I Hate Open Shelving in the Kitchen, Case Closed

Abstract

Having open shelves in your kitchen means you're letting it all hang out: dinnerware, vases, cookbooks, all of it. While some people have chosen to hop on the bandwagon by installing open shelves in a couple of key locations, others have straight-up done away with their kitchen cabinets. My sister-in-law has open shelving in her kitchen, and each Thanksgiving I watch as kids and even older relatives back into them to make way for fellow guests, sending cookbooks and tchotchkes crashing to the floor. Once you've literally put it all out there on open shelves, the space may feel overcrowded and visually chaotic. One more place to decorate I can barely keep up with seasonal decor in other parts of the home, but open shelves are practically begging to be decked out with Halloween pumpkins, wintry pine cones, Easter eggs, and Fourth of July flags. Junk will collect there Much like a kitchen island, your open shelves are likely to become a dumping ground for clutter. Bottom line: Cabinets keep your secrets safe in a way that open shelving never will.