes to make! I’m always looking to branch out because I generally rotate the same 4 things every week. ????
International spices? I would love to hear more about those and how you all use them in dishes.