One thing I initially loved about our kitchen was the pretty cabinets. But, I’ve been thinking of ways to give our kitchen a little update without spending much money—and without a big commitment (i.e., any permanent changes like painting, ripping things down, etc.) I’ve always admired the look of open shelving in kitchens, but have never thought they were for me.
Then, one day while the babies were sleeping and everyone was occupied, I got a wild hair and decided to take a couple of cabinet doors down and “play.” (This seemed like more fun than laundry at the time.) This is how it turned out:
Here’s where we started. Nice cabinets, but a lot of them. (And, a little peek of our new island light—I’ll show you later.)
The easy part was grabbing a screwdriver and taking the doors off.
The hard part was dealing with all of the stuff that had accumulated behind those doors:
I pulled everything out, threw several things away and put anything that wasn’t white, glass or pretty in other cabinets or drawers. Since this cabinet is within an arm’s reach of the dishwasher and sink, I also wanted these shelves to house what we really use most:
Unfortunately, I didn’t get completely done with my little project before my husband walked in from work and had this reaction:
He knows better than to worry. It always works out—and if it doesn’t, I know how to use the screwdriver to reattach the doors. (I’m living with this look for a while first before doing this.)
You can see in the picture above that I was experimenting with a sample of grass cloth wallpaper that I thought about using for the backs. But, it just didn’t have enough contrast against my cabinets. So, I went with my tried and true charcoal, Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams (same that we used on the back of our office bookshelves).
Painting the back of the cabinets gave it a more finished look and I love how the white pops against it:
Overall, I like the change. My husband says that it’s unfortunate he’ll no longer be able to unload the dishwasher because he won’t be able to figure out where everything “goes” now. . . .
I’m actually surprised at how well this change is functioning in our kitchen.
Do you have open shelving in your kitchen? Would you?
A simple little change but what a difference! It looks so much more modern and fresh! The white against the charcoal is perfect!
this makes a huge difference…and love the photo of your husband’s reaction, it’s the same one mine would have. the dark brown contraST makes all the difference! That solidified this awesome look! great job!
I LOVE it! It’s something that I have been debating for quite a while in our house.. with the same type of cabinet… I just haven’t taken the plunge yet.. It could be that I’m waiting until I have my new set of all white dishes!! :) BUT non-the-less… I love how yours came out. and I really like the urban bronze! Thanks for the inspiration, you have me thinking about doing mine even more now :) ~Bre
I’m tempted to try this when we move to our new house because I think it will open up the kitchen. My wood is practically cream colored though, I may have to go with colored dishes.
Great job! I love the drak paint for the back of the cabinet. Perfect touch! I also love the “7” plate. How sweet! I would keep this look… it looks amazing! :)
I am literally going to do this today! I have wanted something to make our small kitchen seem more open since we have dark counters etc. and I think this is just the ticket!
Hi there, love the way this came out, thanks for sharing the great photos. : )
That looks incredible. I want to do open shelving in my kitchen and my hubby thinks its the worst thing ever. One day!!
I love the way it looks, Emily! You have inspired me to take the plunge and have an open cabinet in my kitchen. :)
I love how it turned out! I tried this in our current rental but it looked horrible! our cabinets are too blah builder basic, as in a plain white box with no molding or dimension. I’m hoping our next home will allow me to do this.
Did you realize the way you took/cropped the top photo, your lantern that’s in the top left corner looks like it’s an arrow pointing to your “new” open shelving?
Meg
This is a great look for your kitchen — it definitely gives it such personality! The way you styled it is lovely, too — I really like the color you used to back the shelves!
I surprising love this look. I was pretty nervous/wary of open shelving, but this looks fresh and neat. I think the dark contrast really makes it!
I think your husband must have done a happy dance over his unfortunate situation! My husband would do the same! :) Your shelves look very pretty! I guess I would rather have glass and show my pretties through that- I don’t care how much dishes are used- there is always dust.
Emily, this made me laugh! I get that look from my husband all the time, but you are right–they got to trust! He always ends up enjoying my latest endeavors. Love the open cabinets. I think our kitchens can get lost in an abyss of cabinetry. This is a great way to add interest and it is useful too! xxx Kristin
I get that look all the time from my husband too ;) What a great and simple change. The dark backing was a good choice.
as always, wonderful emily! Love the husbands face!
http://coffeebeansandbobbypins.blogspot.com//
looks great! love the dark back, great job!
EMily – i love it – great job! just takes a little re-engineering sometimes. and ps – the hubs face is adorable. and yet so familiar to my own hub’s during a project.
Perfect little update! I love the grey with the white too! I am planning a open shelving area of my kitchen and have the same thought… will it be functional? But job well done as always!
I wanted a more open look so I took two of mine down and had glass put in them. I love the way yours look but there is something about open cabinets that bothers me, I am always afraid of things getting dusty. Crazy I know but that’s what I think of every time I see them in magazines!
Robin
Haha, your husband’s comment cracked me up! It looks great!
I love it in other homes, but I’m not sure I have the right space for it…. however, once I have all the other rooms done in my home, it could be one of those second round things to consider. I think it can look great! Pretty sure my husband would be the same way. I think glass would look great as well.
That looks really great. Love the way you styled it. My hubs reaction would probably be the same as yours was-I would have to have him come up with the idea-then he would LOVE it! HA!
I love the look of all white/glass against the charcoal. I also love the significance of the “7” plate.
Laughing at the husband/dishwasher comment… I hear that almost weekly around here. :)
I really like how it turned out! As much as I like painted cabinets, I’m pretty sure I’m stuck with honey colored ones like yours for the long haul. So it’s nice and inspiring to see someone else working with the same thing.
By the way, where did yuo get that glass lamp on your counter?
You are right . . the dark paint was key in giving it the finished look. I am secretly hoping that if we ever move the cabinets are horrible and I can do open shelving. Big fan. We try to live with fewer and fewer things and there is so much charm to it. Your hubby is cracking me up by the way!
This looks great! Funny, I’m actually painting my cabinets white while my husband is gone for the week. But I haven’t told him! I’m starting to have a mild anxiety attack wondering what his reaction will be :) I was thinking about open shelving, too, but only in one cabinet like yours. I was afraid it would seem unbalanced somehow without another open cabinet (like on either side of my stove.) But yours seems fine. What do you think about it?
it looks great with the dark, and really makes the white pop. my kitchen is super dark, and we just added open shelving from ikea. it is the perfect modern/classic addition…i go in there just to stare at it!
@Katie– I got the glass lamp from a local home decor store, Slate Interiors (left over from a client project).
@Michelle I have a wall of cabinets on the other side of the kitchen (with one glass front in the middle) and it doesn’t feel off balanced to me. I think you can do both open and closed cabinets and make it work in your kitchen.
Love that you added a darker color in the back of the cabinet! We’d go with no doors as well. I think it makes the kitchen looks really neat and fresh. Down fall to this is making sure everything is neat and tidy which we totally need to work on !
Oh the dark backs really make it look so lovely! I imagine the whole space feels more open now.
I am sorry but I strongly dislike this new trend. I think it’s a blessing to have nice cabinets and to be able to stack stuff behind them with out the whole world seeing – it’s a way to simplify. We spend so much time trying to keep everything else clean in the home why would I want to put everything in the kitchen on display to have to keep it looking clean and straight too? Plus I think having closed cabinets keeps things looking clean and streamlined instead of “wow, you have a lot of stuff on your shelves. And more stuff on the counters. And if you didnt clean today theres even more odds and ends all over.” If I walked into a home to potentially buy that didn’t have whole cabinets, I wouldn’t even consider it. Just wanted to share my opinion since I’m starting to see this everywhere! That being said, your home is oh so lovely!
I REALLY like your update. Makes me want to go home right now and do the same:)
Open cabinets FTW!
@R I totally understand that and have had some of the same thoughts. I liked this solution for our kitchen because it was minimal work, no cost and little commitment. I stored the cabinet doors in the closet for when I get tired of this look. What has surprised me most so far is how neat we’ve managed to keep it. . . But, time will tell :)
Wow! A little bit of paint definitely went a long way! What a difference it made! I love open shelving! Our kitchen is VERY tiny, so right now it’s not really a possibility. We do have glass doors on one, so that’s enough to hold me over until we can take the plunge! Beautifully done!
LOVE it!!! I’ve had open shelving before and would like to do it again. It kind of forces you to be organized plus you get to enjoy your pretty dishes. :)
Your shelves look beautiful. I love the look of open shelving, however I have discovered that the stuff on open shelving get dusty, dirty, and grimy from sitting out in the open. So to answer your question. No I wouldn’t want open shelves in my kitchen. Just from experience.
It looks amazing!! I love how it turned out. You have me thinking now. ;) Huge difference–little elbow grease–I love that. :)
What a fun, easy update. Thanks for sharing!!
I love that dark color you painted the back! Your plates and cups really do pop and it looks so finished. I took cabinet doors off to paint two years ago and ended up loving all my glassware without the cabinet doors on. It is so functional for us and I think it looks pretty and breaks up the cabinetry.
Emily, I am agog for the day when you tell us how you like that stove in the island, especially with small children. My husband and I are heavily leaning towards an island with stove for our down-the-road kitchen remodel, and I’ve read a lot of opinions by those who have them. I still think it would work for us but am very curious what your experience has been!
I do have open shelving in my kitchen and I also have glass in some of the other cabinets and I love it. This changed my whole kitchen made it look like a new kitchen. http://annascustomdesign.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-10-20T19:25:00-05:00&max-results=7&start=14&by-date=false
Brilliant move on your part! Absolutely Amazing! Love the contrast of the dark with white dishes. Well Done!!
You must’ve read my mind. I’ve been contemplating doing this with the corner shelf in my kitchen. I like the look. You may have inspired me to do the same.
Love your blog dear!
Keep going with the great work!
XO
Oh Emily, I have no idea where you get the energy to do this with your two little babies plus the other children. But I highly commend you!
I LOVE your open shelving look! So much so that I might do this myself :-) We have all white dinnerware too right above the dishwasher. The only thing stopping me from taking off the doors is all the hinge holes ;-) I can’t really fill and paint them cuz the former owners didn’t leave any cabinet paint..and goodness trying to match up white! Haha!
Love it … open shelving! That charcoal gray is so pretty.
I did this with my renter-basic kitchen, but lined with black and white damask paper instead of painting.
It looks fantastic, Emily. We recently took off the doors to some of our cabinets too. I still haven’t decided how to paint or update them in the back…and it’s been a few months. I do like them, and I also have the things we use most in ours. Love how you arranged everything in yours. Megan
It looks great! And I don’t always love the open shelving craze.
But I have to know…how are you doing anything right now except baby care? seriously….painting and organizing with 2 kids and baby twins? how are you doing that?
Seriously Girl, where do you find the energy? You’re amazing! Love the change – i would put that screwdriver away!
It looks great. I wonder what would happen if you painted the insides the same as the wall… maybe it would really look like shelving and not cabinetry??
I love Urbane Bronze, and – while I don’t have open cabinetry – I do have glass-front cabinets that I adore!
What a great update! It really made the biggest difference.
In my opinion…Open shelving is a must in any kitchen to give it balance…this looks fab! Nice job…give your hubby a tutorial so he can continue dish duty…sounds exactly like my husband!
First. Love SW Urbane Bronze! Thinking about going from black to charcoal on our island. Subtle change so not that high on the list right now.
Love your #7 for your family! Great styling as always. I’m actually hoping to do the same thing on a single cabinet that is a little lonely in our kitchen.
Your kitchen is JUST like ours as far as looking out to the family room that direction. I have played with a lamp in that spot ever since we moved in. Taking it out, putting it back, etc.
Lastly, I can tell I will love your new light!
Is this what you do when those babies are asleep??? Love the background color…it looks great!
Love it! I think it’s a perfect way to show off your pretty dishes. Can I ask what is the paint color on your kitchen walls? I have similar color cabinets and it looks great with them. I checked your recent posts and it looked green before but in this post it looks lke a bluish grey. Is it just the lighting or did you have time to paint the walls too?
@Cathy No, I haven’t painted the kitchen–yet! The color there now was what was here when we moved in and I’m not sure of the color. It’s more of a gray/green.
Adore the result- and I love how you post your hubby’s reactions- I have a feeling I’ll be painting the back of my kitchen shelves that same color!
We don’t have any open shelves but my husband can never figure out where anything goes no matter what. So his job is to load the dishwasher (and do any pots by hand) and I unload.
Please, please tell me that you have more than 6 dinner plates and that that was just there for photos. Like the lamp on your desk with no cord:) I learn the best staging tips from you!
Jessica
stayathomeista.com
I love the look on your hubs face – mine would do the same ;) I don’t think mine even knows we have a dishwasher! HA! I love this little change – the white against that dark color looks so fresh and classic and really ties in well with your counter tops too. Can’t wait to see the light fixture!
I’m gonna do this today Emily! Is your paint flat or semigloss?? So excited- thanks for the inspiration!
I like the way this breaks up the heaviness of the cabinets. I did the same to a cabinet I just made over — I took off the doors (even though they were glass-front) and now it breathes so much better.
Wish I could have some open shelving in my kitchen too, but with our 4 cats, there is so much fur flying around this house, so it’s already hard enough behind cabinet doors to keep hair off our dishes!
LOVE the open shelving. it looks great! if you change your mind, it should be easy to re-hinge the old ones too, right? what a great diy improvement! i love the way you arranged the dinnerware too :)
xo,
kristyn
I think it looks great. My mom had open shelving (actually custom floating shelves) for her every day dishes in her last two homes, and I’ll definitely have them in my own.
Emily: New to your lovely and fun blog! Love, love, love your open shelving. And how neat you keep it. I have glass doors and have to keep that neat, too. I covered the interior and entire shelves with fabric and my white dishes pop against that, too. Will read you often. {{HUGS}}
Joy
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i like this interior designs thanks for share on your blog.
Solar Blinds
I’m literally walking into my kitchen now with a screwdriver! Thank you! Great post!
i really love this look & am thinking of trying it in the parsonage my hubs & i are about to move into- on either side of the sink (with white dishes)& also with baskets in one long vertical cabinet of shelves. just one question- did you have to spackle & touch up stain where the cabinet door holes were?