Modern Kitchens with Open Shelves, Beautiful yet Impractical Kitchen Design Trend

wooden kitchen wall
Wood in modern kitchen design

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Modern kitchen designs that feature only wall shelves instead of upper cabinets can be visually appealing. Stylish look is excellent, but everyday comfort is more important. Design magazines often showcase modern kitchens that feature open shelving and lack wall cabinets. These interiors feel airy, light, and minimalist. When many people decide to repeat this kitchen trend, they regret it after a few months. Lushome understands why.

A beautiful kitchen design featured in a magazine is distinct from the ordinary kitchens that people use daily. A kitchen without upper cabinets can quickly turn into a nightmare in real life. Who can live with a spacious and modern kitchen that lacks storage? Designers offered open shelves, but it is one of the impractical design trends that disappoints families.

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Kitchen designs with open shelves

white kitchen design
White kitchen cabinets and wall lights

Kitchen wall shelves can look attractive with a pair of beautiful plates, a potted plant, and a stylish pasta jar. In reality, after a week, greasy plaque accumulates on the open shelves from cooking. The dust settles on everything the open shelves hold. Every single item on the shelf needs to be wiped when cleaning, taking up precious time from a busy schedule.

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Open shelves create visual noise. Even beautifully arranged dishes look like chaos if there are many of them in unmatched colors. The perfect look, as shown in the magazine picture, requires filling the shelf to a maximum of 30% of its capacity. If you can live with it, go for a minimalist kitchen design with wall shelves instead of upper cabinets. If not, consider adding a few wall cabinets to one of the kitchen walls or exploring clean kitchen designs for visual inspiration.

yellow wall paint
White kitchen design with a yellow accent wall
empty kitchen wall decorated with wallpaper
Open-wall kitchen design, wall decorating with tiles and wallpaper
spacious contemporary kitchen design
Spacious contemporary kitchen
wooden kitchen shelves
Wooden shelves, contemporary small kitchen design
dark kitchen wall open shelves
Original kitchen shelves, dark wall with white cabinets
wooden kitchen wall
Wood in modern kitchen design

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  by Ena Russ   
   01.10.2025

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