Twinspired

she said.she said. 

This week, open shelves in the kitchen

For several years now open shelving in the kitchen has been widely used in all the shelter magazines, tv shows and blogs. I have to say, I don’t get it. The kitchen is the most difficult room in the house to keep clean.

• food

• household dust

• grease

• condensation from hot water

You combine any two of those items and you have a substance that will survive a nuclear war. 

Be honest, when you have to change the light bulb in the kitchen and you grab the fixture isn’t your first response “UGH! Why is this so sticky?!” What do you think every item on the open shelf is going to feel like? 

If space is tight, edit your belongings. If you want to display a special collection, glass front cabinets are a better option. If you insist on following after an unworthy trend at least put the shelves as far away from the sink and stove as possible. 

I have a difficult time abiding by any decorating choice that just creates more work. The best design is suppose to make your life easier not your chore list longer.

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What did the kitchen cabinet say to the open shelf? "I said tapas, not topless!" 

A bad joke for a bad idea - open shelving in your kitchen. If you wouldn't go topless in your kitchen, neither should your dishes. 

For me, open shelving in a kitchen is like the five second rule for your floor. Okay, so maybe it's 15 seconds, but it still exists. If you think the five (or 15) second rule isn't true, watch recent MythBuster episode. 

Sure they are beautiful, open up the space, and make dishes an arm distance away. The last point is the bone of my contention. If your dishes are just an arm's length away from you, then they are also arms distance from the grease and grime of everyday use. 

However, there are three exceptions to when open shelving is acceptable:

1. You sell them for a living

2. Your spouse sells them for a living

3. Nope, now that I think about it there are only two

Take my advice, if you want an open feeling in your kitchen, use glass front cabinets, keep the a light color, and add under cabinet lighting. Fair warning, if you don't heed my advice, I'll keep telling jokes. 

Sure this is beautiful, but I'm not drinking
out of those glasses.

This is Drew Barrymore's kitchen.
Perhaps she has someone who cleans her
dishes everyday.