Food Stylist Gear: The Best Kits And Bags
Hey there! Just so you know… Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links. The products I discuss are products that I’ve personally used or ones that I find worth mentioning.
One of the most important things a Professional Food Stylist must have is a good kit. Later on I’ll dive into the tools that go into these kits, but I figured the best way to start is with the bags themselves.
I first started out with a few Rubbermaid Commercial Bus Tubs:
They’re quite handy and I still use them today, but I needed something that was compartmentalized and a bit more organized, so I switched to this Stanley Rolling Tool Kit.
It was such a step up from the bus tubs and helped me feel much more organized and professional. The best parts are the compartments and removable trays. There are only two downsides to this kit. First, the wheels are made out of plastic, so rolling around city streets can wear them rather quickly. Also, it’s a little tall to fit in a vehicle, which can make it difficult to pack unless you take it apart. Aside from those two issues, it makes a great kit and I still use it for odds and ends.
Then I moved up to the Husky 18in. Rolling Tote. I really love these and they’re what I currently use. I have three of these, two medium red ones, and the larger one.
These are practically indestructible, and you can stack the red ones and roll them around with ease. The black bag is a bit heavy, but it can hold longer wraps, foils and other clean up items quite nicely. The one thing that I wish I could change would be the side pockets, I wish they were slightly larger. Some of them are just barely big enough to hold the ever so important can of Pam.
The interior of these bags are nice and have some compartments, but I do find that things can get lost in the bags, so KastKing Tackle Boxes to use inside. They are perfect for segmenting smaller items and they’re the perfect size for spice jars!
Use these carefully, as whatever you store in the tackle boxes will be turned sideways. Make sure all liquids are tightly sealed. Once I had a small bottle of glycerin leak, which made for some serious clean up!
Recently, I was introduced to the DEWALT Tool Organizer, which I’m considering moving into. I’ve looked them over in the store and they look really great because you can customize them however you see fit. And they stack and roll!
I really like the drawers - you can label each drawer to make things easy to find. Right now my knife roll is really full of odds and ends that I could probably divide into different drawers.
Since we’re on the topic of bags, I found the best Reusable Grocery Shopping Bags. I feel like I could never have enough of them.
They’re sold as a set of 3. They fold flat for storage, they hold a good amount of weight, and fit perfectly in the checkout holster. The only thing that I would change would be to make them a bit narrower, as they don’t quite fit side by side in a shopping buggy. You have to smush them in there or stack them. Otherwise these are a shopping game changer!
I hope you found my recommendations helpful. Soon I’ll get into the different items I lug around in all these bags!