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Design Dilemma Kitchens Organizing the Home

How to make kitchen island open shelves useful

last year

Our kitchen island has open shelving, but is not very deep and tends to just look cluttered when putting stuff on it. The other issue is we have an almost 1 year old baby who is going to start walking, so it’s really not practical to store things he can easily pull down.

Would love to be able to use this space somehow without removing the island. Initially thought about installing sliding cabinet doors but that might more of a project than I’d like right now because of the molding. Any other ideas or creative storage solutions that could be used here?

The shelves are about 8.5” deep and about 14” high.

Featured Answer

anj_p

last year

Maybe to save your sanity for the next year or two, just put bins with toys and baby books on them, so you don't get frustrated trying to keep your kid away from them. Then in a few years when your kid is older and isn't trying to get everything off the shelves, you can start decorating with your own stuff.

Unless this is on the working side of your island...??? If that's the case, no one should see these shelves unless they're working in the kitchen anyway so you don't really need to decorate them nicely. And you definitely don't want your kid coming into that space, so I wouldn't put anything on them until your kid is old enough not to bother with them.

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Comments (10)

amykath
last year
Perhaps baskets that contain items you need? Not sure if a toddler or soon to be toddler could pull them out.
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PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
last year
For right now why not put baby's stuff there so they can reach books and toys .This was I guess a great idea when we needed cookbooks handy but now I just go on the web to find recipes and pretty sure so do many others Once the baby no longer needs these I would maybe just look at closing that area in if you do not want to redo the island counter and add an overhang for seating.
PRO
Master Edge Homes
last year
I would contact a custom cabinet company to come in, measure and see the space. I agree with the cabinet doors as that will help keep your little one from accessing all of the items at his/her level. Allowing you to use the shelves for all items that fit. Sometimes it is difficult to find the right size baskets or bins that suit the space and hold the appropriate things. Sliding doors I would not recommend as this will restrict you from having full access to the shelves. At this moment my recommendation is cabinet doors with nice hardware to compliment the kitchen.
PRO
Beth H. :
last year
last modified: last year
I had a similar shelf (s) in my own island. too much clutter for everything. I ended up have two drawers made for it. (I realize yours is too shallow for that, but perhaps getting some custom doors, or sliding doors? maybe one portion could stay open?

when baby is older, maybe you'd like to have storage for something like this
decoenthusiaste
last year
last modified: last year
Well, I certainly wouldn't have those scissors there with a toddler nosing around! Do you know the paint color on the island? You might consider buying a piece of luan and cutting it to fit the opening. Paint it to match and tack it up with finish nails you can dab with a bit more paint. Once you have no more toddlers, you can remove it and use the shelves normally.
bpath
last year
Store the plastic containers on it for now. Or leave it empty. The toddler will have fun practicing putting things on it and will show you exactly how to use it 😉
barncatz
last year
I'd definitely leave part of it open for the kidlet's kitchen play items.

I think Beth's sliding door idea is worth exploring if you actually need that storage. But I wonder if, for now, you could just use a curtain rod (mounted to the top or a swing arm from a side molding **), to attach a pretty length of fabric curtaining. Then you could stuff plastic and other unbreakable things, cookbooks, measuring spoons and loaf pans and things, that would be safe if kidlet explores behind the curtain but nothing you have to style or dust.

**
momof5x
last year
You can put a plank of wood across each shelf to make it difficult for a young child to remove items as easily but you would have to select items such as books, or something not a danger to a child. The kitchen is a danger zone for a child when there is cooking etc going on, so I would have a safe area for baby to play where they can’t enter action zone of kitchen but you can enter their safe zone area within sight to interact whenever you want.
hbeing
last year
a place for baby toys. ;)

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