How to Arrange Open Shelves in the Kitchen
Keep items organized, attractive and within easy reach with these tips
Becky Harris
November 8, 2015
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected."
I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia.
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More
In an earlier article, we explored whether we might want to lose some upper kitchen cabinets, and many of you were ready to replace a few with open shelving. But now what? Perhaps you installed open shelves but can’t quite seem to get the right mix of items that make them functional and attractive. The heights of things look odd, colors are clashing or you can’t reach your barware when you desperately need a cocktail. There is only one rule when it comes to arranging open shelves, and that’s to keep futzing and rearranging until you have a system that works for you and pleases your eye. I hope some of these suggestions will help.
You don’t have to go for open shelves everywhere. This kitchen has what I call “open shelves lite.” This is a great way to get your feet wet. There are just two open shelves in here, but the way they break up the cabinets helps open the room significantly. Open shelves play nice with cabinets.
Place the things you use every day on open shelves. This means that the important things are within reach when you’re bleary-eyed in the morning and rushing to get dinner ready in the evening. And open shelves are especially helpful for guests. In this guesthouse kitchen, the designer wanted to keep everything not only close at hand but visible to visitors so they wouldn’t have to search through cabinets.
Houzzers’ biggest concerns about open shelves in the kitchen are dust and grease. If these cause you worry or you tend to cook in a way that creates a lot of grease, open shelves are not for you, and that’s just fine. But for those with only minor dust anxiety who want to give it a whirl, this could be a great strategy. When the dishwasher is full and running, your shelves will be empty and you can give them a quick wipe-down or hit them with the Swiffer.
Houzzers’ biggest concerns about open shelves in the kitchen are dust and grease. If these cause you worry or you tend to cook in a way that creates a lot of grease, open shelves are not for you, and that’s just fine. But for those with only minor dust anxiety who want to give it a whirl, this could be a great strategy. When the dishwasher is full and running, your shelves will be empty and you can give them a quick wipe-down or hit them with the Swiffer.
Keep those everyday items within easy reach. This is especially important if you’re petite. Bowls, plates and mugs should be within easy reach, while less-frequently used items like vases are higher. The lantern here adds a decorative touch that plays off the dark tones in the kitchen.
However, not everything on your shelves has to be used every day. Have some fun mixing in some of your favorite objects. The cow butter dish and owl sculpture break up the china and add personality to this arrangement. Also worth noting in this photo is that open shelves free up wall space for layering interesting lighting in the kitchen.
Stick with all white. This idea is so simple that it’s tempting to call it “Open Shelf Arranging for Dummies.” This is the easiest way to make all sorts of objects look cohesive and uncluttered. Chances are, if you’re an all-white everyday china kind of person, you’re a good candidate for open shelves.
A closer look at the previous kitchen: White subway tile works well as a background for white china. The wood of the floating shelves adds warm contrast that keeps things from getting lost in a sea of white.
Likewise, stick with clear glass. This is another easy way to get a cohesive look. In this cottage kitchen, the once-dark and modestly sized room was transformed by white paint and open shelving.
See the rest of this home
See the rest of this home
A bonus to displaying clear glass is that it reflects light and makes the room even brighter.
Keep a simple color palette. If you’d like to move beyond all white and all clear glass, stick with a limited color palette and play around. Notice how the darker objects on these shelves don’t line up vertically, helping to create a balanced composition. Also worth noting: You could draw a horizontal line across the tops of the objects and most of the stacks would be close to it.
Conversely, use open shelves to add color to an all-white kitchen. If you’re more of a Fiestaware kind of person, an all-white kitchen could leave you feeling washed out. Open shelves mean versatility. It’s simple to add scads of cheery hues via colorful bowls, teakettles, mugs and other accessories.
Accept that some shelves might be more decorative than functional. In this sweet cottage kitchen, the shelves extend close to the ceiling to draw the eye up and give the wall a balanced composition. However, it’s simply not practical to have to pull out a stepladder every day for access. Instead, a vintage picnic basket and boxes fill the space with objects that add to the sweet country feeling.
Along those lines, add art to the kitchen via open shelves. The system seen here is brilliant: The lower shelves blend right in with the backsplash, allowing the unique suspended walnut shelf to stand out as an architectural feature. The height makes it just right for displaying sculptures and framed artwork.
Use open shelves in places other than upper cabinet territory. Open shelves aren’t limited to the walls where upper cabinets would hang. The pottery and china here add beauty and texture in an unexpected spot.
However, this isn’t a good option if you have pets. As all pet owners know, pet hair tends to float upward. Not a good mix with the items you’ll use to hold your food.
However, this isn’t a good option if you have pets. As all pet owners know, pet hair tends to float upward. Not a good mix with the items you’ll use to hold your food.
Use open shelves across a window. A lot of folks would rather have the light from large expanses of windows in the kitchen, but they also need a lot of storage space. Running open shelves lets you have your cake and eat it too.
Backsplash tile: Heath Ceramics
Backsplash tile: Heath Ceramics
Add sides. If you prefer a more traditional look and floating shelves are too modern for your taste, think about sides. Architect Dillon Kyle took a more traditional approach with these open shelves. Because they have sides, they have more of a classic cupboard look. The vertical boards behind them also lend a traditional feel.
Your turn: Are you finding arranging your open shelves tricky? Please post a photo so the Houzz community can try to help. Or, if you’ve mastered it, we’d love to see a photo of that as well — please add your tips for open-shelf arranging in the Comments.
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@aprillap, the shelves are nice.. try to balance them out with color. try having a stack of whites with a clear item and another object on one shelf.. I would suggest laying couple of books flat and add the plant on top and/or a clear or the blue water jug that you have. or even three of the clear glasses if the books are wide enough to host all three. since the top shelves are closer to the ceiling try to avoid adding taller objects on them. so laying the books flat might work for this case. the clear items are not too bad since they are clear after all but I think breaking them apart will look better. I think it would have been better if all the shelves are shifted down a little bit. but if that is going to leave holes in the wall you can easily fix that gap between the fireplace and the bottom shelves by adding a decorative shelf. very minimalist, maybe white color.. avoid matching your existing shelves and let it be right in the center right above the fireplace. it can be narrower than the other shelves and at least as wide as the fireplace but less than twice the width of one of the existing shelves. and I recommend leaving that shelf without adding anything on it. oh my god. all these youtubes that I have watched are summed up in this comment lol
hope this will help :)
love your selection of items. I believe you are hoping the upper and lower wall to look as if they belong together. Between the fireplace and the bottom shelf I would place a piece of artwork. a simple sign with a single line would do. "farm to table" or "welcome to our home" or a metal punch out of a cow and rooster, etc. If you believe it won't be safe to have something mounted directly over the fire separate the art or novelty to the left and right. Just below the lowest shelf to the left and right of the fireplace. this will make the entire wall work together.
To Balance the color I would move the large white plates to where the white serving bowl is on the right of the middle shelf. Place the white serving bowl where the blue pitcher is. Place the blue pitcher where the large dinner plates were.
You are on the right path, don't stop now and enjoy!
I think open shelves look cluttered. However, people say your guests are more likely to just grab themselves a glass and make themselves at home. Is that really true? I love that concept, and maybe could handle a little bit of open shelving with just a few matching glasses, plates & bowls.