16A | THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 2020 | THE RECORD
A SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION OF THE RECORD
Homescape
INTERIOR DESIGN ❚ HOME IMPROVEMENT
Cupboards and Pantries
Kitchen storage options are back in vogue
By KATHIE ROBITZ
SPECIAL TO HOMESCAPE
Twenty years ago, any discussion
of kitchen design
focused on the work triangle.
That’s still important,
but nowadays people are talking
a lot more about storage and the
return of the kitchen pantry. In
fact, a well-appointed pantry is so
popular, it’s become something
of a status symbol. Just check
Pinterest.
PAST TO PRESENT
Once upon a time, the butler’s
pantry and larder were staples
in most American homes. In its
heyday during the Victorian era
through the mid-1900s the “butler’s
pantry,” served as a small
pass-through area connecting the
kitchen and formal dining room.
Its built-in cupboards housed an
assortment of cookware, glassand
tableware, cutlery, and linens.
It was also the place where meals
were plated before serving. A
separate larder provided storage
for dry goods, potatoes, onions,
beans, fruit, and the like. Today’s
kitchen pantry can be one or the
other, or a combination of the two
designed for modern living. It can
be a separate “room” on its own
or a built-in section of cabinetry.
Now that people tend to foodshop
in volume, there has to be
a place to store all those bottles
of water, cans of soup and boxes
of pasta. And although bulk shopping
is not exactly a new phenomenon,
it’s a trend that keeps rising
because good old-fashioned home
cooking is popular again, too! Going
out to eat just isn’t what it used to
be — at the moment anyway.
EXPANDING
OPPORTUNITIES
Even before the days of
shelter-in-place became the new
normal, the demand for smart
pantry storage shot to the top of
buyers’ must-have lists for new
construction, says remodeling
contractor, Fred Salerno of Manor
House Cabinetry in Saddle Brook.
“Nowadays larger new homes all
have walk-in pantries.”
Of course, not everyone has a
large home. And if you’re remodeling
but not adding on, you may
not have the square footage to
create one. According to Salerno,
you’ll need at least a 5-foot x 5-foot
space. But if you’re creative and
willing to give up space elsewhere,
you may be able to carve out an
efficient, if not grand pantry that
meets your needs.
“For example, a few months
ago a client who has a small house
asked me to convert a porch to a
walk-in pantry. And another client
asked me to convert a clothes’
closet and a linen closet into pantry
space,” Salerno says.
Some remodelers steal space
from a mudroom or laundry room,
a hallway, or other area within or
room adjacent to a kitchen. Installing
a sliding or pocket door can maximize
floor clearance in small areas,
and floor-to-ceiling cabinets make
the most of storage capacity.
Short on annexable space? A
built-in pantry cabinet in the kitchen
can be the solution, especially if
you can give up some countertop
space.
Says Salerno, “Just recently I
had a client who was willing to get
rid of a hutch in the dining area
to make space for built-in bottom
and top pantry cabinets. Now she
finally has room for stocking up
on extra groceries and large bags
of food for her dog.”
When designing for his clients,
Salerno prefers deep drawers and
wood over wire shelves. “Spills
are easy to wipe clean that way.”
And he recommends organizing
items by height.
If you’re installing a pantry
cabinet in the kitchen as an afterthought
to your existing kitchen,
Salerno says be prepared: it may
be difficult to match the color or
stain of new pantry cabinets with
the older units. In that case, a
contrasting color or stain on cabinetry
retrofitted into an existing
design can be attractive.
THINKING SOUP TO NUTS
Linda Fennessy of Kitchen
Magic, a kitchen remodeling company
with several locations in New
Jersey, says “The ideal pantry features
a mix of shelves and drawers
with the capability to adjust them
based on your changing needs.
Roll-out shelves provide full access
to the back of the cabinet’s cavity,
and doors can be outfitted with
shelves for smaller items, such
as spices and jars. Lower shelves
typically house taller items, small
appliances, and jumbo packages of
pet food. Store the heaviest items
on the lower shelves for ease and
accessibility. Also, include interior
lighting, particularly if it’s a deep
cabinet in a dark space.”
If you’ve got the room and
the budget, the sky’s the limit.
Outfit your pantry with a microwave
and for snacks. Add cold storage
with a refrigerator or freezer
drawer. “I have a wine cooler in my
pantry,” says Salerno.
PHOTO COURTESY OF KITCHEN MAGIC
This floor-to-near-ceiling cupboard features shelving tall enough to
accommodate small appliances, door racks and deep drawers on rollers.
A wet bar or a coffee station
can be part of a walk-in pantry, too,
adds Fennessy. “Interior inserts for
glasses, utensils, and coffee supplies
can be installed in cabinets
to maintain a clutter-free look.”
INTERIOR ENHANCEMENTS
A pantry can meet most storage
needs even if it’s squeezed
into a corner. Explains Fennessy,
“The cabinet can be as narrow as
18 inches in width, but typically tall
and reaching to the ceiling or soffit.
The best part about our custom
cabinetry is that it is designed to
suit the space available for a more
refined kitchen design, whether
it’s free-standing or built-in where
space is available elsewhere in the
kitchen or adjacent to it.”
Organization and accessibility
are key. And special features
inside cabinets can maximize
storage. “There are many innovative
interior storage solutions
that streamline organization and
the cooking process,” Fennessy
notes. “In fact, these concepts
can be applied to all cabinets, not
just pantries. They include:
n Pot drawers and roll out
pot organizers that allow you to
access and roll heavy pans and
pots without reaching into a dark,
deep cabinet
n Roll out shelves that bring
food to you and allow you to easily
see the cabinet’s full contents.
n Roll out plastic organizers for
keeping plastic containers and lids
together, while allowing you to
store more.
n Lazy Susans that provide full
access to corner cabinets.
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