How to Style Open Shelving in a Kitchen (+ secret ingredients to add to the mix!)

Styling shelves can feel daunting, but it can be fun and less stressful when you know a few designer secrets for selecting the right items and how to style them.

Here are some of my favorite tried and true tips for selecting items to display and how to style open shelving in a kitchen (or anywhere!).

Pair practical and pretty

I like to use both practical and pretty items decorate a kitchen. This philosophy is true of shelves, too. Often some of what I choose to display are pieces that are stored on the shelves because they are practical. They could be brought down off the shelves and used, such as a stack of plates, a pitcher or a basket.

Set the mood with a palette

Determining a mood for your shelves will help you narrow down what you want on the shelves and ultimately brings everything together. The mood can be built around your style or the items you have to work with. It can be altered through the selection of colors and textures to give your shelves a more intentional, cohesive, streamlined look.

A cohesive palette doesn’t mean everything has to match, or stay neutral or that you can’t use your favorite colors.

Pick a mood word or two to describe the overall feeling you want to achieve. Do you want your shelves to reflect a certain season? What word would help you to describe the overall vibe? Moody? Happy? Colorful? Serene? To establish a strong mood, be intentional with what you add to the shelves. If something doesn’t contribute to the mood or is a distraction, it can go.

A formula I use often in my home:

A few shades of two colors + a wood and a white tone + a metal tone. Any additional hues are included in small doses.

On the top two shelves you can see I used shades of blues and greens with mid-tone woods and whites. Then I included a few very small pops of reds and yellows only within the dishes on the plate rack.

Use unmatched + unexpected

While you certainly can style shelves with one kitchen collection for impact, such as a matching set of dishes or all cookbooks, you can also mix pieces that don’t necessarily match or are unexpected in a kitchen. This makes it easier and more affordable to change the look through the seasons and show off smaller or growing collections in fresh ways.

Mismatched pieces can look pleasing together because they all contribute to the mood and color palette you’ve selected. While it can be nice in a kitchen to display every day items on my open shelves I like to include pieces that aren’t necessarily just “kitchen related.”

I use various collected or vintage items, interesting textures, a few plants, books, faux or real organic elements like florals, vegetables or plant stems, as well as artwork and vessels.

Blend a mix of sizes and shapes

Rounds, cylinders, rectangles, spikey or feathery shapes … blend together elements with opposite or unique shapes to add interest! Don’t use too many small items, but a couple of smalls will make the overall look more pleasing, interesting and natural.

Pair, Lean and Layer

To make mismatched pieces look more intentional and cohesive on shelves, practice the pair, lean and layer techniques. Start in the back. Depending on the length or height of your shelves, you may be able to lean a piece or two against the back wall of the shelves. Artwork and large platters or plates work well for this. Then layer / slightly overlap some pieces in front of others. Pair different heights, allowing some breathing space. Try to style three items together at least once for a cohesive grouping. Combine textures and colors for style and function — for example, placing apples in a basket.

Step back and look

Does the overall look feel natural and pleasing? Step back to look around the room, too, not just directly at the shelves. If it’s too cluttered or crowded or not interesting enough for your taste, nudge items around, add or take away colors, sizes or shapes, until you like the way it feels!

Would you like to go behind the scenes of my home and be a part of a community of like-minded home lovers? Join me in real time each week to get insights into creating a sanctuary you love. You will learn my simple homemaking and decorating tips, be able to ask questions and get help decorating your home! Join us in HomeBody Gathering Place!

Botanical Plates

Brass Bells

Blue and White Chinoiserie Ginger Jar

Seascape Art Print in This Wood Picture Frame // I ordered this art here because I wanted a specific size but you can also get these prints (and others) HERE on Amazon in a variety of sizes and some already framed as well!

Blue and White Plates

Stoneware Crock

Favorite Cookbooks

Artificial Artichoke

Kitchen Hardware

Blue and White Chinoiserie Planter Pot on Shelf

Basket plant is in (pineapple lidded basket)

Paint color: Classic Light Buff Sherwin Williams

Kitchen Tour and Details

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