Try Joanna Gaines' Shelving Idea To Brighten Up A Dark & Moody Kitchen

For decades, the all-white marble-clad kitchen has dominated the world of interior design. But now, folks are turning toward darker kitchens to create a more cozy, sophisticated, and moody cooking space. This can be achieved through a few different choices, such as low lighting, darker wood tones, and deeply-hued countertop materials. You can also opt for an inky paint color or backsplash materials, pulling hues from greys, browns, blues, and deep greens. Though these dark kitchens are beautiful and dramatic, they can sometimes border on feeling claustrophobic and heavy. To avoid this, we turned to design extraordinaire Joanna Gaines and one of her projects for inspiration. One of the best ways to break up these cavernous spaces is by opting for open shelving over traditional cabinets. 

Showing off an earth-toned clad industrialist but homey kitchen space she designed for one of her clients, she describes wanting to balance the masculine elements while making it feel like an inspiring space. In order to strike that balance, Gaines points to the open shelving that's installed throughout the open concept kitchen. "This is just a really nice, functional space for my client, and what I like about it is that we did a lot of heavier colors in this room, they're darker, so anywhere I could do some open shelving to make it feel a little more light and airy," says Gaines in the YouTube clip. Here's why open shelving is the perfect element in dark kitchens. 

Matching bottom and top cabinets has been the standard in many modern kitchens for some time now. This is very practical, and most folks recognize there's no such thing as too much storage space in the kitchen, especially when you can conceal it all behind a door. In white, brightly lit kitchens, this looks clean and elegant, but in darker kitchens, this can make the space feel very heavy and tightly packed. Open shelving brightens the room by allowing more of the wall color to come through. And, because it allows you to display more of your kitchenware, open shelving breaks up the space by introducing more color and texture, adding some much-needed contrast and light to the kitchen. 

In Gaine's client's kitchen, the open shelves are stacked with a variety of different types of serving dishes and glassware. Shiny white porcelain coffee mugs, shallow wooden bowls, cake stands, elegant wine glasses, and more sit beautifully on the shelves. One of the biggest problems people struggle with when using open shelving is not wanting everything in their kitchen to be on display, especially for less aesthetically pleasing items like grease-spackled cookie sheets. That's why it's important to think of these as curated vignettes rather than purely functional storage. Choose a few vases, teacups, and serving trays as a starting point, then style your open shelves by weaving in other items like potted plants and functional decor. 

Don't get overwhelmed by designing the floating shelves either. Of course, you can custom order professionally made open shelves, or purchase and install a set like these BAYKA Floating Wood Shelves. You can also DIY floating shelves with storage drawers, or simply remove the cupboard doors from a few of your current cabinets. There's really no rule here as long as it's a shelving solution that fits your style and budget. For renters who can't install shelves directly to the wall, consider building a minimalist bookshelf such as Homeiju's 3-Tier Industrial Bookcase to give yourself some elevated storage on your countertop.

The great thing about open shelving is that you only have to incorporate as much or as little as you like. You could add just one stand to the right of the stove that holds all of your fancy olive oil and seasonings. Or, maybe you decide to line the perimeter with open shelves to show off your massive pottery collection. The point is using the open shelving to break up the darker colors. For more inspiration, check out Joanna Gaines' best tips for decorating your open shelving.