10 Pantry Design Mistakes Making Your Space Unusable – And How Interior Designers Fix Them
These are the common faux pas designers always notice, and how you can avoid them in your own space
A pantry is a hardworking kitchen feature, whether it's a walk-in design or a freestanding cabinet within the main cooking space. It creates a dedicated space for food storage and helps to keep your entire kitchen more organized.
It's easy to get carried away with the more aesthetic decisions, but the primary function of your pantry ideas is to create practical, usable storage – without that, even the most stylish pantry becomes another clutter zone.
The most successful designs balance style and practicality, and interior designers notice a few common pantry design mistakes that disrupt that balance. Here are the mistakes to avoid, and how you can fix them if they sound a bit too familiar.
1. Not Considering How You Need the Space to Function
This charming walk-in pantry has been designed within the main kitchen, divided by wood and glazed dividers that add a traditional feel.
The Mistake
A pantry design is only successful if it functions the way you need it to. Part of that is understanding how you live and use the space, but also whether you actually need a pantry, or whether your requirements are more aligned with a back kitchen. Start by noting the difference between a larder, pantry, and back kitchen, and which would add the most to your cooking space.
'There is currently a real trend for creating a back-of-house kitchen space, but we think this can sometimes muddy the purpose of the pantry. It needs to be designed either as a really good storage cupboard, or the space should be thought of more as a true back-of-house kitchen,' says Sophie Pringle, Founder of Pringle & Pringle.
'We are increasingly asked for a ‘pantry’ when what is really wanted is a back kitchen – somewhere to prepare food, house appliances, wash up and deal with the mess and overflow that comes with entertaining,' Anthony Earle, Creative Director at Artichoke, agrees. 'Trying to fit all of those functions into a small pantry can quickly make the room hot, cramped and rather impractical.'
The Fix
Before you start designing your pantry, determine how the space needs to function. If food storage is the priority, a pantry is the ideal solution, but if you want space for an extra sink, prep space, and large appliances, you'll need to plan for a larger back kitchen type of space.
If your needs align with a pantry, consider what you want to store and how you want to store it. Some items will need to be easily accessible, so storing them on open shelves within easy view will make day-to-day tasks more efficient.
'Think about the function first and design the space around how it will actually be used. Consider what you need to store, whether you want to hide small appliances, and how often you’ll be accessing the space, then make sure the layout, shelving and services are designed accordingly,' Sophie suggests.
2. Forgetting About Good Ventilation
Blue and yellow creates a playful yet still soft color scheme, so nothing feels busy or overwhelming, and everything is still easy to find.
The Mistake
A pantry is fundamentally a food storage solution, so airflow and maintaining conditions that keep food dry and fresh are really important. This isn't a storage closet, so don't treat it as such. Lack of ventilation encourages moisture build-up, which can cause food to go off (stagnant air becomes a breeding ground for mold), and can increase temperatures, leading to odors and stale food.
The Fix
The simplest fix is to add ventilation during the design process, whether it's wall vents or cutouts in your pantry doors to improve airflow. And location is key. 'Ideally, a really good pantry should also be positioned on an external wall, allowing for ventilation, particularly if it’s being used for food storage,' Sophie explains.
'Good airflow helps to keep the space cool and dry, which is important for storing food, and it is much easier to incorporate at the planning stage than to retrofit later. Ultimately, the pantry should be designed around function first, with the aesthetic details following from that.'
3. Choosing Quantity Over Quality of Storage
In this deVOL Kitchen's pantry, shelving has been deliberately kept shallow so every inch is easily accessible, with the highest shelf used for display pieces and items less regularly used.
The Mistake
A pantry is a functional zone that should enhance a kitchen's flow and function, but successful storage is more about quality than quantity. Cramming in too many large shelves and hard-to-access cabinets will make finding and accessing the ingredients you need feel almost impossible.
'A common pantry design mistake, particularly in hard-working family kitchens where storage space is at a premium, is focusing exclusively on maximising the quantity of storage without thinking through the quality and types of storage that are going to both work well and look beautiful,' says Elizabeth Macfarlane of Macfarlane van der Heul
The Fix
Take the time to plan your pantry layout and the storage styles that make the most sense at each level. If you want to maximize height, you need to make sure you can actually reach the top shelves, so add a rolling ladder or fold-down step (this 3 Step Foldable Ladder from Amazon can be easily stashed away) to prevent baskets filled with ingredients you forget about and leave to go bad.
Take stock of what you need to access most regularly, and what you use only occasionally (such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, or seasonal supplies) so you can prioritize the most accessible areas. Cereal, pasta, flour, and snacks – the food you reach for every day – should be stored at eye level so it's easy to grab. And if it's on open shelving, consider decanting into prettier containers, like these Dark Wood Lidded Canisters from Target or Crate & Barrel's Montana Glass Jars, for a more elevated and organized pantry.
4. Making Pantry Shelves Too Deep
This pantry shelving is a great example of staggering the depths – and the impact decanting ingredients into pretty canisters has.
The Mistake
Pantry shelving is one of the most practical storage types, but deep shelves quickly become almost impossible to access. 'Deep, evenly spaced shelves may look efficient on paper, but they often create wasted space and make it difficult to see what is stored behind the first row of items. Things inevitably get pushed to the back and forgotten,' says interior designer Vanessa Katzen.
'Avoid overly deep upper shelves, as it gets very hard to see what is on them,' adds George Miller, Designer at Neptune. Reaching the back of the shelves becomes difficult, and you inevitably end up knocking the items at the front, causing nothing but chaos and more mess.
The Fix
Plan pantry shelving around the items you need to store on them, rather than the other way around. 'I prefer to design pantry storage in layers, with shallower shelving for everyday items and deeper storage reserved for larger appliances, serving pieces and bulk goods,' says Vanessa.
'Incorporating drawers or pull-outs at lower levels also makes the full depth much more accessible. I also vary shelf heights rather than spacing everything uniformly. The goal is not simply to fit as much as possible into the pantry, but to make everything easy to see, reach, and put away. When storage is designed around how you actually use it, you often need less space than you think.'
5. Adding Too Many Cabinet Doors
Even swapping cabinet doors for a skirt on one side of the pantry makes a huge difference to the flow and functionality of the design.
The Mistake
Your pantry isn't a kitchen, so the pros and cons of open shelving don't apply in the same way. A pantry is function first, and filling these small spaces with lots of cabinets makes accessibility difficult – trying to open different cabinet doors will not only make it tricky to find what you need, but it instantly intrudes on the small amount of walkway you have.
'The point of a pantry is to maximize function and storage for your kitchen in a hidden but easily accessible space. It's supposed to be hardworking, not make you work harder,' says Leah Hook, Founder and Principal Designer at Gray Oak Studio. 'You don't want to walk from your kitchen to a separate room and then have to open another series of doors or drawers to get what you need.'
The Fix
Open shelving at floor level can feel messy and a bit inconvenient, so it makes sense to add some closed storage. Consider what you want to store here – drawers maximize a deep space, allowing you to access items stored towards the back.
'A combination of drawers and open shelving can work really well, so that the things you use most are easy to reach and you can actually see what you have. I also like to keep some of the prettier everyday items on display rather than hiding absolutely everything away. And don’t be afraid to decorate it,' says interior designer Laura Stephens.
If you're storing additional appliances you don't use regularly or seasonal accessories, cabinetry probably makes more sense. But instead of filling your pantry with doors, swap them with a cabinet skirt – Lulu & Georgia's Painterly Stripe Linen fabric is a great option, or for a ready-to-hand design, try Etsy's Striped Cotton Cabinet Skirt. 'Curtained under-counter storage [is great] for hiding away bulkier and less attractive items – the curtain is economical, adds visual interest, and contrasts nicely with the cabinetry in the main kitchen,' adds Elizabeth.
6. Excluding Useable Countertop Space
Wooden countertops instantly add warmth to this dark blue pantry, while adding usable surfaces.
The Mistake
Pantry designs often focus on storage – as they should. But with so much attention on shelving, drawers, and cabinets, it's easy to forget that a countertop has a use in these spaces, too. 'A pantry without counters is storage without further utility,' Leah explains.
'You want a landing surface to organize your equipment or food and stage your plans, especially during messy kitchen activities. When you pull down the bin of flour, you want a place to put it within arm's reach. You don't want to go back and forth to the kitchen counter when you need to place something down.'
The Fix
The fix is simple – add a countertop, even if it's just a small run along the shortest wall. 'We always encourage clients to design in a generous counter, which gives the pantry an invaluable working surface for unpacking groceries or preparing food,' Anthony says.
It's a detail that turns a simple storage space into a functional pantry. You can bring in the same materials and palette as the kitchen for continuity, or use it as an opportunity to add a different material that didn't make it into your main kitchen design. 'Whether you choose butcher block, stone, stainless steel, or tile, 24" deep countertops at waist height are critical to the overall use of the room,' Leah adds.
7. Overlooking Pantry Lighting
A pantry is only as successful as its lighting scheme, so bring in pendant lights, lamps, and undershelf illumination for maximum visibility, like in this colorful country home.
The Mistake
You can spend hours meticulously planning custom storage and a beautiful color scheme, but if you ignore pantry lighting, you won't be able to see any of it. Relying on a single overhead light casts shadows and fails to illuminate your actual storage.
'Make sure you consider lighting – shelves create a lot of shadows from a single overhead pendant and make it hard to see what is on them,' says George. Plus, a badly lit room instantly feels uninviting – a pantry becomes pointless if you don't want to enter it.
The Fix
Approach it like you would your kitchen lighting. An overhead light is fine, but layer it with lower-level lighting designed for each storage area. 'LED strip lighting can help you have light exactly where you need it,' says George. Try these Rechargeable Magnetic Motion Sensor Lights or Dimmable LED Strip Lights as a functional solution for open shelving that adds light without impeding function.
'We like to layer the lighting in a pantry the way we would in any other room,' says Elizabeth. 'A mix of task lighting in the form of directional downlights, ambient lighting built into the joinery, and decorative lighting.' Where there's space, cordless lamps, like this Beige and Gold Portable Counter Lamp from Amazon, are a great way to blend warmth and ambiance with functional lighting.
8. Not Thinking About How the Pantry Color Works With the Main Kitchen
This kitchen is a perfect example of using a pantry as a bolder statement – the view into the adjoining storage space adds a pop of bold pink, a tonal contrast to the main cooking space.
The Mistake
Function is the priority in a pantry, but it should still feel like a beautiful space that adds something special to your kitchen. 'One of the biggest mistakes is treating the pantry as purely functional and forgetting that it is still part of your home. It’s very easy to fill a pantry with shelves and cupboards and end up with a rather cold, utilitarian space, when it can be a lovely opportunity to introduce color and personality,' says Laura.
The Fix
There are different routes you can take with your pantry design depending on how it reads with the rest of your kitchen scheme – choose a warm neutral color and let texture do the talking, such as wall paneling or decorative millwork. Alternatively, you can color-drench your pantry in a deeper hue as a small confidence zone in the corner of a more neutral kitchen. Try to keep it simple and avoid using too many different colors and patterns – the storage still needs to be easily seen.
'A pantry is a wonderful place to have a little fun with color because it’s often a smaller, more enclosed space. Beautiful joinery, a lovely paint color, and good lighting can make it feel like a considered room rather than an afterthought. The practical elements still need to work, of course, but there’s no reason a pantry can’t have the same sense of character and joy as the rest of the house,' says Laura.
9. Choosing Bold Design Over Function
By carrying the same floor tile from kitchen to pantry, the two spaces feel connected without creating a busy scheme. The color scheme has also been kept tonal, so the room feels calm despite the darker hue on the wall paneling.
The Mistake
Following on from color, too many busy patterns or different colors can make a small pantry feel chaotic. 'There is so much color going on with food, spices and herbs that this space is the most important for a well-considered color scheme. It can quickly feel busy and cluttered, so take your time. Don’t rush this area,' says Katherine Channell, Founder and Head Designer at Katherine Jane Design Studio.
The same applies to tiles – on the walls and floors. 'A pantry is one of those spaces where people can be tempted to over-design the floor because the footprint is small. A highly patterned tile, a contrasting border and a completely different material can all sound appealing in isolation, but combined with shelving, cabinetry, jars, bottles and all the visual activity of a working pantry, the room can very quickly become busy,' adds Grazzie Wilson, Head of Creative at Ca’ Pietra.
The Fix
The easiest way to fix this pantry design mistake is to take a more pared-back approach. In a tiny space, avoid pattern altogether, but in a pantry that can handle it, keep the colors and patterns tonal so it feels calm and considered. 'My solution would be to come up with three or four colors max,' Katherine suggests. 'I love using warm tones for this area, accessorising with wood and then often a pop of color. This allows you to bring in wicker baskets, which are functional and beautiful.'
For the floors, take a more subtle approach. 'If the pantry sits directly off the kitchen, continuing the same material through both spaces is particularly effective,' says Grazzie. 'It makes the architecture feel calmer and more intentional, and it allows the pantry to feel like part of the kitchen rather than somewhere that has been decorated afterwards.'
10. Forgetting to Plan Electrical Outlets
Hidden behind a cake stand, outlets at counter level in this pantry means the space can be used for quick tasks, like firing up a coffee machine or charging cordless lights.
The Mistake
A pantry has evolved from being a simple food storage space to a more functional food prep zone. For many people, this includes housing small appliances and often using them within the pantry to avoid cluttering kitchen surfaces. And forgetting to include electrical outlets will become an issue down the line – even if it's just to charge up cordless devices or plug in additional lighting.
The Fix
During the design process, when you're planning out where different storage needs to be located, plan for electrics. Ideally, one above the countertops within easy access, and another hidden within closed storage if required. Try to take an elevated appraoch – outlet switches make a difference, so choose stylish designs that fit into your scheme. Anthropologie's Isabella Bee Switch Plates and Merritt Enamel Switch Plates are stylish options.
A pantry is a wonderful feature to have in your kitchen, so make the most of the space by getting the design right. Start with the functional details, like storage styles and lighting schemes, then plan for the visual elements that give it character. 'Have fun and remember it’s not just storage,' Katherine adds. 'It’s an extension of your home, so treat it with importance!'
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