June 14, 2011

Kitchen Shelves

It's time to decorate the new shelves that Joey just built in our kitchen last week (see here for details).



I actually started working on this decorating process last night, and I put together a little display (which I don't have a picture of yet), but I'm not sure I'm totally satisfied with it. My mind tends to think "symmetrically" when it comes to placement of items. Sometimes this can be a good thing, but other times it can look boring and predictable.

I want to try and think outside the box a little. So, I'm looking around the world wide web for a little inspiration on what I can put up on those shelves. Here are a few pictures I found, but first a few things to keep in mind:
1. There are only 2 shelves that aren't super tall or wide. So, there's not a ton of room for a lot of items.
2. The shelves are really high (as in, not reachable without a step-stool). So, I don't want to store items that I might need to use on a regular basis.
3. I want to try and use things I already have on hand without buying a bunch of stuff.
4. I want to keep it versatile so that I can change things up in different seasons etc.

Picture #1: I like the idea of using dishes. I have a ton of dishes (including china) that are mostly used for decorating purposes since we don't eat off china too often in this household (but might starting doing so if my name changed to "Princess Kate"). I also like the variety of colors/patterns/shapes in the dishes displayed here.

Old world elegance meets todays todays contemporary space requirements traditional kitchen


Picture #2: I like the dishes (again), but this also includes items like cake stands, gravy boat, and other serving pieces.

Kitchen Shelves traditional kitchen


Picture #3: I like the variety of items and the fact that the each shelf has a little space on it. It doesn't feel too crowded this way. We obviously wouldn't put small appliances on our shelves since they wouldn't fit and need to be accessed easily. Random Note: The backsplash is beautiful. Love the herringbone pattern! But it has nothing to do with this post.

Gilligan traditional kitchen


Picture #4: I like how some of the objects lean back against the wall. This is one of those displays that looks so random and is not symmetrical yet it looks so "put together". How do people achieve this? I always feel like my random display of items looks sloppy.




Picture #5: I love this display and it makes me wish our shelves were bigger/longer/taller. I like the variety of colors. I may try to do a variety of shades of colors. And maybe hang items on the wall itself like below. I definitely want to layer items in height and depth.




Picture # 6: This picture shows a white-on-white color scheme (minus the black "S"). I really like it in this picture, but think I want a little more color. We'll see...





What are your thoughts on open shelving? Keep is simple? Dress it up? Make it practical? Do you like a lot of color? Variety? Which is your favorite picture above?

I know you have great ideas. So, help me out! :) Pin It

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