This is my kitchen soon after we moved in:
Photo above taken in doorway to garage, next to the refrigerator (weird, I know) and our makeshift pantry (below)

The tall blond wooden cupboard on the right, above? That was the only pantry. So we added some old shelves. Gorgeous, NOT. But desperate times call for desperate measures.
Luckily, my mother had the perfect shelf unit [from IKEA! shout-out to Suburban Correspondent and Jenn] and we had a nicer-looking white particle board shelf, too. (Very Important. It hides the tangle of cord behind the fridge.)
I’m hoping it makes the whole area not quite so …well, WEIRD. Because who else uses the back of their refrigerator for hanging decorations, school schedules, and doctors’ phone numbers?