Open Shelving vs. Upper Cabinets: Which Fits Your Kitchen?
Ask some people about their kitchen, and you'll probably get a strong opinion on one thing: open shelving vs. upper cabinets. It has nothing to do with appliances or countertops, and everybody seems to have picked a side.
Both look great, so that's not really the question. The real question is which one fits your lifestyle. How often do you cook? How many dishes do you own, and how much wiping down will you put up with after a long Tuesday at work? A solid kitchen design plan has to answer all of that. It can't stop at how the room looks the week the contractors pack up.
So if you host a lot, cook every night, or simply want a kitchen that works as well as it looks, you'll want to understand a few trade-offs first.
Our West Palm Beach kitchen design company walks through the open shelving kitchen debate below. Keep reading!
What Is Open Shelving, Exactly?
Yes, it is what you think of: shelves with no doors. They go where your upper cabinets would normally be, and whatever you put on them is out in the open. Mugs, plates, that one nice serving bowl. The custom cabinetry around them stays in view too, so it needs to look good next to your dishes.
Floating shelves have shown up in a lot more kitchens over the past few years. A heavy wall of uppers can make a room feel boxed in, and shelves take that weight off.
You don't have to commit all at once, either. Many people start with open kitchen shelving on a small scale. They pull out one or two uppers, live with the change for a few months, and then decide whether to go further.
The Case for Open Shelving
Once people start planning a Kitchen remodel, open kitchen shelving often comes up fast. The appeal is easy to see.
Visual Lightness: Take the doors off and the room opens up almost immediately. It looks bigger and brighter, which makes the biggest difference in a small kitchen.
Easy Access: Plates, glasses, bowls, right where your hand goes. You grab one and keep cooking.
Personality on Display: You can display it to show off your personal style. It gives you a chance to decorate your space the way you want, like signature dishes, some glasses, perhaps a plant – it all reflects who you are.
Now the catch. All outdoor items must be kept clean and dusted. If your home is already rather tidy, open shelving is for you. Otherwise, becomes another chore.
The Case for Upper Cabinets
Upper cabinets have stuck around for a reason. They handle the things open shelving can't.
Concealed Storage: Kitchen shelving behind a door can hold much more than you'd ever want people to see. Odd containers, bulk packages, the general mess of daily life. It all disappears.
Protection From Dust and Grease: Anything near the stove collects splatter and dust over time. Closed cabinetry keeps your dishes out of that. Open shelves just take it.
Resale Appeal: Most buyers still look for upper cabinets, or at least a mix of cabinets and open shelves. If you might sell in a few years, cabinets are the lower-risk choice.
Design Tip: You really can have both. Open shelving and upper cabinets combined means the clutter gets a door and the pretty stuff gets a spot in the light.
Open Shelving and Upper Cabinets, Working Together
Most of the kitchens we end up loving don't even choose a side. The room feels better when cabinets are paired with open shelves. Put the messy stuff behind a door. The bowls you actually like looking at stay out. One setup we keep coming back to has shelves instead of upper cabinets on both sides of the range hood, with closed cabinetry running along the rest of the wall. Cooking oils and the good ceramics end up in very different places, and that's the point.
The two-tone cabinetry concept is right in here. Say the lower cabinets are a deep green or charcoal. Add a few light wood shelves above, and it won't feel so heavy. A shelf or two can enliven even the dark-toned kitchens.
Maybe full open shelving feels like too much. In that case, glass-front cabinetry is an alternative to upper cabinets that's worth a look. The room still feels open, but a door keeps dust off everything. It also hides the dishes you meant to put away.
No hardware either! The right pulls and hooks, which we cover in our kitchen hardware guide, combine open shelving and closed cabinets to look planned, not put together.
Experience Thoughtful Kitchen Design With Curated Kitchen Co.
Maybe you love how airy open shelving feels. Or maybe the practicality of traditional upper cabinets wins you over. Fine by us. What matters is how you live, how much stuff you need to store, and what you want to see when you walk in each morning. Pick the kitchen you'll use on a regular Wednesday. The one that looks great in photos doesn't have to be it.
The team at Curated Kitchen Co. can help you work through it. Full cabinetry, open shelving, or a bit of each- we'll build something that looks good and holds up to real cooking. Contact us today to get started!
