I do a lot of cooking and have always had problems with where to store my spices. The counter top racks take up too much space. When I stored them in the pantry or cabinet, I constantly had problems with spices falling off the shelf if I tried to dig for the right spice without removing every single one of them. My solution? Mount the spice rack on the wall.
I purchased a counter top spice rack with a flat back, then after discussing what I wanted to do with the store staff, they gave me some mounting brackets that they use to mount displays on the wall for free. I used those to mount the spice rack on the wall next to my refrigerator and used a labeler to label each of the spice bottles. Now I can have easy access to my spices (without head injury) and they aren't taking up cabinet or counter space. I also save money by purchasing spices in bulk and refilling these reusable jars. I have a small funnel that makes this simple to do.
I have since found these mounting brackets at Home Depot. They are a lot less noticeable than they appear in the photo, and I could always paint them to match the wall color if I wished.
Source: My grandfather had constructed a wall mounted spice rack for my mother using old meter sticks and small apothecary bottles. This is the "modern" version.
By Stephanie from Hillsboro, OR
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Great idea! I also always buy my spices and seasonings in the bulk section; though I usually always buy just a Tablespoon or so at a time so it is super fresh and not sitting in a cupboard forever! Found this tip out through a "frugal" search; so much fresher, and so much less expensive than buying the packaged expensive stuff!
That is a good idea but where did you get the bottles and rack? I have never seen these anywhere.
It did take some searching to find the right ones. I got these racks at Storables. They came with the bottles. You can find spice racks designed for the wall elsewhere, but they don't hold very many bottles. I needed something that could hold 36 bottles without taking up much space (and yes I really do cycle through a bottles worth of all of those in a few months). Next time I visit my parents, I'll be sure to take a picture of the one my Grandfather made out of meter sticks.
A friend who has a very small, but more "modern" looking kitchen took short wide containers and attached peel and stick magnets to the back. She then screwed a metal sheet from the hardware store onto the side of a cabinet and sticks her spices to that as another creative solution to the same problem.
To cs-jag; I went to that website and they don't have any there with that many bottles. They are expensive anyway so I probably would not order them. Thanks for the reply.
I really love all of the spice rack ideas. I have been wracking my brain searching for ideas-from kitchen islands to baskets to hold all of my spices. I needed these great ideas. Thank you!
I love the idea of using a pre-made rack. I did something similar (I think) to your Grandfather's meter stick rack. I love that he used meter sticks.
Nice idea, except you should store your dry spices in the dark. Exposure to light reduces their life span and potency.
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