Spice Up Your Life: The Magnetic Spice Rack

Apologies for the Spice Girls reference, but I couldn't resist. When I started this blog, I called it the Realistic Organizer because I wanted to demonstrate how organizing can easily be done and in a realistic way, not in a way that take up hours, days, and half a paycheck. With that said, my recent organizing project ended up not being so realistic... But don't fret; it may have been due to user error!
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I have seen amazing DIY Magnetic Spice Racks all over Pinterest and other organizing blogs. I was so excited to try this because our spice space was a big stressor for me. I felt like we had tried so many methods of organizing but nothing actually worked well. 

{Here you can see our 3-Tiered rack}

We tried organizing them in alphabetical order {apparently I'm not as savvy with my alphabet as I thought I was}, tried organizing them into categories, such as spicy, sweet, etc., and we tried using the rack seen above. Nothing was working for us. And everything to the right of the spices was packed so tightly, the entire shelf was not functional. 

Then came the magnetic spice racks. I saw all kinds of ways to do them and after much research on which way was best, I chose to use magnetic paint and purchase containers that were already magnetic. A little extra work, but the outcome would be better, right?

I used Kamenstein Magnetic Storage Tins and Rust-Oleum Magnetic Paint. I was able to get all of it on Amazon using a Prime account so I got free shipping {anything to save a buck}. I purchased 4 sets of 6 for just under $20, and the paint was under $20 as well, for a grand total of $90. Like I said, this was not like my usual projects. I should have paid a little more attention to the reviews of the paint as well, but more on that later. 

I started by putting the spices in each container. This was an easy task that I could do while catching up on some junk television. I also used my label maker {still love this thing so much!} to mark each container. I could have ordered clear, rounded labels that went with the containers I used, but that would have cost extra money and I really wasn't willing to do that when I knew I already had the supplies.

Now, moving on to the cabinet door. As per the paint directions, I lightly sanded down the cabinet and wiped it clean before applying paint. 

I left the cabinet door on the cabinet, mainly because I couldn't figure out how to remove the flipping hinge, but also... no, no, that was the only reason. This could be error #1. 

Anywho, then I started painting. **Note: Shake and stir paint thoroughly before using and wear gloves, this stuff is near impossible to get off of hands/nails** I really took my time with this project, painting a coat or two each night. It took me 4 days, totaling 7 coats. Yes, 7!! 

{After the first night of 2 coats}

When the paint dried each night, I'd test out the containers to see how well they attached. After the first 4 coats, some of the containers stayed in place just fine. However, other, heavier ones were not as lucky. Error #2 - The containers don't necessarily need to be filled with all of the spice. 

I added 3 more coats after the initial 4 and finally the majority of them stayed. 

{I used the 3-Tier system for some of the other items in the cabinet and now we can easily see everything and grab it without an issue}

I only painted half of our cabinet door because we don't have that many spices so there really wasn't much reason to do the entire thing. I've asked Brit if we can just put up a Spice Girls poster on the second half, he strongly vetoed that though. Such a party pooper. 

There are still 4 containers that refuse to stay, or at least don't stay very long. Heavier spices or ones that were more full had a difficult time staying. Currently, they're on the refrigerator, which isn't too far out of reach. 

They stay very well on the fridge so I know if it was just my paint job that is preventing them from staying as well as they should. Maybe I'll go back and apply more coats. We'll see. Error #3 - Stopping before I was finished. I should have just kept going with the coats, but by the end of day 4, I had already invested more time than I had planned and was just ready to be finished. 

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Now for a review!

Like:

I really like the way it looks and that I can easily see all my spices. Also, the space that opened up from storing them on the cabinet door. I loved using my label maker to label each one. There were labels that you could purchase with the containers that were clear and rounded, but I'm all about saving money and I felt I had already spent too much on this project. 

Dislike:

I really didn't like the way the paint smells. It's a very strong scent and I would get lightheaded after putting on two coats. Make sure you have good ventilation when painting. Also, it's incredibly magnetic to paint supplies so I had to use a new roller each night. 

Product Review:
The containers are awesome! During the process of trial and error, seeing if the paint was magnetic enough yet, they took their fair share of tumbles. And I don't just mean a short spill to the counter, I mean a long leap, bouncing off the counter and falling hard onto the tile floor. Each time I was terrified to look down for fear that I would see paprika all over my kitchen floor. However, much to my surprise, each container survived every dive! No dents or anything. Also, they're super cute with the colors. 

As far as the paint, I don't feel like I have enough experience with magnetic paint to really comment well. At the end of the day, it is magnetic and therefore served its purpose. I could have done a few things differently to get the best results, but now you and I know. If you choose to do this, use all of the paint. This way there should be no doubt as to whether or not it will work {I used about 3/4 of the can for 7 coats}. A good thing about the magnetic paint is that you can paint over it with the original paint color! I am going to wait a week or two before I go back to painting though. I'll finish up the rest of the magnetic paint and then throw on a coat or two of the original color. 

Concerns:

My main concern is that I'm going to quickly open the cabinet and they are all going to fall down. It hasn't happened yet, but I just don't trust the paint yet. 

Overall feelings:

Overall, I suppose I'm satisfied. I would not recommend doing this unless you really want to. I enjoyed the entire process but I am not 100% satisfied with the results, yet. If you do choose to do this, maybe review different paints, ensure that you apply a TON of coats, and only fill the canisters up half way and store the remaining spice elsewhere. 

Do you have any creative new ways to store your spices? Have you tried the magnetic spice rack and been successful? 

As always, thanks for visiting!

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