Open shelves Dan create visual interest if you use them to store common place everyday objects, ones that will be used enough to avoid collecting dust, or display Like minded items of interest, whether it be all white serving ware, as in country styled kitchens, or a grouping of recipe books. Whichever you choose, make sure the items are not static, and get moved around enough to remain visually interesting and dust free! Open shelves can be vertical shelving units, amongst your tall cabinets to fill awkward left over space, at upper level within easy reach of your, keeping Bench-tops free of clutter. They can merge into an adjoining desk space perfect to pay and store bills, or charge your iPad etc ready for ordering online. Open shelves can be further utilized to introduce colour or texture into a single palette kitchen, for example having timber open shelves or a colour can tie in accessories, appliances or even splash back colours. As a kitchen designer, I often include them into a design, and make sure they are a usable size, and flexible enough that if you tire of them, you could order a door to enclose them at some point. If you like the option of that, the shelves would be need to be recessed 20mm back from the adjoining door fronts so if one was added, they would all be seamless. This can be design feature by also adding a 20mm shadow line around the unit. To get an idea, take a look at the Formica colour palette brochure with a timber feature open unit, the feature colour here was yellow, and was designed by me. Good luck.

Some good comments above. My simple suggestion goes like this. Starting at each end, I see they are adjustable, double up the shelves making them stronger, and then you will only have two shelves in each bay. Even them out so yu end up with three equal cubbies. They will look quite cubed, and house foldable fabric baskets which are cheaply available in many colours, try Kmart for packs of 5 for less than 10.00. I would use these end cubes for your practical needs, like onesies, singlets, nappies and creams etc. The central shelves I would display the children's favourite things, on lower shelves, books to access, and some things you want seen as keepsakes, not to play with a they won't reach them easily. The shelves could be configured differently in each space depending on use, but I'd utilize the lower two cubes in one room as desk space, with books above. A cute colourful lamp, and again foldable baskets each side, so that perhaps each child may choose their own side, and have somewhere that's just theirs. In a house ful, it's even more important to have somewhere just for your stuff. These will be great when you make them a little less busy, and providing those inserts will keep them looking tidy, even when they're not. maybe you Could have different colours for each child, to help with the order of things. Good luck with another bub.

Hi everyone, I'd like to thank you all for your input. Have been a busy spring and summer, but now I'm back and able to focus on the living room. Couple of things have been done/removed since lately: 1. Leather lounge set: I've (luckily) sold the leather lounge set - absolutely great piece with great quality, but not my taste at all. It made a world difference to the living room and even dear hubby, who liked the set, did acknowledge that the difference of less furnitures is great. 2. The rug 3. The white cabinet 4. New curtains with pelmet I love the pelmet although it's old style and yes, the curtains are too short! Will amend this at later stage :) These changes have made a huge impact on the room. Also, I'm also open to change the dining table with chairs for another nice option in an attempt to make this more interesting/cozy/inviting. So, these are the only things that I won't be able to change (we may (note on may) also move house by the end of this year/early next year) # Blinds # Colour of trims and built-in bookcase # Camel back sofa - I'm happy to reupholster it though and change the fabric. This will cost $2000 but I think it's worth it since they are really comfortable and are of good quality. I'd like to integrate the white frame with the gold poster in the design - an idea is to place 3x posters on the biggest wall of the air conditioner. I'm aware that a brown frame may suit the gold poster better, but I'm so tired of the colour brown at this moment. --------- So, I now feel I'm able to adjust as per your suggestions and recommendations much easier now. Appreciate every response and idea (And sorry for the mess of papers on the desk and floor! We're busy professionals and sometimes I have to let my husband have his creative space despite my OCD when it comes to decluttering and keeping it tidy)

Wow Thank you everyone. Now I’m overwhelmed haha. At the moment I shut roller shutter most of the time during the day to stop the sun damaging the piano. I’d like to be able to open the shutter during the day and let the natural light come in. The wall where the cube is right is the only spot where the sun can’t reach. I can move the photo to the left wall and have piano underneath. Big reader : the sun still get the piano where the desk is now and desk wouldn’t fit in that corner. And I really can’t have a desk by the window and work sit in the afternoon sun. And yes I need storage for documents but build in not In budget at this point in time.😔 Kate : purpose is to have a office / study and storage to store paper work and documents. MY place has small and literally no storage and desperate for any kind of storage. Can’t really be 100 percent Paperless at the moment. 😞These are the 2 that stay Desk: w120 d75 h95 Piano: w138 d58 h88 Dreamer: I’d love to have a build in cabinets etc but budget is tight. Will have to buy a storage furniture for now. I can put the piano to the corner but half of it still exposed to the sun. I can’t really install anything on the external cos I already have a roller shutter installed 😔 and I have 3m tinted on the window upstairs windows facing west too but furnitures still fade. 😞I’m thinking about installing the sunscreen roller blinds inside but I’ll do some more research. Pottys99: a long table along the window sounds good but can’t really put computer or anything electrical on the window side cos I’d like to find the way to have the windows open all the time during the day. The western sun would destroy my computer. I still haven’t repurpose the sideboard 😀 Siriuskey : as you can see in the photo the western sun still gets to where the desk is now and it will get worse in summer! But I could move piano and photo to the left wall. But cube shelf and desk wouldn’t fit in one fall I wanna replace that cube shelf anyway.