Our biggest design challenge since buying this house has turned out not to be furniture, wall color, curtains, or any of the common challenges we were expecting, but… nooks.
There are three, and I don’t have the slightest clue what do with any of them. The one that baffles me the most is this one:
the dining nook nook
This is in the kitchen, directly across from the breakfast table. Were it located anywhere else in the house, I would slap a door on it and call it a linen closet, problem solved. However, because it’s in the kitchen, and because I don’t want my sheets and comforters smelling like food, I am at a total loss for what to do.
We considered turning it into a bar, but it’s so deep (24″?) and high (I can’t reach the top shelf at all) that a bar seems like a waste of this potentially great storage space—I mentioned before that storage is at a premium.
Furthermore, like all the nooks in this house, the brackets for the shelves aren’t affixed to the wall with screws or nails, but with wood glue, so removing them is out because I don’t want to damage the drywall. Thanks, previous owners, for locking me into your stupid shelving decisions!
Then there’s the coffee and tea nook:
coffee and tea nook
This one, at least, is functional. I hate the bulky, honey-colored, 80s-reminiscent shelf, but I can paint the bracket and replace the shelf with glass, and I’ll be even happier with the overall look once the wall is painted. Moving on!
This nook is in our living room, goes from the floor to halfway up the wall, features the same terrible shelving and irreplaceable brackets, and is just a total eyesore.
the empty nook
Currently I’m using it to store my cookbooks, but that is just temporary.
nook in living room with cookbooks
My friend Sara has suggested that we put a door with a latch on and use it (again) as a liquor cabinet, and that’s the best suggestion I’ve heard yet, but because of the unsual size of it, we’d probably have to custom-fit a door.
If you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them! No curtain suggestions, though: a gathered curtain covering a nook never looks good to me, just lazy and cheap.
I LOVE reading these house related updates.
I don’t have any suggestions for specific uses of the shelves, but I do like the look of either wallpaper or a contrasting or vibrant color on the inside (you could cover both the walls and shelves themselves in either).
Re: the dining room nook: your fancy/special dishes? Family photos?
I don’t know about coverings, but I’d probably use the nook in the dining area for dishes, putting the stuff that doesn’t get used often (like good stemware and such) on the top shelf so you’d only have to drag the step stool out for special occasions.
Dried goods in pretty bottles?
I have wanted those rainbow mugs for quite awhile now.
Could the dining nook nook be used for bulky serving dishes or pretty kitchen stuff that doesn’t fit elsewhere? I love nooks and built ins, but haven’t had to deal with them myself yet, so maybe I’d feel differently if they were in my house :)
I don’t really have any helpful suggestions that haven’t already been mentioned.
However, I’d love to know where you got your colorful mugs and mug holder that are pictured in your tea nook picture!
hallie – on sale at urban outfitters, i think.
maybe slap a door on it and use it as a kitchen linen closet? tablecloths, napkins, kitchen towels?
I can see the nook with big cast iron casserole dishes and other brightly colored large dishes that won’t fit other places.
Put a door on it and it’s the perfect place to stash all those appliances you use often enough to keep, but not often enough to have them living out on the counter?
Yeah, I got nothin’. Those are some odd nooks.
i have no suggestions because i am not creative at all, but i love the tea/coffee nook! i think putting a door with a latch on it and using it for liquor or really anything would be great. built-in shelves are so useful and awesome, but they’re awkward. and what were the previous owners THINKING with those shelves? oh well. you will make them work, for sure!
I have always wanted a nook and especially a book nook.
I love your nooks for your books and tea!
tea/coffee nook! I approve!
for the dining room nook, I’d put stacks of plates/platters, and/or glasses/stemware. Free up lots of space in the kitchen.
I love the nooks in your house and I actually think that the cookbooks look great there. I don’t know what I would use the nook in the dining room for. (And I see that you have a McDougall book in with your cookbooks- I love that book)
The living room one can be used for dvds, games, movies, toys, books etc. If you have favourite throw pillows/blankets for that room you could store those too.
Kitchen nooks can be used for appliances. Especially if your spaces are as large as they look. think about counter-top appliances that take up too much space, or maybe appliances you wish you had counter room for but don’t. kitchen aids, food processors, grills etc would all fit.
I happened across your site because of the Cooking for Little Vegans Class that you ad recently. My beau and I like the idea of taking is, so we might register for your next one…
So, I have a fetish for all things house related, I clicked on your cateogry and found this post.
I think the bar/appliance nook is an easy solve:
1) Get a tension rod from Fred Meyer. Make or find and alter a stylish curtain. If you don’t sew, you can make no sew curtains. This solution will be cheaper than buying wood and hardware for a door.
2) Unless you can get the door to recess and the border of the nook can act as a frame. Then you can have concealed storage. Maybe with one of those latch systems that are magnetic? It’d be very Sherlock Holmes.
*I didn’t read about the no curtain. I think you could still pull it off if it’s heavy weight fabric. Sorry I broke your rule. (: