How to Design Kitchen Cupboards | eHow

Pantry Pull-out shelves Drawers Pot-lid rack Lazy Susan Mixer lift

Plan a pantry cupboard that reaches from floor to ceiling. The shelves should be deep, so put the pantry at the end of a countertop, or as a visual divider between the kitchen and breakfast room if your counters extend into the eating area.

Install a cabinet at the end of a counter with a large shelf that pulls out and then lifts up for permanent storage of a stand mixer called a mixer lift. Put an electrical outlet in the shelf so that the mixer doesn't have to be moved onto and off of the counter for each use.

Make items on very high shelves accessible by installing shelves that are designed to pull out and then drop down.

Leave one cupboard without shelves for storage of large, infrequently used items such as bread machines, cappuccino makers, large stockpots and roasting pans.

Install pull-out shelves and standard drawers in lower cabinets. Use a pull-out pot-lid and pot-holder drawer near the stove.

Use glass-fronted cupboards, or cupboards without doors, for storage and display of china, glassware and serving pieces.

Put a tall, narrow pull-out shelf in the cabinet next to the stove for spice-jar storage.