Inside woman’s dream $350 Kmart pantry
While it may just be a pantry, it’s been more than 20 years in the making for this Melbourne mum who has decked out the space in all-things Kmart.
When it comes to Kmart shopping, you’re almost guaranteed to walk out with a bunch of affordable items.
In fact, the retail giant’s home living section has become increasingly popular over the past year due to its trendy, yet affordable range.
Taking advantage of that is Melbourne mum Ione Norris who managed to create her dream pantry using just $350 worth of Kmart kitchen items.
Proud of her first ever walk-in space, the mother-of-two shared snaps of her “classy” new pantry online, leaving Facebook users in awe.
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She told news.com.au due to tight finances and also living in rentals most her life, she’s never had a pantry, adding it’s been a long-time coming.
But after years of saving, Ms Norris and her husband recently completed renos on their Californian bungalow house, which includes her “dream” pantry decked out in all-things Kmart.
The Melbourne mum spent $350 on a range of items with her “Smeg-looking” toaster and kettle which cost the most at just $39 each.
She bought more than 40 jars and containers costing $2 and $4 respectively and labelled each one with pantry stickers at $3 for just 96.
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“It was my mother-in-law who suggested we get a butler’s pantry when doing the reno designs,” Ms Norris told news.com.au
“To be honest, I had no idea what it was or what went in there.
“I’ve only ever had a tall cupboard for a pantry and created another in the laundry for tins like chicken stock – and we lived like that for about a year.”
But after doing some research online and getting inspiration from Pinterest, the Melbourne mother-of-two went on to design her all-white dream space.
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She then shared snaps of the pantry in a popular Kmart Facebook group, not realising it would attract such a massive reaction.
“I’ve never had a pantry before (I’m 54) just a corner cupboard in the kitchen and a storage shelf in the laundry,” Ms Norris wrote in the post.
“We have just finished a reno and I’m super excited to say that I now have a fantastic pantry! I’m so excited.”
Her post has been ‘liked’ more than 1000 times with hundreds of comments from members commending the “tasteful” look.
“Looks AMAZING!!!” one person wrote.
“I love those subway tiles … your pantry looks fantastic too,” another person wrote, while a third added: “Now THAT is a pantry.”
Others were blown away by the tidiness of the pantry, and the perfectly labelled containers.
“Looks super organised. Kmart is an awesome place for bargains,” one woman wrote.
While Ms Norris agreed it was a nice-looking pantry, she didn’t expect all the positive feedback, saying she was waiting to come across a “negative comment”.
“I am truly blown away. I read all the comments and I was waiting for something negative, but I don’t think there was one,” she said.
“I wonder if it’s the (back) story of how I am 54 and still haven’t had a proper pantry,” she said, while joking, “It’s pretty, but not that good.
“Even my husband has subsequently joined the Kmart group which is just so funny.”
Ms Norris said she uses the group a lot for inspiration and wanted to “give back” and share her project.
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