One of the largest benefits of kitchen islands and kitchen carts is their ability to expand the storage space in your home. The lineups of carts and islands available from the top manufacturers of kitchen home furnishings include a wide array of storage options, allowing you to find exactly what you need to better organize your kitchen. Whether it's big, bulky items that you need to store or smaller utensils and tools, there is an island or cart that is ideal for your needs.

Open shelves are found in a large number of islands and carts and are a favorite of home chefs. Having one or more open shelves on your island or cart allows you to keep items under the work top out in the open, so that you can quickly access them without having to stop, step away from the working surface and open a cabinet door.

Due to their popularity, carts and islands with open shelves are offered in a large number of styles. If you're unsure how to decide which cart or island with open shelves will be the best for your home, this Buyers' Guide to Kitchen Islands and Kitchen Carts with Open Shelves is for you. This guide will review all of the options that you'll have among styles of islands and carts with shelves, so that you can pick the perfect piece for you and your home.

Considerations of Open Shelves

Before you start to consider the options available among the collections of islands and carts with open shelves that are available from the biggest brands, you'll need to figure out exactly what you will be storing on the shelves. Take some time to determine precisely what pieces you'll be keeping there and how tall and wide each item is. You may even want to make a list to refer to as you continue to read this guide and to assist you when it comes time to shop.

Also, it is important to keep in mind that whatever you store on the open shelves of your new kitchen furnishing will not be hidden by a cabinet or drawer. If your new kitchen furnishing will be in area of your kitchen that is very visible to guests or people passing through the space, you'll want to take care not to over clutter your shelves, so that the piece will look neat and well kept. If your cart or island is not in a spot where anyone will see it, you won't need to worry about the appearance of the items that you'll be storing on the open shelves.

Number of Shelves

One of the first determinations that you'll need to make as you shop for an island or cart with open shelves is how many shelves will be ideal for your home. If you have a small number of items to store, styles with just one shelf will likely be ideal. This is especially true if the things that you have to store are very tall, as typically, carts and islands with one shelf have the most clearance from the shelf to the top of the piece.

If you have a moderate amount of items that are of average height, selecting a style with two shelves will allow you to spread items out more and reduce the cluttered appearance of the piece. Keep in mind, though, that if you want to use your new kitchen furnishing as a seating area, having two shelves will reduce the amount of legroom beneath the cart or island top.

A small number of islands and carts have three shelves, which are perfect for storing a larger number of items; however, there is generally less clearance between the shelves, so you may not be able to store tall items on a piece that has a trio of shelves. Like islands and carts with two shelves, models with three shelves will have less legroom for seating.

Shelf Location

After you have determined how many shelves you'll need for your new kitchen furnishing, you'll want to think about the placement of the shelves. There are four main locations or placements for open shelves in cart and island models.

• Full length open shelves take up the entire length of the cart or island and run parallel to the counter top or cart top. These shelves will give your island or cart a very open look that will make it appear more like a rectangular or square table than a piece of closed-in furniture.


• Over shelf open shelves run the full length of the piece, but are situated on top of cabinetry. Styles with over shelves will typically have just one available shelf, but offer the benefit of both closed and open storage. These carts and islands will allow you to hide some of your stored items, while keeping some things within easy reach in an open space.


• Front center open shelves are situated on the front of the cart and flanked by cabinetry. These shelves are shorter than full length shelves, so they cannot hold as many items; however, kitchen carts and kitchen islands with front center open shelves look more like closed-in furniture than a table and are more appealing to some home chefs. This style is seen more commonly in islands than in carts.


• Side open shelves have cabinets in the front and shelves that are turned and run along the full width of the piece. Typically, this style is seen in islands rather than carts. Side open shelves will often have slightly more storage space than front center open shelves, but will not offer as much room as full-length shelves. Islands with side open shelves have a more traditional island look rather than an open table style.

Shelf Material

After you have determined the best placement for your open shelves, it's time to consider the materials from which the shelves will be made. Most of the time, the materials of the shelves will be identical to the base, but in some cases more than one material may be incorporated into a style, such as in a cart that has stainless steel legs and wood shelves.

There are four primary types of shelf materials.

• Natural wood shelves are found in a large number of cart and island styles and shown in all four shelf placements. These shelves are either finished to show off the natural look of the wood from which the piece is made or painted to resemble another type of wood.


• Painted wood shelves are covered in a layer of paint to allow them to match or coordinate with a color found in the palette of your decor. Painted wood shelves are most common in full length placements.


• Stainless steel shelves are made from a blend of iron, carbon and trace metals or alloys like chromium, nickel and manganese. Stainless steel shelves are typically shown in full length placements and have an attractive silver color.


• Wrought iron shelves are made of iron that has been exposed to treatments to give it a dark gray or black tarnish known as a patina. Wrought iron shelves are available only in a small number of kitchen furnishings and are intended to give a piece an Old World or antique appearance. Typically, wrought iron shelves will be shown in open placement designs.

Shelf Style

After you have determined the materials that will best suit your personal tastes and the decor of your home, you're ready to think about the style of shelf that you prefer. Depending on the materials that you have chosen, you may be limited in the style choices available to you.

The three main shelf styles for kitchen carts and kitchen islands are:

• Solid shelves are made of a solid piece of the material being used. The solid shelf style is offered in natural wood, painted wood, stainless steel and wrought iron materials.


• Slatted shelves are constructed from beams, tubes or bars of the shelf material and have small spaces between the beams, tubes or bars. Slatted shelves often give a piece a more rustic or country appearance. Keep in mind that depending on the size of the space between the slats, thin or small items may be able to slip through them, Typically, you'll find slatted shelves in natural and painted wood and stainless steel materials.


• Grate shelves have circular holes cut into the shelf material. Like slatted shelves, this shelf style can allow small items to fall through the spaces. Many homeowners like the industrial, modern and contemporary look that grate shelves bring to an island or cart. Typically, grate shelves are crafted from stainless steel.

Other Considerations

After you have decided upon the best shelves for your new kitchen island or kitchen cart, you'll need to make some other decisions about the overall style of your new home furnishing. Some of the items that you'll need to consider include:

• The size of the cart or island


• The counter top of the piece


• The base of the piece