next kitchen project - spice rack

After moving into our home, one of the first things we decided to do was pull down some of the kitchen cabinets that were hanging from the ceiling, blocking the view and making the kitchen feel closed off. I've since mounted new light fixtures and a wall sconce where they once hung, and I've repainted the ceiling with a new coat of "ceiling white" paint. I've been debating my next move and I think I am going to build a spice rack - not one of those wire-frame deals that could double as a wine caddy, but one that will fit in with the rest of the kitchen decor.

So I have decided to reuse one of the cabinets that i had pulled down. That way, it will have the same finish and all I have to do is make it much more shallow. I thought about cutting into the wall, but decided against it because the 2x4's that I would be cutting are load bearing. I don't need that potential headache.

So why a spice rack, you may be wondering. Well, it goes like this. We used to have one of those fancy rotating Kammenstein spice holders, and it was okay but we're growing tired of having so much stuff on our counter tops. And we've never even had coffee makers or espresso machines - just the basics, really. Between the bread basket, paper towel holder, and toaster oven, we have very little room for cooking. Adding a counter-top spice rack would give us no room. And I use a lot of spices. But having them in a cabinet makes it difficult to find the one that you need. I'm constantly taking some down to get to the ones behind them, and then having to put them back. So I'm building a spice rack that can hang on this one awkward wall in our kitchen.

I'm going to cut the cabinet so that it is about five or six inches deep, and then reattach the back to it. Then I'll cut the old shelves down to fit inside and we'll have our spice rack. I may try to add some try around the edges and top to make it look more intentional, too. I wonder why we never see spice racks like this anymore. My guess is it has something to do with how few people have time to cook anymore. It's really a shame, because cooking (and eating homemade meals) is fun.