To make it comfortable to be in the kitchen, you need to properly organize the space. Furniture and fittings are designed for this purpose, on the shelves of which you can put all the necessary utensils and products. When choosing spacious interior items, the owner pays attention to their appearance, practicality, and quality. Recently, shelving has become increasingly popular. Open shelves allow you to organize items so that they are easy to find. Such furniture is easy to install, perfectly complements the decoration of the room, and can be made with your own hands.
Location options
A special feature of the racks is their ease of use. The most necessary household items are always at hand. It is advisable to place on the shelves:
- Food;
- various utensils;
- containers with drinks;
- compact equipment;
- cooking books, magazines;
- baskets for fruits, vegetables, sweets;
- decorations (figurines, photographs, drawings, vases, small indoor plants).
The range of products from furniture companies allows you to choose the best option for both small and spacious rooms. Regardless of the size of the kitchen, it is recommended to place the shelving close to or within the work area. Shelves should not interfere with the movement of people. This arrangement ensures the most efficient use of furniture in the process of cooking and setting the dining table.
Sometimes a homeowner needs to zone the kitchen. This problem is also solved with the help of a rack. It can be used instead of a partition between the work and dining areas. It is important to remember that placing shelves too close to the hob (oven) can negatively affect the service life of the product. Therefore, you need to maintain the optimal distance between these points.
Fitment
For those who do not like to clutter up the space with massive furniture, a shelving unit can successfully replace a closet or a classic wall in the living room. This piece of furniture will be useful on the balcony, in the home library, in the nursery, in the pantry, in the garage and in the office. It can act as an accent in the interior if it has an unusual design and color. A standard shelving complements the existing furnishings and emphasizes the overall style.
In the living room
A shelving unit in the living room can be used to place a TV, books, and small interior details. A back wall made of mirror will visually increase the space if the shelves are not fully occupied. A wall-mounted model would be appropriate for the living room if heavy objects are not intended to be placed on the shelves. If there is a niche, you can use it to install a built-in shelving unit.
In the nursery
If the area of the children's room allows, then shelving can be used to zone it. When it comes to the interior of a room for a school-age child, it is convenient if the room is divided into zones: playroom, bedroom and study areas. A shelving closet between the play and sleeping parts of the room can be used to store toys, and next to the desk it is convenient to place shelves on which writing instruments and textbooks will be stored. Children's furniture can be bright colors or decorated with drawings.
In the kitchen
There is no need to install a wall-mounted shelving unit in a small kitchen. It will only eat up space. In a large kitchen, it is better to put a closed cabinet instead. However, some housewives love an abundance of open shelves, which “lighten” the interior and serve as a location for a large number of items that can be stored open. It makes the most sense to install a shelving partition instead of a wall between the kitchen and the dining room or living room.
The material for the shelving in the kitchen must match the material from which the kitchen set is made. For wooden kitchen furniture, the option made of wood or MDF with wood imitation is suitable. For a kitchen made of plastic, you can choose a model made of glass, metal or chipboard in plastic. The height of the rack should not be greater than the height of the furniture, with the exception of ceiling-height structures.
Related article: How to choose the design of a 2-room Khrushchev house?
Material
Depending on the manufacturer, design and purpose, furniture can be made from various materials. They all have advantages and disadvantages. The most common are wooden and metal racks.
Wooden
Such models are light in weight. Thanks to this, they can be installed either on the floor with subsequent fixation to the wall, or by hanging. The shelves successfully complement any style chosen by the apartment owner. The ease of processing and joining of wooden elements determines the popularity of the material when making shelving yourself.
To protect against moisture, furniture must be coated with paint, varnish or special impregnation.
In the process of implementing design ideas, it is recommended to maintain harmony between the color and texture of the shelves, kitchen countertops, furniture, dining table, and chairs. Experts recommend installing wooden shelving in rooms with calm shades: Provence, eco, Scandinavian style. For the latter, it is recommended to choose materials from light-colored rocks. Dark shelves that look like a sideboard should be used in classic kitchens and English-style rooms.
Designers strongly recommend against purchasing wooden shelving for installation in rooms with modern and technological decoration (high-tech, modern).
Metal
Furniture made from stainless steel has many advantages, which include:
- durability;
- strength;
- hygiene;
- practicality;
- possibility of wet cleaning using chemicals;
- resistance to moisture.
Such shelves can withstand a lot of weight. That is why metal racks are installed on the floor. Free space can be used to store dishes, kitchen utensils, and household appliances.
It is important to remember that open structures are difficult to fit into minimalism. They take up space and don't meet style requirements. It is best to purchase or make products for the kitchen, decorated in high-tech, Provence. Color decisions are made based on the combination of furniture with dishes and textiles. Metal shelving with a loft-style finish will look good. In this case, the shelves should retain their natural color or be painted black. In the case of Scandinavian design, preference is given to designs in pastel colors (blue, mint, lemon).
Accommodation
You can clearly see in the photo of kitchen racks how easy they are to use and how much can fit on them. The things that will be on this item must be necessary and frequently used. For example:
- frequently consumed foods and drinks;
- kitchen items;
- small household appliances, which will be useful for a rack for kitchen appliances;
- small magazines or recipe books;
- wicker baskets for fruits and vegetables that will decorate the kitchen interior.
Often such items are made by hand. This will help translate your personal style into a separate item.
Form
In specialized stores you can find racks of any configuration and size. Some designs are compact, while others, on the contrary, are massive and spacious. When choosing a product, it is worth deciding in advance what the user will store there and where it will need to be installed. If you can fit any furniture into a large room, regardless of its dimensions, then in a small space it is best to provide a compact classic shelving unit or a combined model. The most popular among buyers are:
- Island shelves.
- Cabinets.
- Products in the form of stepladders.
Execution
Wall-mounted (one-sided) – installed close to the wall. If the rack does not have a back wall, then its function is performed by the wall of the room. Wall racks are located around the perimeter of the room and are most widespread.
Island (double-sided) – installed anywhere in the room. Island shelving is used for zoning the space of a room and equipping a sales area. It is not advisable to install such models near a wall.
There are also end racks that combine the features of wall and island racks. They are used in trading floors and shops.
Solutions for small and large kitchens
Owners planning to equip a shelving unit in their kitchen should remember the basic rules for placing the structure in rooms of different sizes. A small room will look overloaded if it contains massive items with open shelves. An ideal option for a small-sized kitchen would be a lightweight stainless steel shelf.
Narrow linear and corner structures increase the kitchen space. Only compact items (dishes, vases, various accessories) should be placed on them. Built-in shelves fit well into limited space. For this purpose, in many modern apartments, niches are specially provided in the walls. If they are not there, then make a recess yourself using drywall and finishing materials.
In spacious kitchens, large shelving can be provided. Sometimes owners cover an entire wall with them, decorating them with decorative elements and beautiful dishes.
However, such designs also have a drawback. Every open shelf requires cleaning from dust. If there are a lot of them, and the furniture is high, then the housewife will have to spend a lot of time and effort in order to wipe the entire structure.
Scope of application
The versatility of the racks allows them to be widely used in various fields:
- In storage rooms for storing household items, winter supplies and household chemical solutions.
- For placing products in store sales areas.
- Book racks are used for arranging books and other stationery items.
- They are often installed in garages to store auto parts, construction materials, and tools.
- In rooms, shelving can perform different functions, for example, serve as a stand for a TV, stereo and other equipment; some models are used for storing clothes or other things.
How to make a kitchen rack with your own hands
There is nothing better than using furniture that you have made yourself. The advantages of homemade kitchen shelving include:
- arbitrary design. Products presented in retail outlets are produced according to a standard design. This reduces the uniqueness of the room and makes it less sophisticated. A homemade shelving allows you to realize all the wildest ideas of the apartment owner and select the highest quality materials at an affordable price;
- affordability. Initially, factory-produced structures are not that expensive. However, once in store showrooms, the cost of such a product increases by an order of magnitude. Therefore, from the point of view of the costs of the family budget, purchasing ready-made shelving is not always justified. Making shelves yourself will not require such investments. Materials can be purchased in construction stores or in open areas at manufacturer prices. In addition, significant savings are achieved due to the absence of the need to pay for the brand, labor costs, and the operation of equipment with high energy consumption;
- the possibility of making a rack taking into account the geometric features of the kitchen. Almost all housing has its own disadvantages in the form of defects, uneven walls, and the presence of ledges with communications hidden inside. An individual approach to the assembly of the structure will not only hide the shortcomings, but also turn them into advantages;
- the ability to remake the bookcase at any time.
In the absence of decent factory options, you should think about taking the assembly of the rack into your own hands. For this you may need:
- wooden pallets;
- perforated sheets;
- ladder.
To make wooden shelves, just find several pallets of the same size. Such containers are often used for storing vegetables and fruits. Then you need to assemble them into a single structure, fastening the elements together with ordinary nails. Thanks to the texture and wear, such a rack will look great in a country-style kitchen. To make the product more original, you can specially age the material.
Metal racks can be assembled as an organizer. To do this you will need metal sheets with perforations. It is noteworthy that this design does not contain a shelf. Objects are hung from metal elements fixed to the wall using strong wire. The indicated option is actively used as arranging a modern kitchen space.
The easiest way to assemble a structure is from an old wooden ladder (step-ladder). It will serve as a frame for attaching walls and shelves. Similar to pallets, the material can be aged or painted in any color suitable for the decoration of the room.
Choice of colors
The color scheme of the rack depends on the style of the room; this has already been said above. So, for example, for a modern style - these are bright, chrome-plated colors, original colorful colors and everything else.
For country, classic, Provence and similar styles that have long been used in interior design, it is most often wood and metal, in most cases not chrome-plated.
If we take styles like Scandinavian, homely and not pretentious, then the same ordinary and not pretentious shelving in calm, monochromatic colors, as well as shelves with natural relief, white, beige, brown and many others, will look good here.
You need to choose shelving for the kitchen in accordance with the size of the room and its design. Consider the style of the room to avoid ridiculous decisions that will later be too conspicuous and irritate you.
Use those racks that will look good in your kitchen and please you both visually and in practical use.
Photos of kitchen shelving in the interior
Secrets of storage on open shelves
- place only those items that you regularly use - then dust and dirt will not accumulate on them, and maintenance will become easier;
- group items by appearance and conceptual design - if you have cutlery and dishes from different collections, sort by size so as not to disturb the interior composition and maximize harmony;
- always leave empty spaces - this way you will avoid visual overload and make the shelf extremely neat;
- place objects in layers - move the smallest ones forward, and “entrust” the larger ones to the background.
This is just a small part of the many rules and tips that help achieve ideal ergonomics on your open storage systems. You will come to most of those that remain “behind the scenes” yourself, based on your sense of taste and the desire for harmony inherent in each of us.
