apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

You could put fabric behind them to add a pop of color

I wouldn't put anything in them.

But that's just me. I don't put things on the refrigerator either.

I might entertain the idea of dimmable lighting though.

colorful glass bottles?

Showcase a wicked retro kitchen ware collection!

I agree... nothing in them or put some fabric or paper in them and store things in them that you don't want seen (hardly used vases, dishes, small appliences that you use once in a blue moon).

I can't stand knick knacks in the kitchen, but that is probably because I don't have the space for them!

PS I LOVE that blue playroom.

You could paint the backs blue and then put stacks of white dishes inside. If you don't want to paint you could tack up some colored paper or fabric with doublesided tape.

What about pale blues and whites and anything ocean pallette vases & bottles in varying textures and shades?

And while you're at it, I would paint your barstools white. It would look so much better with your kitchen's gorgeous cabinets, countertops, and fixtures.

Pretty kitchen.

I've got an idea--why not paint the inside of those cabinets the shade of blue you want. Then, whatever you put inside them will allow pops of blue to show through but it won't look too contrived.

what would happen if you did a silverleaf mirror treatment on the glass? could be cool -- or terrible.

in any case, I don't like seeing dusty stuff so I'd cover it somehow.

nice kitchen! congrats!

I think that these are areas that you won't be able to fill overnight, especially if you want unusual things up there.

Overall, great job with the space! Personally, I would pull in a bit of brown into those spaces. You've got browns in the floor, walls, and furniture, but suddenly in the cabinets, backsplash, appliances, and counters you've got whites, grays, and blues. Here's an opportunity to unify the space's colors.

Vintage soap or cereal tins, perhaps?

I would use them as light boxes for mood lighting with some low level led lights. You could probably get them to give off a nice glow by lining the bottom with a yellow or warm color, or painting the back wall.

Fiesta ware - all cobalt and light blue or any one color, or a mix of colors. It's a way to change out color anytime you want easily. Don't worry about getting vintage, the new stuff is just as colorful and very affordable. Myself, I'd be putting my flower vases up there. I don't use them all the time but I like to see them. Maybe pitchers also, anything tall enough to be visible.

Pretty kitchen!

I would only put stuff in a few of the cabinets so it doesn't get to be too busy.

A stack of nicely folded dish towels or bowls...maybe you can find a bunch of books with blue covers (hard cover would look great!) in varying shades for one of them. What about a grouping of old (or new!) mason jars with lids in one of the cabinets?

And I agree with madsarah- your chairs would look so good if they were painted white! You could even take it a step further and make cushions that would match your pretty back splash.

Good luck!

Why not blue and white ginger jars, bowls etc. like this
http://www.nextag.com/blue-white-vase/search-html

A lot of Fair Trade stores sell these types of things and they are hand made. One such store in my town is called "Just Creations". Here is the website http://www.justcreations.org/
Unfortunately, they don't have merchandise online

Hi, I LOVE your kitchen! Do you mind telling me where you got the cabinets from? We will be doing our kitchen, and like that white shaker style cabinets. Also, how do you like your countertop so far? Is it difficult to maintain?

As for your question about your high cabinets, I would put colorful occasional serving plates, bowls, etc...

Thanks!

i agree with home body, light them up!

Rather than purchase alot of unnecessary junk for some contrived display, I would simply backpaint the glass the color of blue that you prefer then use the cabinet space for seldom-used and seasonal kitchen items and bulk storage.

I'd also clean off the refrigerator and install a bulletin board elsewhere in the house.

Put all the magnets that you take off the refrigerator in them.

something sculptural and colourful. varying shapes will create more visual interest than the basic circle of a typical dish.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5851882

RVA Glass sells some lovely shaped bottles, vases and so on. They have a few in blue. I don't know if they'd do custom work for someone or not, but Etsy has a system set up for that.

I've been thinking about getting something from them for my mom recently, so when I saw your question, I immediately thought of them.

sorry, I don't have a suggestion, but I just love the gray tile on the wall. so pretty!

Just make sure it is one thing of appropriate mass... were it my kitchen, I'd do ironware pitchers in most, and PERHAPS some massed glass stemware in a few...

I LOVE your kitchen. It's pretty much my dream kitchen!

I agree about painting or changing out the stools, the brown is weird, maybe black or white would look better. Oooooh or the emeco barstools! Those would look fab!

The kitchen is beautiful, absolutely perfect, but the stools are doing it no justice. Black would be better. And put some plain white pitchers/serveware behind the glass.

It looks like you may have kid(s) ... are any of them (or are you yourself) artistically inclined? The upper cabinet doors could be a neat place for a rotating artwork display.

Alternatively, I really liked the idea of painting or papering the insides of the cabinets blue, put a light inside each one, and storing your clear glassware, vases, etc. in them. Pretty, shiny, blue ... and far enough up that they're less likely to be broken. (Unless you have inquisitive cats.)

I notice little hints of color love (polycolorous amor?) in the picture

you like spots and dabs and flashes of all the colors

so

why not paint the insides of the cabinets different colors... you'll need nothing in them

it'll be subtle but fun

You could put either put blue patterned fabric or paper behind the glass. Personally, I would frost the glass so I could store whatever I needed in there without worrying about whether or not it matched.

PS... This is practically my dream kitchen! We are planning to remodel ours and also want white Shaker cabs. I'd love to see more pictures of your kitchen, and see some resources!

Thanks for all the great ideas! I want everyone to know I already cleaned up the detritus from the fridge. We do have lights in the cabinets, I just didn't show them in the picture. If you want, you can check out my blog for more information about the kitchen. I am going to ponder all these good suggestions over the weekend, thank you to everyone who took time to respond. -Jessie

We have similar glass cabinets in our kitchen. I filled them with my grandma's vintage fiestaware. When I first started filling the cabinets everything looked too short because of the viewing angle. Now I mostly have large plates vertically at the back and smaller pitchers and cups in front, sitting on boxes to raise them. I think it would be a shame to cover the glass, but I do love the idea of putting paper or painting the inside a contrasting color. I will also say that I love lighting ours up at night with the rest of the lights in the kitchen on dimmers. It gives the kitchen a really nice glow.

I would hate to have to dust the stuff up there if it was just display items, so I like the idea of paint/fabric/paper/lightening in there instead.

Why all the hating on the fridge magnets/papers? Stuff on the fridge is a valid lifestyle choice people. Sometimes we actually like it to look like we live in our homes. I think Jesse was EXTREMELY gracious in her thanks.

hi, lovely lovely kitchen. I think that there is just a little bit too much going on in there with the warm beige paint fighting against the cool tones in the kitchen. I would paint just the strip above the window white so it is not such a feature and it isn't the first thing your eyes are drawn to. If you did that you definitely wouldn't have to paint your wooden stools and they would blend in better. As to your original Q I think your idea of putting blue and white china in the cabinets would look very nice. I would just go to the Asian grocer and get a heap of the really cheap blue and white noodle bowls, plates etc for a quick fix and arrange them with different height levels eg plate standing upright behind with a stack of noodle bowls in front, single big bowl in next cabinet etc. Then over time I would collect pieces that you love and replace the cheap china out and put it into general rotation.

love the remodel. very nice.

i wouldn't rush out and put anything in the top glass cabinets. while i'm all for collections, i hate pseudo-collections and repetition of meaningless merchandise for design sake.

put in glass film to block the emptiness and let light through until you find something you love. then have at it.....kitchenalia, old toys, shells from the beach, glassware, it will all look great but more so if you love it.

i second midi on the khaki paint. white or pale blue or gray would be a better choice. Or could you extend the backsplash to the ceiling around the window? and the door wall? i might also paint your stools black or white.

Healthyhome, I LOVE the idea of old toys! Thanks!! Jessie

My mother always has a set of blue glassware to act as display pieces.

At the moment, she has a dessert set that is used perhaps four times a year and a set of glasses that are used slightly more frequently. For the rest of the year they are nothing more than decoration on high shelves.