10 Tips to Organize Kitchen Open Shelves

Using a few tips to organize kitchen open shelves is the key to having a beautiful, yet functional kitchen. I thought it would take me a while to get used to using open shelving, but it didn’t. These have become the solution to having everything easily accessible in a very busy kitchen.

TIPS TO ORGANIZE KITCHEN OPEN SHELVES

After living with open shelving for two years, there are some tips that I have learned to make the organization of it simpler. Whether open shelving is a new concept in your home or you’re stumped on how to set things up on the shelves you already have, these tips will make the process easy.

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DECIDE ON THE PURPOSE OF YOUR SHELVING

Is your open shelving purely for aesthetics? Will they be functional for every day use? Or maybe a little of both? No answer is wrong. It really is a matter of preference. Some kitchen open shelving is just for home decor. And some homes use them in place of cabinets to store all of their kitchen items.

Establishing the purpose is the starting point for all the other steps in the process of setting up your shelving.

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CHOOSE A COLOR/STYLE PALETTE

Take a look around your home and recognize what your unique style is. Whether it is neutrals, bold colors, patterns, or an eclectic mix, figure out what you like and incorporate that into your kitchen as well. If you like black and white, carry that onto your shelves. If you enjoy a funky collection of colors, go with that style. Continuing your decor style throughout your home creates a cohesive look.

Once you know what look you are going for, keep that in mind as you decide on what will go on your shelves and as you go through these tips to organize kitchen open shelves.

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MINIMIZE WHAT YOU DISPLAY

The first thing that you’ll want to do is to pare down what you plan to put on your shelves. Take an honest look at each and every item and decide whether you really will use it. And if so, does it need to be displayed on your shelves or can it go in a drawer or cabinet?

Remember that “one man’s trash in another man’s treasure” and donate any items that are in great condition, but just aren’t worth keeping. Holding onto something for the sake of using it every few years or just in case, doesn’t help to simplify and make your kitchen more functional. Only keep the most useful items on your shelves.

PICK YOUR CONTAINERS

Now that you have a color and style chosen and have whittled your collection down to the essentials, it’s time to pick your containers. In other words, what are you going to store your items in? Whether it is for spices and seasonings, measuring spoons, or kitchen utensils, consider what will best match your style.

Start gathering those containers, whether they are glass jars, pottery, or bins. Use items that you already have in your home. And check out your local thrift stores for any that will fit the look you are going for.

ORGANIZE FOR SUCCESS

Now that you have all your items ready to put on your shelving, set yourself up for success. Evaluate each thing you want to display and decide how accessible it needs to be. A good rule of thumb is that every day items, like dishware, is best placed on the bottom shelf. This will make mealtime easier, but also lessen the chance of dishes breaking from being pulled down from a high shelf.

The next higher shelf should hold items that are used frequently, but maybe not every day. These are good to have at arm’s length, but are not important enough to have the “prime real estate” of the bottom shelf.

If you have more than two shelves, store those items you use occasionally up higher. Or maybe even put that sentimental collection you want to display on the top shelf.

In our kitchen, I keep all of our everyday dinnerware, a few mixing bowls, measuring cups and spoons, a handful of small bowls, and my most often used spices and seasonings on the bottom shelf. Right above that are more mixing bowls, a sourdough starter, and the rest of my spices that I use weekly, but not typically daily.

The top shelf holds some decorative items, as well as seasonal things, like mugs, that double as decor. There are also a few stray spices and dishware, like pie plates. Since they aren’t used often, I pull over a chair to reach these items way up top.

STACK ITEMS

To create more space, stack or nest items into others. This is easy when it comes to dinnerware because plates and bowls can naturally stack. But tuck smaller mixing bowls into larger ones. Nest a smaller mug into a larger one. Put glasses one inside the other.

Get creative with how you use the space. But keep safety in mind when it comes to breakable items. Not everything should be stacked. Or maybe some items are only for the adults in the home to take down.

MAKE USE OF BASKETS AND BINS

Use a few baskets or bins to store small items or maybe just unsightly ones. There may be a jar or two that just doesn’t go with your color scheme. Put it inside a cute basket and simply pull down that basket when needed.

DON’T DISPLAY EVERYTHING

Just because it is in your kitchen, doesn’t mean it needs to be out. I have many things in my kitchen tucked away in drawers and cabinets. By “hiding” pantry items like canned goods or tucking away my immersion blender in a cabinet, it leaves my open shelving to make a statement in my kitchen and not a catch-all for everything.

Extra items, although useful and necessary, don’t add to the look I am going for, so they are stored elsewhere.

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TIPS IN VIDEO

BUY IN BULK AND LABEL

A great money-saver is to purchase spices and seasonings in bulk. In my kitchen, I have a drawer where I store all of the not-so-attractive bulk plastic containers and bags. The open shelves hold jars full of each item. Again, the most used are on the bottom and less used up higher.

The process I use for refilling each jar is that I wash empty jars and once fully dry, I refill it from my bulk supply. When I notice something is running low, I add it to my farmer’s market grocery list. This has kept me from running out or constantly needing to buy spices at the grocery store.

To make this work, each jar must be labeled. Nobody wants to use the wrong ingredient, so set yourself up for success and add labels. A few options are to purchase pre-made labels or make your own. In my kitchen, I bought some blank labels and my daughter hand-wrote each one for me. And because these are hand-lettered, I wash the jars by hand in between refilling. It only takes a minute and is worth the tiny extra effort for custom labels.

ADJUST AS NEEDED

After the initial set-up of your shelving, be willing to tweak it as needed. Move items around and make it a useful solution to your kitchen that works FOR you. Just because it initially looked a certain way, doesn’t mean it has to stay like that. Whether it’s because the first look just didn’t work well or your cooking style changed, rearrange items.

Adjusting as needed really will make open shelving the solution you were hoping it would be to keeping you organized, but also keep your kitchen functioning smoothly.

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