I used to think open shelving was a bad idea until I tried it in my kitchen in Austin

For years I was totally against open shelving in kitchens. I thought it would just collect dust and look messy all the time. But last summer I had a tiny kitchen with no upper cabinets and I put up three floating shelves from IKEA for about $60 total. Anyone else change their mind on a design trend after actually living with it?

2 comments

2 Comments

betty_fisher517d agoTop Commenter

Yeah I was exactly the same way. Thought open shelving would just be a dust magnet and look cluttered, but I finally caved and put some up in my rental and honestly I love it. Makes the place feel way bigger and airier.

gavinwood17d ago

I read something once about how open shelving actually works better in smaller spaces because it forces you to be more intentional with what you put out, and that idea really stuck with me. Apparently there was a study or maybe just a design blog post that talked about how the visual clutter from too much stuff on shelves makes a room feel more closed in, but when you keep it minimal it does the opposite. I tried it in my kitchen after that and yeah, I get what you mean. The dust thing is real but I just spot clean once a week with a microfiber cloth and it takes like two minutes. Makes me wonder if the whole "dust magnet" complaint is overblown by people who have never actually tried it.