repo- have you tried a pullout system? I ask- trying to be helpful- cuz I have both- a pullout system and pullout shelves. I much prefer the shelves for accessibility and practicality. I have the system in one pantry as it is side mount and that left me room on one side for brooms/etc. So for that instance, it was the best solution. but when you pull them all out at once, you lose the ability to reach in from the top, so you either can't stack things to maximize space or you can only reach in from the sides. I also really liked the look/idea of the pullout shelves while shopping (Of course there wasn't anything in them at the time), but am really glad that now I didn't buy one for the main pantry. Having said that- Lee Valley is a good source, and they have incomparable customer service- and will stand behind their products. They are very well-priced too! Here is a link that might be useful: Lee Valley

Busy thread this weekend. I've had out of state long time dear friend visiting this weekend. I did buy the Sun liquid in the small bottles as I pictured above. The storage for the bottles is scant, on the shelves so these bottles are a very good size. Also many people can benefit with the smaller sizes. I they are 30 load sized bottles. Thanks for all your comments. And I like the idea of continuing to focus on donating to these organizations that always have needs besides food, as Mamapinky comments above.

Custom pantry · More Info The above pantry is great -- no surprise its picture has been kicking around the internet for years! However, I think it's important to note that this pantry is probably 3-4' and 7-8' wide ... you have less space. This pantry "closes off" with pocket doors, which will eat into your depth. You could totally do this ... but just know it'll be smaller. If I were using this as an inspiration picture, I'd go with 18" deep drawers in the middle ... 12" deep shelves on the edges ... eliminate the side shelves /instead install narrow pegboard to fill in those sides. I have a medium-sized pegboard in my pantry, and it holds SO MUCH stuff that isn't used every day /keeps my kitchen drawers free for always-used stuff. Love the white /pale wood shelving, as it brightens and visually enlarges the space. Note that the upper shelf is "wide open", meaning it has no vertical divisions /could easily house your large items like picnic baskets, roasters, whatever. One thing this pantry does right: The "nicest part" ... that is, the shelves ... is placed front-and-center, and the packages of food, which can look messy, are shoved to the sides. Makes the space more attractive. New York Transformation · More Info This second pix is another great choice, but it comes with the same issue as above ... space. Note that your first two inspiration pix both have a "countertop" at waist-level ... not a typical thing in pantries, but I love it. It'll give you a space to set down grocery bags while you sort, a place to measure out a cup of beans rather than bringing out the whole bag. It's also a place to "display" ... it's a place for glass canisters of flour or noodles, or a place to set out your not-every-day small appliances. I think the only difference here (between this and pix #1) is that doors are hinged /open out into the room. I prefer these doors, and they have no effect on the interior of the pantry. NARI Tour of Remodeled Homes 2014 · More Info Well, of course he recommended them! Exponentially more expensive than the other two pantries, these would line his pocket! Seriously, these doors would look lovely, but I think you'll get just as much storage from something similar to the first two pantries ... without the expense of pull-out shelves. Ideas to consider: This is kind of the opposite of your two pantry pix. Your pix put the larger "forward" cabinets in the center /shallow storage to the side. This is shelving in a "U-shape". If you do this, I'd get Lazy Susans (just simple ones from Bed, Bath, Beyond -- no need to "build in") for the corners. Last thought: If you do one straight-across-the-back shelf, you could have -- instead of the pegboard I suggested in the first portion of this post -- small baskets on the sides "facing inward". They'd keep a lot of stuff "corralled", and it'd be nice to have a "baking basket" full of sprinkles and cookie cutters ... another full of snack bars ... another for spice packets. These baskets could be highly functional.

mama goose, thank you for your detailed suggestions. I'm intrigued by the corner appliance storage, although I'd want to modify it for something other than appliances - I have enough storage for small appliances in the rest of the kitchen. I have 4 kids, so food storage is the priority! One of the windows in the plan is existing and I'd prefer not to move it, so the range needs to stay. We're doing custom cabinets, so I'll talk to the cabinet maker to get the largest drawers possible. There's a hallway behind the fridge, but we're working with our builder to get our non-counter depth fridge flush with the counters for a more built-in look. Questions: Would eliminating the corner pantry mess with the symmetry too much? I want to focus on function but I also don't want it to look super awkward. Is it always the case that cabinets provide more storage than pantries? I've heard a lot of people say that, but I can get so much in my pantry and I don't see how I could get more in cabinets. I added some better pictures to my post.