An Umbra peg board organizer streamlined my messy pots and pans cabinet – now my kitchen is tidier than ever

We moved into this house two years ago, and the biggest kitchen pain has been our messy pots and pan cabinet. Stacking them in a tricky corner cabinet usually means having to unload half of its contents mid-cook.

I put up with this annoying status quo until I saw a photo online of a peg board organizer for congested kitchen cabinets and I was inspired.

Enter my latest organizational hero, the Umbra 'Peggy' peg board organizer, from Amazon

Using the Umbra peg board organizer at home

Peg board organizers aren’t something I had considered using in my house before, worrying that they wouldn't be as sturdy or as practical as they needed to be. However, the Pinterest-perfect picture I spotted online when looking for kitchen cabinet storage ideas made it look like one of the most aesthetic organizing tricks – I simply had to give it a try.

The Umbra Peggy board organizer was my first pick as it is fully customizable as I have awkward kitchen storage and a lot of pans. It can also be used in both drawers and cabinets, meaning I was more confident that I would find some use for it in my home, even if it didn't work out quite right for my pans (spoiler alert – it did!).

Assembling the Peggy peg board organizer

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Putting the peg board together was straightforward, but it did take a bit of trial and error to find out exactly where I wanted each of the pegs to go.

After cleaning my kitchen cabinets, I slid the organizer base into place and started to place my pans on top before popping a peg on either side of the board to hold it in place. The pegs slot in and twist to lock in securely so they don’t rattle around or fall out when moving items around.

Additional U-shaped fittings slide onto the tops of the pegs to give a higher barrier for larger items that might tip over, which were a godsend for stopping my taller pans from leaning in an unstable way.

Setup was simple, but I spent a lot of time taking the pegs out and repositioning the pans until I found a stacking order that worked perfectly for me and kept most of my pans in place.

The benefits of the Peggy peg board organizer

As far as organizing a kitchen goes, the Peggy organizer is my favorite addition this year.

The customizable system easily deep saucepans and thin frying pans, making it easier to remove pans when needed without everything clattering around loudly. This is by far one of my favorite improvements to the kitchen, as I am easily over-stimulated by loud sounds.

Using a peg board such as this Peggy Kitchen Organizer from Amazon is a great low-effort kitchen organizing technique for busy or small spaces.

The other thing I love about this peg board kitchen storage idea is that my pan storage is no longer reliant on my cookware being stacked on top of one another.

While stacking stainless steel pans is generally fine, stacking anything non-stick on top of one another can damage the non-stick coating, shortening the lifespan of your pans. It also risks the coating becoming scratched and contaminating your food.

In the past, I have tried to remedy this situation by using cork trivets, from Amazon, in each of my pans to create a barrier, but this easy to use and budget-friendly peg organizer means I have one less step to worry about when putting my dishes away.

My verdict

The Umbra Peggy organizer has been a real godsend for me and my kitchen – I don’t really know how I coped with the mess and noise of that chaotic kitchen cabinet before getting it.

I only got one peg board organizer as a trial run to see if I liked it, so I still have a few baking trays and my large wok pan that are stashed in the far corners of the cabinet, not to mention my container drawer is an absolute mess. Now I understand why pegboards are a storage product professional organizers can’t live without, I am more than ready to invest in at least two more to help sort these spaces, too, to make organizing kitchen drawers a breeze and protect and store baking dishes.

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What to shop

Pegboards are not limited to organizing pans. They are also great for organizing plates in a kitchen, or taming unruly pan lids and food storage containers. They really are some of the most versatile storage ideas for any home.