The moment is here. The moment I never thought would come… we got open shelves. What!? Who am I. I honestly never knew I would be an “open shelf” person. I mean, I love them in other peoples homes, but I just never thought we would have them. When we eliminated the upper cabinets in the kitchen of course open shelves were an option, but it was just an option & not the final plan. Today it became a reality. An open shelf reality. Now of course why would I share anything that is done? The kitchen is far from done. The shelves aren’t done. Well… they could be, but I am me.. so they aren’t. Not making sense? Let me show you…
AHHHHH! Aren’t they beautiful? Jose did good. He is so good. Our open shelving idea was born from the idea of what shelving would look like in a garden shed or a greenhouse. We used some antique chippy corbels that we had lying around the house for a long time & new pieces of lumber that we stained with antique oak stain by General Finishes & it came out to be quite perfect the best reclaimed barn wood look. Jose will do a whole tutorial on our farm blog very soon on how we hung the shelves & all of the nitty gritty details. I love how it turned out.. but then I had to go and add something to the kitchen which made me change my mind….
Because I can’t just do one project at a time I went digging in our storage room today & found an old cabinet that I love. On the other side of the kitchen I added the antique cabinet that I’ve had also had for a long time & it actually used to hang in our front entryway, but for a while it had just been in storage until a light bulb went off this weekend… spice cabinet in the kitchen! Since we don’t have upper cabinets in the kitchen I thought that hanging this cabinet up on the opposite side of the window & the open shelving would be a great little useful storage solution. The cabinet has little shelves & we will be making it into a spice cabinet soon.. more on that later. The cabinet wasn’t great “before” for this spot because of how dark it was so it was a very heavy visually in contrast to the rest of the room & the balance was very off with the shelves on the other side of the window. So the only “issues” were that I had to paint it to make it less visually heavy & we have to hang it higher. The best part of a shiplap backsplash? You can test out hanging things without drilling into tile. So basically we just propped the spice cabinet up for now, but after I’m done painting it we will play around with placement more. Today I did put a couple coats of paint on the antique cabinet & guess what color I chose? Our floor color. Yup, & it worked out really well. So, I used the same porch & floor paint by Behr in the color Tapestry Beige by Benjamin Moore [read about our painted floors HERE]. I kind of doubted that this would look good on the cabinet, but I have to say I love how it looks cohesive.. & I said before but that floor paint is a chameleon paint & it looks totally different on the cabinet than the floors. Ok, so what’s the not finished part Liz? I don’t get it. Well, there is another part to this blog post…
Look at the shelving with the new cabinet.. it doesn’t look bad.. I mean, the kitchen isn’t complete and it still looks pretty good. BUT I had an epiphany today… While eating lunch at our island I was looking at those open shelves & wondering if the actual shelf part [the wood] would look better in the beige paint. Yup, I’m going to try it either way [It’s easy to pop those wood boards off & replace with some painted boards. If we hate the painted boards, we can put the stained boards back on. Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezey.] I know people freak out when I mention paint, like when I mentioned we were painting our floors [HERE], but I promise it will be ok either way & I will try to make it our same cozy little cottage farmhouse either way… Love y’all & I’m thankful to have you here through all our house changes & I hope it all inspires you through each change to love your home, go against the grain, do what you love, & be bold and brave with your home decor. Painted floors? Pretty bold & brave & I’ve never been happier.. glad I listened to my gut. Listen to your gut you guys. Ok, I’m done… now on to a poll [I’m going to try the painted shelf either way] but what do you think for our home with the spice rack on one side..
A few things to consider before you answer:
1- take in consideration that our kitchen is far from being done or fully decorated. For example the spice cabinet isn’t hanging in it’s correct place, the appliances will be changing, we will add decor… you get the point.
2- answer if you were in our home with our style.
3- we won’t be painting the corbels… we will leave them chippy white.
4- ok… I’m curious so vote below…
Corbels- antique finds
Lumber- Home Depot
Toaster – [Here]
Kettle- [Here]
Faucet- [Here]
Rug- Home goods
Counters- [Here]
Sink– [Here]
Plates- [Here]
Absolutely love the stained open shelves with the other white painted shelf to the left of the sink!!! SO PERFECT!!!!
Both ways look amazing
Love the stained shelves! They add a bit of texture to the space. Maybe add a few stained wood bowls or cutting boards etc, inside the chippy white cabinet for balance? Adore your home <3
Love the stained shelves! They add a bit of texture to the space. Maybe add a few stained wood bowls or cutting boards etc, inside the chippy white cabinet for balance? Adore your home <3
I think stained looks nice to coordinate with your stained island… Such a pretty room!
Love the stained shelves!! With the cupboard you might think about removing the door and having an opened cupboard… just a thought.?
I say stained. They will help to balance with the white and also bring more attention to what you put on the shelves!? your home!
I love a white kitchen, even though the stained look wonderful, they would be amazing in white. And with your style, you could even paint them black, but white is always right in a kitchen. The color and texture will always come from your accessories. It’s looking so very beautiful, Liz.
thrifted_cottage
I am wondering if the white cabinet would look better with the stained shelves once it has the spices in it, adding some color to help balance it with the shelving. Just a thought, those shelves are gorgeous!!
I LOVE the wood! The contrast is so pretty BUT if you’re going to leave the cabinet, I would definitely paint just because I feel like the wood on just one side makes it a little heavy over there. So it really depends on if you’re keeping the cabinet or not for me! Cabinet- paint, no cabinet- stain! <3 IN LOVE with the progress so far!
Paint or stain in the white family, what I love about your style is ALL the white..
However what ever you do is always amazing!
Exactly!
First I just want to say I LOVE your farmhouse and I look forward to each post to see what you are working on! Your kitchen is beautiful and I think I like the natural wood shelves, it creates a good contrast with all of the white. The OCD inside me wishes you had the same shelves on the other side of the window too even if the space is smaller.
I love the corbel shelves:) I gotta be honest I really could see you and Jose being our next hgtv fixer uppers behind chip and jo:) you guys cone up with the neatest ideas. Had to share it! Love your ideas.
Wood! It compliments the island. ♥️
Paint them white to balance both sides of the wndow! The same color too! You will get color etc… as you fill the new little cupboard just as you got color on the open shelve as your filled them! I vote white!
I love the warmth of the wood, but I understand you wanting to at least try paint. I wonder how a sanded down version of a painted shelf would look? Whatever you decide is a win win because it’s already beautiful! So happy for you and excited to continue on the journey with you.
Patti
I think that it’s all completely fabulous!! I would probably stain them or darker them just a bit took have more of a darker weathered look. You can always put something of that color in your cabinet on the left to tie it all together.
I love your many projects and ideas. Please don’t paint the shelves – the stain and the corbels are striking. You might want to rethink the cabinet. Will it really be functional back in that corner? It seems you’ll really have to stretch across the stove??
Rhonda
I vote for painting the shelves. Your eyes would follow a triangle of color (floor, shelves, cabinet). Either way it is beautiful! Speaking of beautiful, have you shared your new refrigerator yet? Best of luck!!
Paint all the way!!! It would be so much more cohesive. The chippy corbels add enough texture, and painting the shelves would tie in the spice cabinet so much better!! I think it’s a bit busy with the wood stain, chippy corbels, and items in the shelves. White would bring it together! Although I’m still in love with this kitchen no matter what you do! ❤️
I didn’t know how to vote! The stained shelves look amazing. The spice cabinet looks amazing. When you put them in their current state and look at both together on either side of the window, I feel they don’t look balanced. I’m a pretty symmetrical kind of person so I would do both the same whether it be painted or stained. BUT, that’s me and I know I’m weird about things like that so you do what you like, that’s all that matters! It’ll be gorgeous any way you choose.
I vote stained : )
Stained for sure! Looks so pretty already!
I vote painting the cabinet and shelves the same white to make them look cohesive with eachother. Different, but still complementing. Looks pretty, cant wait to see all the layers come together!
I think it would be cool if you sanded a tiny portion of the glass cabinet to be raw wood so that it goes cohesive with the other side or my vote is paint it ‘)
Is it possible to photoshop the shelves and make them white to see what they would look like?
I would leave them stained. Also, perhaps keep the items on the shelves to a minimum.(smaller or less). Everything you do always turns out beautifully- I’m sure how ever you style them, it will be great!?
This spring, I plan to paint our family room floors AND stairs!! ??
I so enjoy your adventures at white cottage farms.❤️
Hi Liz and Jose,
I love the warmth that the stained shelves give to the room. Have you thought about staining the back of the inside of the cabinet? Maybe that will make it feel more balanced. I love everything that you both have done to your home. I enjoy watching your stories and the updates on all your animals. God bless you both and thanks for letting us be a little piece of your day. ❤
Hi Liz. Just stain the shelves. Your kitchen is just lovely. I live I Brisbane Queensland Australia. I don’t live in a farmhouse. You inspire me so much. Your life and stories are the very first thing I look at every morning. You make me ☺ for the rest of the day. ❤????
You have soooo much white. It’s beautiful don’t get me wrong. Leaving the wood just compliments the whole look. I hope you don’t paint them. However this is your dream space.? you should follow your heart. ?
I just have to say I am in love with your style and your amazingly airy, cozy and welcoming home.
I love the floors and all it’s furnishings.
Anything you do will look awesome as usual, so paint or stain really won’t change that.
I would prob live with the stained shelving first since I do the love how gives a break to the painted surfaces and too see if to paint the shelves would win out in the end as it usually does with me.
I am prob a bit more symmetrical and would have to have your talented hubby make the same shelving on the other side of the window and maybe find a dif spot for the dreamy cupboard.
Can’t wait to see it either way.
I love the stained shelves but… if it’s easy to get back wouldn’t hurt seeing how the painted shelves would look…
but I do love the natural pops
Love them stained-but perhaps replace the shelves in the cabinet with wood ones as well, or as someone else mentioned, add wood accessories. Depends on what type of little jars you are going to use for the spices 🙂 Whatever you choose, it will be absolutely lovely!
Stained. The wood looks beautiful and shows up better
Everything looks absolutely beautiful! You guys did a great job!
I know I’m a little late on this but that natural wood just brings warmth to that wall. Love all that you and your husband creates. I’m hoping to do this in my bathroom.
[…] Source: Liz Marie Blog […]
I vote for the “pop” of the stained shelves. And, how would the spice rack look on the right with the shelves on the left.
Actually, I would leave the unpainted open shelves exactly the way they are – the color is perfect. Not too light so as to disappear, but not too dark to become a focal point themselves. The eye has a place to “land” & rest, but – it isn’t forced to stay there by a too-dark color. It blends nicely with the island, too & adds a bit of warmth to the window wall. Just leave them as they are is my vote!!
Totally on board with leaving them stained. It adds a warmth in all of the stark white everywhere in the kitchen and helps the dishes pop! BUUUUT I also work for a woodworking company and I have a fierce love for the stained wood look and letting the wood do the talking 😉
I love the shelves as is. But in this instance, looking at the room as a whole, I think that painting the shelves would balance everything more. Plus, the corbels would stand out and be more of a star if the shelves blended in more. And of course, all the beautiful pieces you display will stand out more as well. Whatever you choose, it will look beautiful!
Those shelves are awesome! I love the little brown and white bowls, can you tell me who makes them or where you purchased them please?