Kitchen Basket Styles for Storing Housewares

Shallow baskets work the best on kitchen countertops. You can store almost anything in here, including fruits and vegetables. Oil, vinegar, and cooking spices stand upright in shallow baskets, and these baskets make it easier to keep them lined up and ready for use. Shallow baskets are best stored right beside the work area for easy access. However, if you do store oils in them, they can't be kept next to the oven. Oils have to be stored in dark, cool places, and when they're exposed to a high amount of heat, it can cause the oil to break down.

Pull-out baskets are useful storage solutions in the kitchen. If they're not installed in your cabinets or pantry, you can install them yourself. Pull out baskets also save you space because you don't have to store them on countertops. When you purchase them, you can have them installed with either roller slides or ball bearing slides. Roller slides are a lot cheaper and easier to install, but they don't extend the full amount. Ball-bearing slides can be up to three times the amount of roller slides, and they're a little trickier to install, but they extend the full way.

Milk crates are universal storage baskets. They're used most frequently in the garage and in college dorm rooms. However, they also work great for the kitchen, and they're sturdy enough to hold practically anything. If you hold small teaspoons or measuring spoons in the crate, you'll have to place a hand towel in the bottom. Spoons of that size are small enough to slide through the spaces. If you want a crate that doesn't have the spaces, you'll have to search for older milk crates from the 1950s to the 1970s. During that time, crates were wooden and didn't have the spaces that are in most styles today.

If you're looking for a little variety in your kitchen, you should consider woven baskets. These baskets often come in different colors, ranging from bright blues and yellows to more subdued greens and reds. They're sold with several patterns and designs on them, and you can buy them in a variety of shapes. Most are sold in an oval or circular shape, but you can also find them as square or rectangle boxes, too. Some are even made to look like pails or buckets.