Have you embraced the open shelving trend? 'Shelfies' have become a more and more common sight on Instagram and Pinterest, as interiors enthusiasts share snaps of their carefully curated display shelves.
Read on to find out why open shelves are so popular right now, as well as ideas for bringing them into your home and an inspirational gallery of display shelving ideas taken from real homes.
Scandi-style minimalism has been a dominant decor style for years, so it's no surprise that more maximalist looks are starting to edge back into the spotlight. For instance, Cottagecore is set to be the hot decor style of 2021 - check out our ultimate Cottagecore guide for the full run-down, but in a nutshell this aesthetic is all about embracing cosy clutter to give your home a country cottage vibe.
If you've been following the Cottagecore trend, you'll know that display shelving is a core component of the aesthetic. And even if the rustic look isn't for you, open shelving is a simple and effective way to put your personality front and centre in your decor.
What to put on open shelves?
Marie Kondo famously tells us to treasure the items that spark joy, and open shelving is all about putting them on display. That means you are the best judge of what to feature on your display shelves, but start by thinking about ornaments, picture frames, books, houseplants or any other trinket that makes your home feel welcoming.
In the kitchen, more and more of us are choosing to use open shelving to put our cute and quirky mugs, plates and dinnerware on show rather than whisking them out of sight in cupboards. Once a common feature in country cottages, plate racks are soaring in popularity once again - no surprise, as they combine the appeal of nostalgia with the emerging trend for open kitchen shelves.
If you're looking for inspiration for how to make the most of open shelving, read on for our gallery of ideas drawn from our Real Homes features to find out how ordinary homeowners have brought display shelves into their decor. And if you prefer to display your homewares with a more minimalist approach, be sure to check out our guide to Japandi style, which favours neat and tidy open shelving displays!
Display shelving inspiration gallery
Style idea: combine varied sizes and shapes when creating shelf displays
This neat styling tip adds colour to a plain wall while helping to frame your favourite display pieces, just give a mini-canvas a wash of paint and place it at the back of the shelf
Clever solutions like this ladder shelf are perfect for displaying accessories and saving space at the same time
For symmetry, Kate placed two leaning shelf ladders either side of the bed. The shelves also function as an alternative to bedside tables for lamps, alarm clocks and other essentials
Giraffe bookcase, £339, Beaumonde
With a combination of chopping boards and glassware, interspersed with succulents, little posies and artificial plants, the shelf above the sink is cleverly arranged, without looking
too cluttered
‘I painted the window
frames black as they were
typical uPVC white before.
I wanted to create a Crittall-
style window look and I’m
so happy with the result!
The shelf above the window
was a floorboard I got from
B&Q and I love being able to
hang plants from it’
A wall-mounted shelf doubles up as a dressing table and is surrounded with shelves for all of Marilena’s trinkets, while the brick-effect wallpaper adds texture and detail
Image credit: Etsy
‘Colour coding my accessories on these
simple IKEA shelves has turned them into
a real statement piece of furniture, and nothing beats a rainbow in my eyes!’
Spice up plain cream walls with open shelving and warm wooden accessories. Image credit: Dunelm
Judith has made sure there’s plenty of storage areas for all of her lotions and potions including a built-in recess in the shower area, wall shelving from eBay and a handy caddy from Dunelm
The cabinets were already here, and Eniko gave them a new look by painting them in Marine Blue by Little Greene. The dark brown walls are painted in Mole emulsion by Abigail Ahern. ‘I removed the wall cabinets and replaced them with open shelving. Blackboard walls are great for styling up Instagram moments!’
Stylist Liz loves spending time rearranging her shelves with different vases, plants and prints to keep the scheme looking fresh
The shelves, which we made from old scaffolding boards, are one of my favourite features in the flat,’ Tosia says. ‘They’re home to my handmade dining sets from Christina Gascoigne, a small pottery studio in Richmond, and an old wooden tea box that dates back to 1930, which I found at a car boot.’
Arts and crafts tea towels, £6 for three;
T&G acacia chopping board, £20; acacia
board with handle, £11, all Dunelm
These handy storage shelves are also a set of sturdy steps that lead up to a reading nook made out of the eaves of the house, with a neon stripe hand-painted by Shrez
The kitchen shelves show off a characterful china
collection alongside one of Sophie’s late father’s old
cameras. ‘There’s pottery by local craftspeople, pieces
from holidays abroad and even budget bits from TK Maxx, and most of it gets used every day,’ she says
‘My favourite make in the kitchen has to be my gin shelves,’ says Kirstie. ‘They were easy to build using basic timber and plumbing fittings, and they
really lift the space with all of
the colourful bottles on display’
‘We love open shelving and displaying our favourite possessions, so you can see a lot of that in our home,’ Kate says
Pops of red break up the kitchen’s monochrome theme, and the white tiles form a simple splashback opposite the main cooking area. The wall-mounted open shelves are made from offcuts of the white quartz work surfaces and the quirky, black, cast-iron Honeycomb brackets are from Yesterhome
Keeping most cabinets on the floor frees up wall space for shelving where cook books, ingredients and utensils or pretty display items can be stored
How to create geometric shelves
In Zayd’s bedroom, Sodia repurposed old
scaffolding boards from Rugged London to create the shelving and desk area. The stool is from IKEA, while the rug is from B&Q and the Berber basket is from Beldi Maison
Elegant shelving is beautifully styled with a combination of high street, charity shop and vintage finds, including plant pots, candlesticks and jugs. Display units help create a sense of order in the flat. ‘I like my accessories to have their place,’ says Laura
Simon built the shelving in the kitchen using scaffolding planks from a local timber merchant and decorative brackets that came from eBay
Getting the opportunity to design the shelving herself, Lucy has made sure there’s plenty of room for her favourite pieces to have their own sections, including the star of the show, her artichoke lamp
Using shelves to display artwork makes it easy to add to and update prints
and photos
‘I’m not a fan of wall cabinets, and how they can make a room feel
cluttered and enclosed,’ says Liz.
‘The bright, airy feel is what made
us fall for this house, so we stuck
with open shelves for additional
kitchen storage’
Jemma proves that you don’t have to redo your whole
kitchen to make a statement. By reducing and reusing
existing cabinets and adding open shelves, she has
managed to create a modern atmosphere with vintage charm that feels stylish, warm and inviting
The wall insert shelves were created by the builders with plasterboard and lining paper, then painted in a dark-grey shade to match the wallpaper
Jen took the idea for open shelves from a Cornish cottage.
‘I love the look, plus everything’s accessible,’ she says
Laura painted the shelving unit, originally her mum’s, in Paris Grey
chalk paint from Annie Sloan
Rebecca is the Digital Editor of Your Home and HomeStyle. Having recently bought her first home, she's regularly poring over the latest decor trends for inspiration, and has special soft spot for French and Mediterranean styles.
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