Does your spice cabinet look anything like this? Yep, pretty messy. When I was out of town, my hubby noticed how bad it was and strongly suggested that I get the thing organized. So, I finally did.
Remember these retro spice racks? Think 1970′s, groovy apartment, cooking for yourself. Everyone has to have some nifty spices, right? I found this brand new spice rack with pretty glass bottles probably 2 years ago at a yardsale for 50 cents. And it’s been in my cabinet all this time, waiting for me to finally get to it.
Those computer skills I learned on the job have all come in handy and I knew just how to make some pretty labels in Word. I chose an oval shape, with a pretty border around it, added a pretty font and typed away. Twelve spices later, I hit print and was done. 
Cut them all out with scissors and Mod Podged them to the bottles. A little Goo Gone on a Q-tip took off any residue around the labels.
Aren’t they cute? Here’s how to make the labels in Word:
Open a Word document, click on Insert, then Shapes. Pick out the one you like, I used an oval. You can resize and drag the shapes. You can then click on Shape Outline to pick an line outline, size and weight. It might say Format Autoshape & I had to click on More lines to get this one. Play around with all of that. Then, to get the font inside the box, click on Text Box, add your text and drag it inside the box. I used Bradley Hand for my font. You will have to get rid of the box around the Text Box by clicking No Line. All this is under Textbox Tools. And you may have to click No Background if your text box is hiding part of the circle. Then when you have it like you want it, hold down Shift and click the Text Box & Circle to group them together. Then, rick click and click Copy and then Paste to paste 12 more identical circles on your page. Drag them apart and change the name in the middle and presto, you’re done. You may have to hunt down right drop-down menus for your shapes and fonts. Word seems to change things up with every upgrade and the one I have now is much more confusing than the old version used to be. It’s really easy to do though!
Ready to rock and roll in the kitchen now. 
I painted the rack black, of course, and they will be in reach under the cabinet for hubby or me (well, mostly me). 
I also took the opportunity to clean out my old spices and since I usually buy the bulk spices at Whole Foods, I’ll store them in the cabinet and refill as needed. 
Hope you got inspired to get your spices in order too. It feels good to be organized.
Not that I’m completely there. I still need to work on my closet. 
What do your spices look like?
Come back on Monday for the master bathroom subway tile post! I’ve been working on it all week and it looks fantabulous! I LOVE IT!
Thanks for stopping by! I'm Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn't have to cost a fortune and I've spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yardsales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I'm here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won't you join me? 
{ 59 comments… read them below or add one }
Rhoda, I definitely need to organize mine. I love how you did those labels. I know I need to clean mine out, too. My husband would not even notice that mine are a mess though. My closet is bad, too….Kim
Those look great! What a clever idea for the labels! Good job.
Rhoda,
It was so great to meet you yesterday! Thanks again for the antique store advice. Do you garage sale a lot? I will look for you at church on Sunday!
Lucky for me we received a nice clean spice rack as a wedding gift. I love the labels you made, so Martha.
Hope you have a great weekend!
Meaghan @unexpectedgracemt.blogspot.com
I have an upper corner cabinet with a lazy susan in it that we keep our spices in/on. Even though it is dedicated to spices, it could use some organization. I do have some larger containers that seem to hide the smaller. I’ve bought more Vanilla because I thought I didn’t have it when it was behind something bigger the whole time! The trick is getting everyone who goes into this cabinet to put things back where I want them!
I must say I am one of those that when I organize it looks pretty good but I have another cook in the house and it gets m essed up frequently. I have one of those step bases so my spices look like a little choir,hehe. I also alphabetize them, I know a little OCD but I can find what I need more easily that way. I love your cute little bottles and it looks so convenient in your kitchen. You always are doing the most clever and inexpensive things. You are inspiring that is for sure, Have a great weekend,Kathysue
My spices look pretty much like your “before”. But I do have them on a lazy susan so even though they’re a mess, you can have fun spinning them around!
Great idea to get them organized. Looks wonderful.
Oh, I love it! I guess that means I’m a 70s girl at heart
My mother has hers still hanging on the wall with the original spice/herbs. I suggested that we take it down & dump all the spices. A 89 yr old resounding NO came from her lips. Reasoning: “I like the way they look”. I will leave it hanging there until time to sell the house. Now you’ve given me reason to bring it home & make it over for my own use… but not the contents!
Beckie
http://sewconsult-ponderings.blogspot.com
I have those little jars, but not the rack
. I love what you did with the labels and thanks for the tip on how to remove the residue! Looks very cute and vintage.
What a great find! The labels look fabulous, good job
I remember those, had one! Now I have one that is on a stand and turns. Love it. Nice job.
Wonderful job and so nice to reuse something so useful! Painting it black and adding the labels gave that spice rack just the touches it needed! Looks wonderful and oh so very organized! Great post!
My spices look like your first photo… not organized. You know what the bummer is? We are moving from England to Michigan and I can’t ship any of them with me! What a waste of money. I have been cooking and spicing up all the food we have left so that I can use as much as possible. I will see if any of our friends want to take them and that’ll make me feel better.
Rhoda, I HAVE one of those!! I can’t WAIT to pull it out and make these labels for it…thank you for the inspiration!
They look great! I bet your hubby is happy now
My spices are a mess! I love your spice rack though!
Well I love it…I have been looking for a spice rack like that also…but I will find one sooner or later…
Please share how to make the labels in word cause I would love to make me some…
Hi Rhoda…..
Very cute…I have one of those up in the attic. haven’t thought about it in years….love the labels you made.
I have one of those step/shelves inside my cabinet…works well for me….so mine is pretty neat….although my lazy susan cabinet looks like that….lol
I love that your hubby mentioned the messy cabinet and you fixed it up…..my hubby would have only gotten the LOOK from me …. lol
Have a great week-end,
Kathy
The cabinet that holds my spices is a safety hazard. Last week I was cooking a Mexican dish, stood on my tippy toes, opened it, and a big bottle of garlic powder fell onto my head. Your spice organization idea is fantastic!
Very creative idea those labels! I love the organization you now have!
Oh girl, LOVE it!!!
I want to find new spice bottles and do something similar! I posted about my ‘new’ spice rack yesterday (it’s probably the 3rd post down right now) but it will look wicked with something like this!
Thanks for the inspiration, as always!
I hate to admit it, but unorganized herbs and spices drives me nuts. When we moved into our home, I had my husband build me a spice rack that is the full length of my panty door (it’s attached to the inside of the door). Now for my analness…they’re all alphabetically arranged.
I have gotten so many of those spice racks over the years but used them for paint when I had my craft business. Since I rarely cook guess I don’t need one for spices.
Hi Rhonda,
I don’t think my spices look too good right now. I had better get busy at least now I am inspired by you!
hugs
Sissie
Looking good and now you no where every thing is and what it is for. I have all my spices in a drawer and every time I open it they move all over…good idea
Yes my is a mess and now I am on the hunt for one myself. On an unrelated note…I noticed your backslash is identical to mine, except you have what appears to be a nice outlet cover. Can you please enlighten me as to where you got them and what color receptacle you choose. DH & I have been back and forth on this! Would love to see more. So glad I found your blog! Thanks! Stephanie
My spices look just like your first picture, they fill a cabinet. So, I am wondering how you manage with just 12??? Anyway, they LOOK terrific now! I just did my closet today! I have been in a real organizing mood for 2 weeks!!!!! XO, Pinky
My spices are a disaster. I have them in two plastic baskets in the cabinet above my stove. Now, I’m going to be on the lookout for something like this. Verah, verah cute.
I keep mine in a long narrow drawer in my island where my cooktop is. All are withing easy reach, and I find I use them more frequently since I don’t have to go far to add them to a dish. The bulk spices/refills I keep in a door rack on the back of my pantry door.
Very cute spice rack! And very practical too!
I had to comment because my spices are one area where I’m fairly orgainzed. I have a drawer for the regular sized ones and I store the big bulk containers in the pantry. My spice drawer was definitely one of the best kitchen ideas I’ve ever tried.
HI, Steph, those outlet covers were plain white when we moved in. I got out my craft paints & did a faux finish to match the tile, which worked out great. Now they blend right in. I think I used 2 or 3 colors to blend them in.
Pinky, I do have several other spices too, but these are the main 12, so I narrowed them down to this. I have other bottles in the cabinet, like Garlic powder, Lawry’s seasoning, etc.
I’m glad ya’ll liked this idea! I think it will be nice to have them so handy & they are out of the way too.
My spices look EXACTLY like your first picture. I do have one of those spice racks painted apple green in my studio for some of acrylic paints. I do need to figure out SOMETHING to do with my spices. They are terrible.
Rhoda, it is definitely my closet that needs attention. Actually I should say closets, all that are in our home. Since we’ve been buying bulk spices, we don’t have a lot around. We just buy a small amount and keep the little plastic bags in a storage container. Frees up a lot of cabinet space and the spices don’t get old.
Looks great and functional. Great mix…
Rhoda, It turned out so great! love the cute jars and labels.
I’ve been doing some spring cleaning of my own, check it out.
http://www.these-are-the-days.com/2010/02/spring-has-sprunglets-clean-house.html
I sold one just like this several years ago (maybe to you!) . Wish now I had saved it. Love the black and labels.
Love how they turned out,,,the rack looks so much nicer painted black…. hmmmm I think I will keep and eye out for one now…… have a great weekend.
Hugs;
Alaura
Brilliant! You and your ideas, Rhoda!! You go, lady!
Dearest Rhoda,
Your spices look pretty nice, now. I love way you did with the labels. Funny you should ask this question right now. Just last Thursday I filled 20 little spice jars that I got at IKEA while I was on the west Coast. I have put them in two drawers right next to my range. I am so happy with them, and now I know how to make the labels. Thank you! I will be watching for your bathroom subway tile post!
Hugs, Cindy S.
You have inspired me!! I love these tips!! Thanks for “spicing” up our lives!!
)
very cute and cheep, love it!
I have a pot rack and dh puts all my spices on top, which I hate the wall is huge and this silly pot rack in the middle, I have been on his butt to build me shelves around it so I can place every spice I own plus want (LOL) and all my cake deco’s everything along that tall long lonely wall. I have exactly in my mind how I want it to look but now getting him to do it, is another story.
My spices are in a plastic basket in my cabinet – functional, but nearly as cute as this. :0)
That looks great! Mine are all lined up in the cabinet above my stove. I keep them pretty organized!
I just got through organizing my spice cupboard, too. Apparently it was quite needed, because I found, count them, THREE unopened bottles of coconut extract. Three! Who needs three bottles of that? Besides, I don’t even use coconut extract
Yours look so pretty, and I love the idea of hanging them under the cabinet!
This looks wonderful! I have my spices in a drawer, lying flat. I’ve had it that way for years and its worked pretty well. Only problem is that it makes the drawer and the drawers below it, very spicy smelling.
Maybe I’ll try out this fab idea!
Cool, it took a bit for me to figure out the directions, but I did get the label to work. Now, I just need something to use them on. Printing on an actual labels would eliminate the mod podge.
I love this idea! I am totally inspired to try this. Thanks for sharing!!!
Hi Rhoda – Your “new” spice rack looks wonderful.
I purchased this product a few years ago and LOVE IT !!! I bought 2 and ALL of my spices are contained (in alphabetical order). Just about the only thing truly organized in our home.
Take a look – a WONDERFUL PRODUCT !!! https://spicestack.com/index.php
Those turned out so great! Thanks for sharing, it gave me a push to keep going with my organization!!
I have an embarassing admission~Since I have too many spices to fit on a conventional spice rack (love yours~the labels are great!), I keep them alphabetized on a shelf in one of my kitchen cabinets. Yep~ I’ve gotten to the point where I alphabetize my food : )
Seriously, although it sounds neurotic, I can pretty much reach in and put my hand on what I need without digging around and making a mess.
This looks great – a wonderful idea. I saw this http://www.deandeluca.com/ViewProduct.aspx?ProductID=160213194 at a friend’s house last week.
Needless to say – yours is a much better price performer and absolutely darling Thanks for sharing.
I love seeing the transformation from something I would quick look over to something I would want to buy!! I need to train myself to start seeing the “possibilities” when I’m looking for items instead of just what’s there!
It looks great. Love all the organized little bottles. My problem with using any kind of cute containers is that you then have to have extra storage to store the leftovers. My spice cabinet looks like a big mess right now and needs some help
. Getting organized and staying organized is a constant battle for me.
Rhoda,
Just Love the spice rack idea!!!! What a difference it made with the cute labels on the bottles and the rack painted black……
Coincidentally, I was just grumbling about the hot mess I have made of the spices in my cabinet and the need to do a clean out and organization. Now, I’m doubly determined to do it!
Yours look great! It reminds me of my mom’s spice rack. I wonder if she still has it stashed in her attic. Hmmm…… thinkng… thinking…
Love the spice rack and the fact that it is not sitting on the counter! A design statement and functional! I found two great baskets that store all my spice bottles that I keep above my stove. So I can just take the baskets out of my cabinet while I am cooking and then put the up when I am done.
Hi ya’ll! Check out the SpiceStack for a great, in-cabinet organizer of store-bought spices. You won’t have to transfer anything using this thing and the price is nice compared to other “racks”.
Love the rack.. I have 2 that I use for ribbon in my scrap room! Great idea to clean out that cabinet and super price to boot!!!