Do’s And Don’ts For Open Shelves in Kitchen

Open shelves look exciting and inviting, and we’ve all admired them in home decor magazine. They look appealing when we are placing the things in the colour-coordinated ways. From coloured crockery to neatly stacked dishes, these shelves lend a sense of openness in your kitchen interior and brighten up your space.

1. Lets start with Basics

Its impossible to decorating the open shelves if you start with the open shelves with a lot of stuff.  It would be a difficult chore. Follow simple steps.

• Empty your Shelves first.
• Start with one shelves at a time.
• Don’t forget to clean it as you go.

2. Don’t put heavy items on top shelves

In our kitchen we all have heavy items like heavy casseroles, dinner sets or heavy storage items like grains which we are using once in a month. Its not wise to keep the heavy items on the upper shelf, as there would be the chance for the accidents. Lifting and lowering heavy items from these places can be cumbersome, unsafe and inconvenient. Also, these shelves may not be able to hold much weight.

3. Keep frequently items in the shelves

When arranging lower shelves, always think of practicality overlooks. Frequently used items like spoons, mugs, plates and bowls, including wine glasses can be placed here. Keep these as limited as possible, and put the rest away.

4. Don’t Overstuff in Small Kitchens

Open shelves can be a boon in small kitchens, providing sufficient storage space, making the room appear larger while enhancing its look and decor appeal.

5. Add Pantry Elements As an Interesting Display

To add a cool look, turn towards the pantry. Try displaying interesting food cans, unusual looking bottles and jars of jam. Put them on upper shelves for a visual appeal.

6. Don’t neglect cleaning and dusting

Open shelves can gather dust and grime, and just like any open space, needs regular dusting and cleaning. Storing frequently used items in them will reduce the cleaning, because of the regular use and washing, but higher placed shelves will still get dirty. Cleaning them prevents them from turning into dust magnets.

7. DO: Use Shelving Materials Judiciously

8. DON’T: Use Glass If Prone To Breakage Frequently

Unless you live in earthquake country, glass is perfect and gives an elegant clean look, but can this material can also break or crack at the slightest amount of stress. Use it only if it can be maintained.

9. DO: Decorate Shelves According To Tasks

Depending on what you are using particular sections of the counter for, kitchen tasks like baking and kneading can have their corresponding tools stacked in the shelves. Grouping like this, works practically as well as gives an interesting visual perspective. For example, placing baking dishes, cake stands, mixing bowls together on shelves above the counter is one way to do it.

10. DON’T: Focus Only On The Look

Include practicality during storage. Shelves that are closer to the sink can be stocked with everyday dishes, whereas those near the stove/hob can be used to store spices and cooking tools. This aids convenience and makes cooking easy. Make a note of all of the above before jumping in to style your kitchen with open shelves. As a rule of thumb, keep everything accessible to make cooking fun. If you are struggling with it, that only means the decor’s a hindrance in your cooking space. Do let us know what do you think about these ideas on open shelves.