Remember yesterday when our shelves looked like this?
Well, then I had fun doing this (if you’re at work, you can watch this without sound and totally get the gist):
If you check out the video you can see that I can actually reach everything up on those top shelves except for the stuff in the corner by the window, but it’s easy enough to sit on the counter to grab it.
Who knew I’d be able to reach all that stuff? I totally expected to have to scream “Joooooohn” whenever I needed something up there (he’s the chef of the family so that probably wouldn’t have happened very often anyway). Or use a step stool if he’s missing/outside/hiding and I’m really desperate. Haha.
So now our shelves are chock full o’ stuff, and are most definitely still a work in progress, but mighty cheerful and functional all the same…
It’s not necessarily where things will stay – just a first pass for sure. I actually have since re-stacked some of the bowls – and plates & dishes have gotten used so things are constantly changing. It really is a completely rotating display. The funny thing is that it’s kind of crazy to “perfectly style” kitchen shelves anyway since it’s all supposed to be used and is always being picked up or washed or put back so I have already declared that I WILL NOT BE CRAZY. And John is holding me to it. Hah. So since nothing is glued down or expected to remain exactly where I placed it OR ELSE, consider this to be just one “take” of many when it comes to our open shelves. I’m sure ceramic animals will worm their way in there somewhere. And I’m sure as we add crown molding and patch the ceiling (at which point everything has to come back down from the shelves) things might get switched up. But that’s half the fun when you’re me.
As you can see from the video, I didn’t give anything too much thought. Sometimes over-thinking can be the bane of your existence when you’re loading up shelves or a bookcase. So it was all sort of first-thought. So for anyone wondering about my method… I actually consciously tried not to think too much and just moved stuff around and stepped back and tried to focus on what I wanted to be easiest to grab and grouping things that made sense (like all the items for setting the dinner table and dessert stuff). I’m sure it’ll evolve and change – and most likely get better and more functional – over time. Here’s hoping, anyway! And you know I’ll take pictures. Lots and lots of pictures.
Oh and you can see from the shot above how shallow the brackets are and how deep our 12″ shelves are, so there’s plenty of room for stuff and the brackets don’t interfere with storage or anything. Whew.
But back to filling up those shelves. I tried hard not to think too hard (say that three times fast) but I did think about one thing the whole time I was at it: function. For example, I put our dessert bowls and dessert plates on the bottom right shelf and all of our large dinner dishes and cups and cereal bowls on the bottom left shelf. So those are closest at hand (and just a step or two away from the dishwasher with no cabinet doors to open, so that should be pretty convenient). Then the top shelves got things that we may use less often, but that still might sit out on counters in a kitchen anyway (ex: a cute cake stand, some bigger serving bowls, a vase, a bottle of my mom’s favorite bubbly drink, etc). We figure that even when those items sit in cabinets for a while they can get dusty, so it should be the same difference (a quick rinse and they’re ready to go). We’ll keep you posted on how it all works for sure.
Here’s how the room now looks from the office doorway. Such a difference. Although the not-stainless dishwasher still kills us, but soon enough we should have the new one installed. Oh and I meant to take a shot of the window straight on to show the balance of the shelves that are spaced 14″ from the right of it and the cabinet that’s spaced 14″ to the left of it… but I had a brain fart. Epic picture-taking fail. So that shot’s to come.
Memory lane time? Sure. The room used to look like this from the office doorway. Kinda crazy, right? I’m totally standing in the exact same spot – not any closer (see the counter cutting off at the bottom of each picture at nearly the same spot?). Isn’t it crazy how much closer the window feels in the picture below?
But let’s get back to the present. Do you hear a harp softly playing in the background or is it just me? Picture me twirling around with my arms out while orchestral music swells and birds come and fly around me holding ribbons in their beaks. Only less graceful and more awkward. And maybe the birds are just Burger and Clara holding toilet paper and spinning around beside me while I grin up at the can lights.
Oh and someone pointed out that we have lots of subtle curves going on with our brackets and our round penny tile and our round pendants. I love happy accidents like that! With more angular things like the range hood and the peninsula, it’s nice to have some softer shapes to complement them. High five for happy accidents.
Now that we have our pretty glass cups out in front of the boring clear ones we actually use them more. And I get to stare at them. Wait, that sounds creepy. I get to gaze at them. Better?
We think the random pops of blue, green, and yellow along with those two frames I stuck up there are fun. It’s definitely not a “magazine after” or anything – more like a gathering of all the stuff we actually use with some pretty decorative things tossed in there for fun. If a magazine blew in I think they’d probably add “more pretty” (flowers, lacquered boxes, candlesticks, etc) in exchange for “less function” (translation: I would love it and John would roll his eyes and say “um, where are all our plates and bowls and cups?”).
Oh and a bunch of folks asked if we considered a third row of shelves up top, but we figured once we loaded up those second shelves the stuff on them would balance with the top of the doorway, so anything above that might have been too heavy/cluttered for us. Plus that stuff would be really hard to reach/use.
And as for where we put the brackets, we wanted them all to be equally spaced on both sides (we looked at three on the left side but they didn’t feel as balanced with the ones on the right as four of them did). And that preferred layout thankfully worked with our studs (nearly all of our screws aligned perfectly and they feel really strong!), so after looking at a few different hanging options/bracket placements (and taping things off to help picture them) we just pulled the trigger and went with our favorite – which we thankfully love just as much in real life!
In short: we are so very happy with our wall o’ tile complete with glorious bracketed shelves full of sunshine and rainbows. Literally, the art actually says “Love Life” (it was the cover of a book that John got me, which I framed) and “Squeeze The Day” (a favorite flier from an old Boden catalog that came in the mail). We know open shelves (or these brackets/wall color/tile/pendants/stools/accessories) might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we dig it. And the whole photography crew for the book is being very cute about stroking and gazing right along with us (full disclosure: this is one of those things that looks better in person, and even the video completely fails to capture it) so you’ll all just have to come over when we’re done with all of the crazy book chaos. Haha. You can even pour yourself a drink since you know where we keep the cups…
In other news: oh happy day – the tulips are still alive! I keep meaning to drop a penny in the water while Clara’s around so we can watch them perk up. Thanks for all the flower tips guys!
Here’s another shot sans crown molding and a patched ceiling. Oh and there will soon be a pendant hanging down over the sink too. We’re trying to tackle that, just so we don’t have to stare at torn up ceilings for much longer. So yes, it’s definitely a work in progress, but we’re jazz-hands-crazy about how our little “refurbished” kitchen is shaping up. And we’re definitely even more impatient than you guys about the cork floors! Can’t wait to get there and call this turkey done. Hah.
And just because I’m nuts, here’s what I did while playing around in photoshop.
Flat brown paint dumped on the “floor” via photoshop hardly captures all the amazing texture that our marbled cork floors will bring, and the white paint dumped to replicate crown molding hardly looks real (nor does my crazy little made-up pendant over the sink, which will probably be a lot lighter looking and made of clear glass) but it was fun. And if you squint and hum the Dexter theme song, you can almoooooost see it (sidenote: John changed his ringtone from Dexter to the Parks & Recreation song, which saddened me for a nanosecond and then I realized how hilarious the Parks & Rec song is – we even set it to be our alarm tone too, just because it makes waking up extra early for book stuff almost pleasurable tolerable).
So spill it. Who is completely surprised that 5’2″ me can reach nearly everything on those upper shelves? That was a total unexpected bonus. Oh and for those wondering why there isn’t a crew of lovely book photoshoot people wandering in and out of the time lapse video, they have to set up lights for certain shots that take a while so they were shooting in the back bedrooms (and I gave them one of those “I’ll be back in thirty minutes, so hold tight and scream if you need me” things). Thankfully only John wandered in for a sec, so there were no photoshoot emergencies in the middle of my shelf-y fun (I even ducked out to answer some comment questions and take a call about our upcoming Portland gig). So as Martha would say, that’s a good thing. In summary: yay shelves. What have you guys been hanging/filling up with plates and bowls/filming in time lapse lately?
Psst- And now for a post about donuts.
UPDATE: We couldn’t love our open cabinets more. Check out a bracket tweak that we made here and an update post about how they function here here.
sallie says
golly, i’m really loving this “new” kitchen. and here i am afraid to paint my fake wood cabinets. please give me some of your confidence. and energy. thanks.
YoungHouseLove says
Sending it your way. Do you feel that? It’s coming!
xo,
s
Lisa says
I love the colors! Blues greens yellows and white! Please tell me where you bought the blue and green glasses?
YoungHouseLove says
Those were from World Market for $2.99 each!
xo,
s
jbhat says
It is so sunny and adorable and FUNctional. Love love love what you guys have done.
Maybe someone else has asked this and you have answered before. Did you consider doing installing the same pendant from the peninsula over the sink? If so, what ruled it out?
Thanks!
jbhat
YoungHouseLove says
We did! We only found two at the outlet but have been keeping an eye out for a third!
xo,
s
Katherine says
I love your new kitchen and the range hood and shelves are fresh and contemporary {rather than plain ‘ol cabinets}.
Think of dressing opens shelves similar to the kitchen ‘triangle’ theory. If you stagger the scale of the items on the shelves to ensure that all of the large items are not lined UP in a row – block the colours instead of dotting the colours will give it the colour strength you are looking for. All blue on bottom – yellow {highlight shade} in the middle and green on the top.
The green mineral water bottles are great on shelves or counters in the kitchen – they look great when there are ‘several’ – one looks lonely {five or seven – remember, vignette items should be in odd numbers}. AND the bottles come in mini’s which is a great look if you put them on the bottom shelf.
Love your colour choices.
YoungHouseLove says
That would be fun to rainbow the colors like grouping similarly colored books on a bookcase! Definitely another thing I can play around with!
xo,
s
Loren says
Love this! Everything looks great. Sherry sitting on the counter to reach things is adorable. xo (I’m barely 5’2″ myself so I know the feeling.)
I’m a big fan of stop motion video and was going to put one together tonight for my own blog. Have you guys ever done a tutorial about how you put these together?
YoungHouseLove says
We shoot the videos on our Flip cam and we use iMovie (which is free with a Mac) to speed it up! Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Rebecca says
I am such a neat freak so I don’t think open shelving would work for me. I enjoy cabinets because it is enough to help me forget about how unorganized behind the shelves becomes, everyday use or not. But I do LOVE how you throw in pops of color to brighten it all up! The video is funny when you hop up on the counter, sometimes you pop your foot out like your doing some modeling pose, haha.
Josie says
Wait, what?! You’re coming to Portland??? What for and when? I’m a huge fan!
YoungHouseLove says
We’re speaking at the Portland Home & Garden show on the 22nd! Should be so much fun!
xo,
s
JennyB says
It looks super! I love the pops of color among the gray and white & I can’t wait to see it all completed with the floor and molding.
Random question–how did you hang the yellow “love life” picture to hang on the tile wall? I can see that the other pic is just propped against the wall. I wouldn’t want to nail anything into tile, right?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s in a thick frame that’s nicely balanced on two short glasses!
-John
Abby says
I love it! I am a sucker for open shelving and yours is beautiful! Love it! That aqua looks ah-mazing with the wall color you chose. Was that luck or did you have your glassware in mind when you picked the paint color?
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- just luck and a penchant for the same colors (blues and greens and yellows = our happy place).
xo,
s
Dee says
Beautiful beautiful!
It sure looks “magazine after” to me.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Dee!
xo,
s
Tracey says
Looks great! Love the lttle pops of color. Thanks for the video. Time lapse is so fun and funny to watch. Looking at the picture where you can see the stools, I could imagine them being the cool blue color you have in your drinking glasses. I’m sure you’ve got plans for them later, after the crown molding, patch work, light fixture etc….
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, gotta see how they look with the new cork floors and then we’ll decide!
xo,
s
jeannette says
it’s very instructive to get the time lapse of you tweaking the shelf arrangement. your eye is infallible.
yes. infallible, i’ve decided. i’m still trying to get over the brackets. but since you two find them charming i am struggling to agree. with your infallible eye.
Marlayna says
Hi guys,
Sorry if this is a repeat question…I would read through all of your comments to find your answer but no time while at work. Was wondering how you attached your LOVE LIFE art to the wall there, Sherry? It looks like its floating (ie., hung) but I didn’t think you guys put an extra hole in the wall for that….maybe!
IT LOOKS FABULOUS! ITS SO HAPPY AND BRIGHT AND PLAYFUL! Admire your creativity and spunk! Thanks for sharing :)
YoungHouseLove says
I just sort of propped it up on small green glasses/dishes we had. Haha. Works for now!
xo,
s
Liz F says
I know how awesome it’s going to look with the cork flooring–my in-laws had bamboo floors installed in their condo in Hawaii and I could.not.stop.gazing at them while we were there. I’m trying to convince my DH that we need bamboo/cork floors in our future home…he’s not buying it so far, but I’ll keep trying!
Claire Jain says
I’m so pumped for you guys. This really is amazing. I can’t wait for flooring time. I’m probably most excited about a status update come summer after you’ve had a chance to live with everything for awhile. As always, thanks for sharing your hard work with us :-)
Lisa A says
Your shelves look great! We are currently re-doing our own kitchen and have been checking in with your progress on yours, but you guys work a lot faster than us!
Anyway, what type of drill bit did you guys use to drill those shelf holes into your penny round tile? We are going to hang similar shelves from our subway tile backsplash. The idea of drilling into the tile job we labored over is harrowing at the least!
Thanks!!
YoungHouseLove says
We bought a set of glass and tile bits that are meant for just this type of job. I think a set of 3 different sizes was like $7.
-John
Jessica says
Gosh, it’s amazong how far you guys have come with this kitchen! It’s coming together so nicely.
I bet you are looking forward to being completely finished!
Amy @ The Button Casa says
It seems lame to say for the 50th time, “I love it” but I really do. I also love those blue bowls and the blue and green glasses. It looks fabulous!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks!
xo,
s
Jamie says
So so fabulous. And inspiring. I am a sucker for the blue/green combo. (And white. LOVE white.) I would love to know where those blue and green drinking glasses come from. I found some really pretty plastic turquoise ones at Target recently (that look similar) but those glass ones look divine!
YoungHouseLove says
They’re from World Market! $2.99 each!
xo,
s
Amanda says
OMG! It was like an exercise video and info-mercial all in one!!! I loved it. It looks absolutely beautiful, and I adore the final layout.
sarah says
absolutely perfect. love the yellow, green, and blue. you guys did a great job.
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Sarah!
xo,
s
Kelly says
L.O.V.E. IT!!!
Maya says
1) I find it crazy how well your kitchen now matches the color scheme of the website. :)
2) It looks amazing and you made me a convert to these brackets! So luxe-looking!
3) Can you put any kind of art over the stove? It looks like that space is just begging for something!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s definitely something we’re chatting about (art over the stove) – will have to see where we end up!
xo,
s
Erin says
Good grief this is cute!!! Not in a cutsey-kid way- it’s just that the colors of the glasses, bowls, etc. and tiny accents make the happiest looking arrangment. I adore those shelves- I want to start tearing apart my kitchen now. You know that at some point we’re all going to be seeing this in a magazine, right? And then we can all say that we saw it here first! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw Erin, you’re so cute.
xo,
s
Maya says
and…
4) I think a third row of shelves could look amazing– you could run it all the way over the doorway (maybe using some kind of floating shelf bracket there? Is that even possible? Lots of space to put ceramic animals, Sherry…
YoungHouseLove says
Always a possibility for down the line! Right now we’re enjoying a peek at the penny tile up there and can’t wait to add crown molding to set it off more!
xo,
s
Christin says
Your kitchen is looking gorgeous!! And I seriously love that sunny little radio you have in the kitchen now. It’s fabulous. If I had counter space in my kitchen to spare for a little radio I’d be on the hunt for one like that!
Linda says
Your blogging is so great, it has checking around to see if I could use magnetic paint on a few of my kitchen cabinet doors(Which need to be repainted anyway) and then, if I can paint over the magnetic paint like you did on your wall in your first home. If it works it would be a fun way to stick my recipes up when I’m cooking :)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, it could totally work!
xo,
s
Julie M. says
Hi. I just wanted to quickly comment because I saw this kitchen over on House of Turquoise (not sure if you read it regularly) and thought of you and your range hood. I think adding a little more trim to the top panel will really make a big difference.
http://www.houseofturquoise.com/2012/02/tammy-connor-interior-design.html
YoungHouseLove says
That is a beautiful kitchen!
-John
Corie says
LOVE the styling of the open shelves! Love the shelves themselves, love the brackets, love the penny tiles, love the counters, love how great the cabinets came back to life, the hardware, that sink, the peninsula and the stools, I really really love it all!
I kinda don’t know how to say this, I really am not a mean person and I so rarely leave comments that I hate to leave one like this but, here goes: the “grellow” wall color seems like it’s changed tones throughout this process. Before the cabinets were painted and when the old counters were still there, it was such a lovely, happy & warm color. Now, it’s looking kinda “off”. A little dingy, especially where it meets with the penny tiles, it’s just not looking like the same tone of lovely greenish-yellow.
I like the grellow in that space, I really do, I’m just wondering if it’s reading a bit different in real life now that the tones in the space have cooled down? It makes tons of sense that the warmer tones of the old counter/woods would cause it to read one way, and now with all the white/gray/cool colors, it’s reading differently. Or it makes sense to me anyway, but I’m not an expert. I still have swatches of gray over pale-turquoise (I can’t decide!!) in my kitchen so I really shouldn’t be saying this you guys. :) But, I figured that paint is so quick and easy to fix that if you’re seeing this too, maybe it would be something to think about?
Please don’t hate me, I really love your blog! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, I think it’s hard to capture the grellow in pics but in person we love it! Picture an avocado sliced and sitting open on the counter with the gray penny tile and the greige shelves and cabinets and white counters – it’s so nice to layer in there with all the “safe” colors of the cabinets and counters and shelves! We would definitely repaint if we didn’t like it though- it’s such an easy fix after all we’ve been up to in here! Haha.
xo,
s
Amber McMullin says
The kitchen is looking awesome guys! And on a totally random note; my hubby and I are addicted to Dexter, we figured we check it out one night ( since john is such a fan). Now we can’t stop, we watched the first 5 seasons in less than a month! We even took to the habit of yelling at the screen, kill shirt! He’s got his kill shirt on!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- nice!
xo,
s
Stefanie W. says
I love it! Music too – woot! Will look A-Ma-Za-Zing with the crown moulding and pendant. I gotta be the downer though that says the stools are still killing me. If they were a shinier stainless steel look, or painted bright, or even ORB, I think I might fall in love, but as-is just doesn’t seem to fit the upbeat, polished look of the rest of the kitchen. Can’t wait to see where you guys go wtih them.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, we’re waiting to do anything to the stools until the cork floors go down since that could change things!
xo,
s
Britny W says
The shelves are absolutely beautiful, and I am so jealous of your beautiful dishes! Mine are currently hand me downs that are this awful grape and floral print lol. I am a grad student though so I guess I can get away with it for now ;). Oh and by the way, I saw a coupon offer for $1.50 off yobaby organic yogurt and thought you might want it for Clara. Here is the link: http://moneysavingmom.com/2012/02/1-501-yokids-organic-yogurt-coupon-facebook-offer.html
YoungHouseLove says
Love it! Thanks!
xo,
s
janie says
I love it!
But is the height of the hood annoying you too? Or is it just the straight-on angle of the pics that makes it look perfectly aligned with the bottom of the top shelf when it should be a bit lower?
YoungHouseLove says
We just followed the recommendation of the manufacturer of the hood (they gave us a hanging range and we went right in the middle of it). So far it’s great! Not hard to reach and it works great!
xo,
s
amanda says
Fabulous! I have to admit I was thinking yesterday that it was a little dark and plain, but I love all the color y’all added!! I’m a big color person, so I’m glad you didn’t just do all white or clear glass. It looks great now!
Krystle @ Color Transformed Family says
I love the video! Everything looks great. I am short like Sherry and would live to be able to reach all my shelves. Your kitchen just increased in size by being able to reach everything.
LARY says
A-W-E-S-O-M-E
Leeann says
The blue, green, and yellow color scheme of your dishes and accessories makes my heart SUPER happy on this winter day! You have no idea!
Heather says
I love the accent colors you’re using – just the right amount of color in there too! Will be great to watch the stuff on the shelves change as you find what works best for you guys too. I have a question about that yellow framed print to the left, how’s that hanging? 3m strips?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s actually propped up on some short glasses (it’s a chunky frame so it balances nicely).
-John
Cheryl says
Love the photoshop….but you should have added the new stainless dishwasher too!! :)
YoungHouseLove says
D’oh! Hopefully we’ll be adding it for real soon.
-John
Melissa says
Ahh pretty! I’d say it’s time to update that house tour page when you get to breathe– – so much has changed!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes! That has been on my to-do list forever! Soon I hope!
xo,
s
Mimi says
Love the filled shelves! Do you have any kitchen appliances, or do you keep them all stashed away?
I thought I had tons of cabinet space, but apparently not enough to store my appliances. I love the airy and open look you guys have though!
YoungHouseLove says
The toaster, blender and food processor live under the cabinet next to the fridge. And no coffee maker since neither of us are coffee drinkers. We don’t use them very frequently so so far they haven’t needed to be out all of the time.
-John
Kristen says
Your kitchen is absolutely GORGEOUS!!!!!!!! I might just have to PIN it all as inspiration for a future kitchen remodel in my house. Just beautiful!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Kristen!
xo,
s
Sarah says
Love it! You guys crack me up. Sherry- In the video, around 1:48, it looks like you are practicing for one of those cup stacking competitions. Maybe you should add that to your bucket list. Clara would make a mighty adorable cheerleader!
Ellen says
I was randomly looking at some of your archives and I found this post: https://www.younghouselove.com/2011/06/we-came-we-saw-we-bought-stuff/
Are you still thinking of using this pendant for the kitchen?
YoungHouseLove says
We actually have been contemplating giving it a shot. Sure would beat having to buy another thing!
-John
rachel says
it looks SO great! you did a fantastic job balancing pretty & functional. makes me want to rearrange my open shelves now… : )
Adriana says
Looks amazing! Thank you so much for the inspiration!
Sarah says
Just kidding, it’s at 0:48! My bad!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- I love it!
xo,
s
Amanda Knowles says
Portland gig?! Please tell me you will be a guest star on Portlandia, my new favorite television show??
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man, that would be fun. But nope, we’re speaking at the Portland Home & Garden Show on Feb 22nd!
-John
Kari S. says
It is so bright and Cheery! I love your backsplash. It gives me the urge to want to pop the circles like bubble wrap!
Larissa says
I can’t believe all that natural light in there on that 2nd to last shot! (And the photoshopped shot.) Seriously, who needs lighting with all that?! I mean, unless you want to be able to see in there after dark.