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Open Kitchen Shelves

January 6, 2020 by Lisa Leave a Comment

I think I am in the minority when I confess to you, dear reader, that I do not like open kitchen shelves. They are pleasing to the eye when I first gaze upon their aesthetically pleasing utilitarian free-range displays of colorful porcelain. I want those open shelves. I crave having them in my home. Thankfully, this is where my practicality kicks in. If I had open shelves in my kitchen they would become a magnet for greasy dust build-up and would look like they were shoved onto a shelf without a care in the world.

open white shelves with bottles and dishes — Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash

Now that I am an empty nester we don’t use as many dishes as before. Not like we did when the kid was home and I had a house full of teenagers. Back then I was lucky if there was a clean dish left for dinner.

Don’t get me wrong, we considered open shelves when we built our house four years ago. That lasted a whole hot minute. My dreams of artfully styled gorgeous crockery meant two things: 1) I need to learn how to style and 2) I would need to procure gorgeous crockery.

Of course, I can also picture my grandmother stopping in for a visit. Nearing 90, she has issues many women her age have — she forgets things on occasion and is moving slower. But, I can also guarantee the one glass she would grab off of my beautifully styled shelves would send her to the sink in search of a bottle of Dawn dishwashing liquid and a scrubber. Hazel knows a thing or two about household storage and this would be a calamity in her eyes.

The kid still comes home frequently and is, at best, a bull in a china shop most days. I think the chips in our cups and dishes have increased due to his shorter visits. He has been gone just long enough for all of the bad habits of college life to kick in while the established good habits leak out of his brain to make room for something… When I ask him what he learned, it’s the same answer he’s given me since kindergarten — “I don’t know.”

There is also the issue of clutter. The older I get, the less I like clutter. It exhausts me, so I take time every day to tackle spots that are clutter magnets and clear it out. (I’m cleaning out my closet soon – if you don’t hear from me in a month, send help.) The less clutter you have, the more organized you are and since I am not the naturally organized woman my family members are, I will do anything I can to stay on track of organization. This means hiding dishes behind a cabinet door as the stacks, no matter how neat they are, look like clutter.

There are a few instances where I would try open shelves. If I had odd-sized spaces where a cabinet wouldn’t work, or if I was a master of vignettes. I do have collectible dishes that I can display, but there are usually only one or two pieces out at a time. A friend told me I might like them better because I cook a lot and they make it easier to put my hands on the things I need, but I learned long ago to approach cooking with organization, so I gather everything ahead of time.

What are your thoughts on open kitchen shelves? Love or hate them?

Stuff: Owning more than you realize

January 12, 2015 by Lisa Leave a Comment

Normally, I’d have a blog post go live at 6am today. However, with preparing for the move (is that all I talk about? Gah! I’m becoming to predictable.) my brain is whirring, but it’s all about punch lists, inspections, packing and purging.

This is truly a learning experience. When you’ve lived in one place for 15 years, no matter how well organized and “neat” it looks, you have NO IDEA how much stuff you own. If you didn’t know by now, I’m a reader and have a lot of books. There are enough books that I could have built a decent sized library on to my house and filled it. That’s fine, IF I could get rid of books, but I can’t. It must be my old soul, or a past life, ~~screaming at me~~ telling me “books are sacred!”

Did you hear that sigh? That’s me, exhaling loudly. I’m not sure if it’s exasperation, or frustration. Both two different feelings, but I’m pretty sure they’ve combined into a lethal combination of “Meh.” Meaning, I should be packing and doing more work to get rid of things that are no longer loved, but I’d rather play air banjo or listen to 80’s New Wave and do the “white man’s overbite” dance.

I know you’re reading and saying “Lisa, you really need a vacation.” And yes, yes I do. What I’d love is to go somewhere tropical, possibly ski in Switzerland, or visit a very large city — say London or Paris — and just walk for hours. If I were to be in either of those cities, I’d also go to every obscure museum you’ve never heard of. Like the Musée de la Serrure a/k/a Musée Bricard in Paris. It is the most gorgeous little museum of locks and keys. It’s closed to the public, but I’m hoping it reopens before my next trip abroad.

So that is that. Or something like that. I’m sitting down to empty my thoughts online, in my diary, and by making lists. In fact, I nearly started waxing poetic about lists just now and stopped myself, as I’ve tortured you enough with my ramblings and don’t want to frighten you away.

The Great Housing … Purchase

July 17, 2014 by Lisa 7 Comments

We’re buying a house. Let me rephrase that; we’re building one. The mortgage info came today and somewhere around January, our new Home Sweet Home will be ready. Frankly, I’m surprised I’ve not thrown up yet.

My husband is in the financial business. We’ve never purchased due to the overwhelming boom when we first married and then when he saw the writing on the wall regarding the crash. As my friend Cat would say, “He’s SMAHT.” It has also been a long time coming.

But now, I have to think long and hard about color schemes. New furniture (some). Plumbers. Electricians. AC maintenance. Homeowners insurance. Lawn maintenance. ALL THE THINGS.

You know that panic attack I wrote about? Guess what I’m trying not to do right this very minute.

So, I’ll be writing more about homes in the future. It’s more for my sanity and your entertainment — after all, the things I write under stress, and with high emotion, are entertaining and really good, if I say so myself.

There is one thing I can guarantee. There will be no taupe or beige. Every subdivision in Charlotte is filled with McMansions which are either bricked in the front, with vinyl on the sides and back, or a beige vinyl siding. In fact, the only room without color will be my office/studio. The rest — y’all, I have no idea. I do know it’s time to hit up Pinterest and create new boards. You can find me on Pinterest here if you want to follow along.

And Mom, might want to get busy on those paintings I’ve commissioned.

Living Room Re-Do

April 23, 2013 by Lisa Leave a Comment

My office is in a corner of our living room and while it’s to my back for a great deal of the day, I’m feeling the urge to re-do the entire room.

I do believe I’d start with the Crate and Barrel Margot Sofa. The midnight blue has tones of grey which makes it a great neutral addition. We’ve actually been looking at it for some time, as we’re getting ready to replace our sofa. It also blends my husbands love of Modern Design with my more Contemporary/Traditional tastes.

For a pop of color, I’d add this pink chair. (That noise you’re hearing? My husband and son groaning.)

Source: loveyourplace.blogspot.com via Lisa on Pinterest

I’d also add little complementary pops of color like this simple floral arrangement:

Source: elegantlyeclectic.tumblr.com via Lisa on Pinterest

I’ve been looking at rugs as well, because if we learned anything from “The Big Lebowski”, it was the rug ties the room together, always.

This living room setting below is a great blend for my family as it brings in modern and contemporary elements, which is a must in our home. The shades of gray soothe, while the green accents complement.

Contemporary Living Room by San Anselmo Interior Designer Ann Lowengart Interiors, LLC

I’ve selected two looks. Both similar, but very different in color scheme. This just means I need to spend more time thinking about which direction I want to take our living space.

Cleanliness is next to…something.

November 8, 2009 by Lisa Leave a Comment

When I was growing up, my grandmother always told me that “Cleanliness was next to Godliness”. I like things to be clean. Neat. Organized. For me, it’s a constant struggle.

My name is Lisa and I am a perfectionist. I am never satisfied with “good enough”. It has to be stellar, shining, immaculate, Grandma ready. If you don’t know what Grandma ready is, let me explain. When you go to Grandma’s house, at least in the South, it’s immaculate. From the flowers in her yard, to the freshly pressed curtains in the kitchen. If you don’t live up to her expectations, I guarantee that you will be talked about.

I tell you, it’s hard to live up to the Grandma status quo. It’s her voice I hear in my head. “You know, how can a person live with that much dust in their house, it is killing them.”Well Grandma, right now my house is dusty and the kitchen cabinets are in serious disarray. Shoot me now. Or come clean for me.

So, while cleanliness might be next to Godliness, I hope she understands that right now I am just trying to get by while adding an extreme amount of work to my schedule. I can’t be perfect all the time and wonder if “good enough” will work for me? It has to.

Otherwise, I might wind up in the psych ward babbling like Porky Pig.