... the photos on the House Beautiful site brought forth a collection of how folks use their visible kitchen shelving, from collection display to utilitarian uses, we found ten good examples.
Top row, left to right:
1. Floor to ceiling open shelving in the pantry.
2. Colorful dishes on wraparound shelving.
3. Useful goods on shelves; pantry items, bowls and small appliances.
4. Collections grouped by color on grey-blue shelves.
5. Open backed shelving for plates, bowls and serving pieces.
Bottom row, left to right:
6. Two types of open shelving in one room, one for dishes, one for canisters.
7. Shelving above the desk in a kitchen-based workspace.
8. Vertical open shelving next to the ovens for pans, trays and bowls.
9. A single stainless open shelf near the cooktop for essentials.
10. Teapots and cookbooks on open shelving in a closed-storage-filled kitchen.
Check out the full photo archives at House Beautiful for more inspiration for the kitchen and beyond.
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I can only imagine pulling this off in small doses. In that vein, I love the open shelving in photo number 6.
I've always thought open shelves were beautiful, but I don't think my dishes match well enough to show off.
I have almost all open shelving in my kitchen and I love it! Everything has it's place and stays really neat and organized. I take so much pride now in having my dishes displayed that I cannot imagine having them behind cabinet doors again. We happen to be selling our place in Utah so I conveniently already have pictures of our kitchen on the internet. So if you want to check it out here is a link to some pictures. http://woodducklane.blogspot.com/
Horrible idea if you cook a lot. Thin film of grease all over your stuff.
I don't think number eight is open shelving - I think it's just open cabinet doors.
I love my open shelving. It forces me to keep things tidy and scaled down. It's super easy to put everything away. It shows off my restaurant ware collection and other fun stuff. Our kitchen is very small and I don't have a problem with grease.
I hate open shelving. I think it looks messy. If you want visual fun, get art. So there.
I like the look of it, when it's really organized. Also, it's easier to see everything without having to remember where everything is.
But -- and this is a BIG but -- I can't reconcile it with a kitchen where there's grease in the air from cooking. I want closed doors to keep my china and glass clean. Anyone knows that dust grease = cleaning hell.
I don't have any ventilation hood and I know of few good enough to keep that grease out of the kitchen "air".
i have an open kitchen and this idea that grease is all over everything is ridiculous. the small space seems larger after getting rid of the closed cabinets. we have two shelves. one shelf has cooking books and jars filled with dry goods, and the lower shelf has plates glasses tea cups and spices. it looks great.
I always had a problem with dust when I had open shelving. I'm a clean person but I guess not clean enough to avoid this problem. Plus, with two cats...no one wants grey tabby with their soup...
I admire people who can pull off this look. I can't and wouldn't even try. I need my cupboard doors!
Glass doors might be a solution for those looking for an open look but wary of dust and grease.
I think open shelving is fantastic. I am not sure what our issue is with closing everything up, we live, we USE our space but we constantly strive to make it look like no one lives there. And, who cares if you stuff doesn't match, that is the uniqueness of it, it doesn't look like a MAcy's display case. These are our homes not a department store, live it up I say and show off what you got and be happy you got it!!
I'm with bagelpower. I love the look! Ditching the museum look is what makes a house a home...
http://www.gettogethablog.com
i should add that all cups and glasses are turned down. and that living with open shelving helps to cut down on needless shopping for things that we don't need. i think that almost everyone can say that after many years cabinets tend to hold things that no one is using, and or things that have been forgotten.
I have open shelving in my little kitchen and I love it. It is filled with my hand made pottery collection. Which is also my everyday dishes collection. Because I use the pots all of the time, I don't have any trouble with accumulated dust and grease. My biggest problem is that if someone happens to come over when most of the dishes are in the dishwasher, the wall looks sad and bare. My shelving is almost encouraging me to buy more pottery than I need...as though I needed any encouragement!
I love the look of open shelving, and I think it's a great idea over prep areas, where open cupboard doors get in the way of your head.
I have a fairly powerful vent hood, so even the pots and pans stored on hooks near the stove don't get grimy.
My kitchen cabinets date from about 1910, and my kitchen sink (a dreamy double drainboard farmhouse sink) dates from 1936. There is a distinct lack of storage, so open shelving was the quick answer until I can remodel*. It's not nearly as bad as I expected it to be, even with no stove hood and four cats. Yes, the dishes that are stored near the ceiling that I rarely use have to be taken down and washed a few times a year, but that's a very small price to pay for quick, cheap shelving.
*Don't worry, even when I do remodel, the sink is staying. It's a large part of why I bought the house!
Re: cooking grease accumulation, I think it depends on the type of cooking that is done and how often things are used... I love stir frying things in a wok and my husband loves to bread and pan-fry fish and meat, so I really have to worry about grease accumulating. Other cooks may not have to worry so much...