Open shelves aren’t for everyone
Kitchen storage starts out looking lovely, but then the mess piles up, writes Samantha Pynn.
Q I’m renovating a small galleystyle kitchen. I know you like open shelves, but I am not an open shelf type. My family is way too messy for that. I’d still like your opinion.
I was thinking I could do two tones of cabinets with grey on the top and white on the bottom. I’ve been collecting photos from Pinterest and Houzz. com. I also showed my designer friend who says my selections are good, but I’m still torn. There is so much choice.
The floors I’ve picked are ceramic, but don’t look as grey as I originally thought. Unfortunately, they’ve been installed. I’m sick about them, but I hope they’ll look more grey beside the cupboards. I have this much stress — I haven’t even picked the handles. Your help would be appreciated.
A There is so much choice out there. Sometimes I, too, get overwhelmed by all the choices. But I’ve learned that it’s better to have choice than limitations. Think of all the choices as multiple ways to ensure you will get a kitchen you really love.
You can definitely do two colours of cabinetry. In fact, in small- space kitchens, I like to have white or ivory upper cabinets and darker cabinets on the bottom. I find that the light upper cabinets make a small space feel more open. Plus, when the walls are painted the same colour as the uppers, the cabinets disappear, making the room feel even more spacious.
Open shelves are not for everyone.
In busy family kitchens, they can become a catch- all for dust, unpaid bills, library books and jars of peanut butter. I have a friend who loved the look of open shelves, but said they caused utter chaos in her family. Her daughter lost her school project under a pile of magazines on the shelves, and her husband lost his health card, which she found a year later in a decorative bowl on a shelf. Needless to say, as much as I like a spot to display pretty things, I now warn everyone of the perils of open shelves.
Regarding your floor tiles — as the signs in elevators say: Remain calm. I know this is easier said than done.
The first time I installed tile in a renovation, I thought I made the wrong tile choice. I watched
the grout dry, cried a little, stayed up all night in a panic and cried a little more. But once the cabinet doors and hardware were installed, the kitchen looked great. During my second kitchen reno, the tiles were grouted with a dark grey when I had wanted white. With my third reno, the wrong countertop was installed. In those instances, I felt like I was going be sick, but in the end, the mistakes turned into happy accidents.
Forget about the open shelves, Colette. They are not right for you and your family.
Your floor tiles will look more grey once the grey cabinets are installed.
Get through all the big decisions before you choose hardware.
You can live in the kitchen for a week or two with handles made from painter’s tape. Plenty of hardware comes in a standard size. Once you make your hardware choice, if you don’t like it, change it.
Trust your instincts. And know that there are many more right choices than there are wrong ones.