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    Home » Budget Decor

    Changing Out The Corner Cabinet

    Published by Pam Kessler | 409 words. · About 3 minutes to read this article. -

    I have been wanting to do something different with the corner cabinet in my dining room for a long time.

    I love the cabinet. It was a family piece and probably not in the fine antique category, but it means a lot to me, so painting is not on the menu (can you hear my entire family breathing a collective sigh of relief).

    Vintage corner cabinet hardware.

    I use it primarily as a place to store my formal china and glassware.

    Closeup of wedding china.

    But the cabinet was sort of boring to look at. A very uninspired and run of the mill display.

    I originally thought that it would be fun to use it to showcase my white ironstone tureens, pitchers and vases. A sea of creamy, dreamy whiteness. But I still needed a place to store my china and glassware. Call me crazy, but it seemed pretty silly to have a china cabinet and then store my china in a box in the basement.

    So, I decided to rearrange the china, by stacking some of the plates and glassware, to gain enough room to add just a few larger pieces for more interest.

    Corner cabinet before:

    Corner cupboard with doors closed.

     

    Corner cupboard with doors open.

    (yawn)

    Corner cabinet after:

    Corner cupboard with basket on top.

     

    Corner cupboard with soup tureens,

    I replaced the white vases and soup tureen on top of the cabinet with this vintage basket that I bought at an estate sale last summer.

    Vintage wooden basket.

    One would think, that since I originally had planned on all white in the cabinet, that I would have left the white pieces up there, but I thought it needed something more simple on top.

    I put one of my white tureens on the bottom shelf along with one of my dogs.

    Soup Tureen.

    My silver oblong footed bowl on the second shelf with another dog. These dogs really have mastered the "stay" command.

    Silver bowl.

    The third shelf still has a primarily china and glassware theme.

    Wedding china placesetting.

    And the top shelf is where I put another white tureen with some hydrangea in it, alongside my MIL's silver candlesticks.

    Dried hydrangea in a bowl.

    Not a huge change, but it seems lighter, brighter and less serious now.

    China cabinet.

    I would love to leave the doors open. But Otis, the cat, would be in there in a flash, throwing the dogs to the floor and making a bed out of one of the tureens.

    Striped cat lying on a pillow.

    After all, he is the cat who tried to sit in my vintage McCoy mixing bowl and knocked it to the floor breaking it into 100 pieces. He'll try to cram his butt into anything.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. curio cabinet

      April 15, 2012 at 12:40 am

      Your corner cabinet looks fantastic!

    2. JunkStuffTreasures

      March 16, 2012 at 8:15 am

      Looks great! I've been thinking about re-arranging my hutch contents, also. Stacking the china to gain more display space for favorite pieces is a wonderful solution!

    3. Elizabeth (Blue Clear Sky)

      March 14, 2012 at 8:09 pm

      Your china is lovely and it did look good before, but I love the new look. The white and silver pieces mix so well with your good china and makes for an interesting arrangement.

    4. LizlovesVintage

      March 14, 2012 at 6:46 pm

      PS. When I first stopped by, your header advertised for PAM, cooking spray. I had to chuckle:)

    5. LizlovesVintage

      March 14, 2012 at 6:45 pm

      You are so organized!! What great pieces and lovely china. My hydrangeas are on top of my secretary. My favorite dried flower. I'm guessing yours too 😉
      Have a great night,
      xxx Liz

    6. Mary

      March 14, 2012 at 3:52 pm

      It's all about that bowl of petals. Thanks so much,
      Mary @ Sea Quilts

    7. Sue

      March 14, 2012 at 8:24 am

      Pam, Yoe are doing' really well on manual mode, girl! Great shots of the newly styled cupboard. Of course, I luv the tureen- so pretty with the doors open. Aahhh-Pets.... I would have nothing left if I had a cat! I liked your pansies in the last post. I need to put some in a planter, even if it h,as to stay inside for a while. I cannot wait for permanently warm weather! Oh, and then we can maybe meet up somewhere?! Let me know what u think. ~Sue

    8. Mark

      March 14, 2012 at 8:08 am

      I can't exactly put my finger on what makes your photos so special. When I have 5 minutes to myself, I try to get that same quality but I always come up short. I'll keep practicing!
      m.

    9. Anonymous

      March 14, 2012 at 7:51 am

      love the cat so cute

    10. Laurel@chippingwithcharm

      March 14, 2012 at 7:01 am

      Perfection 🙂

    11. Betsy

      March 13, 2012 at 10:24 pm

      I love this Pam. What a beautiful old cabinet and your special touches add so much charm. I really like the doors open showing off all your beautiful treasures, but you sure don't need any more broken dishes:-)

    12. Gillian Layne

      March 13, 2012 at 10:08 pm

      So pretty!

      Thanks for the laugh before I head to bed. Glad to know I'm not the only one that makes decorating decisions based on a cat (and a dog with serious jealousy issues) 🙂

    13. Tammi

      March 13, 2012 at 9:44 pm

      I love the changes!

    14. TARYTERRE

      March 13, 2012 at 9:43 pm

      LOOKS lovely. The doors open really make it pop. But I understand about Otis. I have a couple kitties myself. I got rid of my china cupboard a while back. No longer display or use my GOOD dishes. Sometimes it makes me sad, but such is life. ENJOY! Little changes make a big difference.

    15. Amy Burzese

      March 13, 2012 at 9:07 pm

      It is great! I did the same thing a few months ago. Removed crystal and some china and added tarnished silver and ironstone. I like it better than the other things that had been there for 10-12 years. Thanks for sharing!

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