Check out all the ways you can use this tool—both in your cabinets and in your daily life.

What Is a Lazy Susan?

A lazy susan is a round tray that rotates on a set of bearings, allowing you to easily spin it and reach whatever’s on the tray from any angle. The concept is centuries old, and first used predominantly to serve food at a meal—the dishes or condiments were placed on the tray at the center of the table, and everyone could spin it and reach the items they wanted. But now, lazy susans are more often employed to make the most of every inch of storage space in cabinets, pantries, and shelves. It makes it so much easier to grab that spice jar or hair serum, without having to pull out everything else in the cabinet to reach it. Some cabinets—especially corner cabinets—come with built-in lazy susans to enable you to reach what’s in the back of an especially deep cabinet.

Ways to Use Lazy Susans Around the House

Once you try a lazy susan, odds are you’ll find all kinds of places and ways to put one (or five!) to use. Here’s the perfect lazy susan for every task. This clear double-tiered version has a lip to keep your spices from spilling, and is small enough to fit in your cabinet. This lazy susan is sectioned off to let you keep like with like—so all your hair products are in one spot, and your facial products in another. And it can serve the same purpose for any other crafting or cooking projects that require you to easily turn your project—like building a gingerbread house or painting a small object. A revolving cake stand can be used to decorate—and display—your handiwork. The stand elevates your cake so it’s easier to see what you’re doing, and the sleek aluminum material is easy to clean and stain resistant (for those times the food coloring goes a little awry). And if you’re arranging a charcuterie or other dessert board for guests to nosh on, putting it all on a lazy susan makes it easy for your guests to access every treat on the board. This sleek black marble lazy susan is perfect for keeping cheese and charcuterie cool. This lazy susan has a simple aesthetic that suits many fridge interiors—and is easy to wipe clean if your barbecue sauce takes a tumble. This stylish one from Marie Kondo is pretty enough to keep out on display. This sleek lazy susan has generously sized sections—and a center round space that’s perfect for pencils. These wooden lazy susans come in multiple sizes, so you can decide how much clutter you’ll allow—and they’re pretty enough to display.