5 Interior Design Tips to Help You Style Your Kitchen Shelves

Kitchen shelves can be particularly difficult ones to style because, as much as you want them to look intentional and designer, you also need them to be somewhat functional! Often we find ourselves using kitchen shelves for dishware, glassware, cookbooks, etc. By following a few simple tips, we can help you take your kitchen shelves from chaotic to curated in no time at all.

1. Keep colors and textures consistent

By repeating textures and colors throughout the shelves, you can easily achieve a cohesive look that feels very intentional. For the kitchen shelves above and below, I chose to achieve this symmetry by repeating light wood tones on both shelves, as well as white stoneware to contrast the dark walnut color of the shelves themselves. I also used a brass framed print on the top shelf to tie in with the brass light fixtures over the island.

2. Use Pieces THat are Unique to You and Your Family

Instead of just heading to Target to stock up on everything in the Hearth and Home department, shop your own home for ideas and inspiration. Using pieces, books, prints, etc. that are unique to you and your family will help keep your shelves from looking basic. For example, I used the #hellokirbys sign I made for our wedding (10 years ago!) on our shelves, but mixed them with new Target canisters and light wood cutting boards to achieve the look I was going for.

3. Add FUnction

As I mentioned above, this is a kitchen shelf, and is right next to our sink. Using a portion of the shelf to house glassware, mugs, small plates or bowls keeps the shelves functional. While you want this area to look good, you don't want it to feel out of place by having nothing kitchen related on it. I also added some of our prettier cookbooks and a marble mortar and pestle, things I use somewhat regularly in the kitchen, to the design.

4. Pay Attention to the Shelves Themselves

It is definitely worth investing in quality made shelves and hardware to hang them. Nothing looks worse than a kitchen shelf that looks like it is about to fall off the wall. When our contractors hung these shelves several years ago, they drilled holes in the solid wood and inserted metal pipes that then went into studs in the wall. They told us you could basically hang on them and they wouldn't fall. If your shelves are unsteady, make sure you keep everything on them very light, and not breakable! There are so many tutorials out there for floating shelves, but these are a few of our favorite: Plywood Wrapped Shelves, Ultra Shelf (while we haven't tried these, they have great reviews and seem to have a similar installation style to ours).

5. Add Greenery

Anyone who has been coming to this blog for a while knows that I have greenery ALL over my house, and absolutely love the vibes that plant life give a space. Adding a plant, especially one like the Philodendron above that hangs below the shelves, adds beautiful green life to the shelves and keeps them feeling fresh and styled, no matter what else you put on there!

Ultimately, remember that you can always change these (I've probably changed our kitchen shelf decor a dozen times since we moved in 5 years ago), and your style is also always changing and evolving! Let your shelves evolve with you, and don't take yourself or the shelves too seriously. Have fun with it, and people will love them!

Shop my Shelves

Want to shop some of the decor items from my kitchen shelves? Click on any photo below and always remember you can visit our LTK shop to shop my house anytime!