Kitchen Radiator Cover & Shelves Plan

The last radiator to cover in our house is the kitchen. We would like to do this in two phases. Phase 1 is to cover the radiator itself, ASAP, before we turn on the heat to protect Oliver’s curious fingers.

Phase 2 is to not only cover the ugly peeling pipe, but also maximize the usability of this space. It’s totally dead space right now and would be the perfect location for a few built-in shelves like the nursery. We could definitely use the additional storage, even if it’s just for little things like cookbooks and a few pretty bowls and things.

You can get a feel for our plan with this diagram (which is for illustrative purposes only). To the right of the pipe we have space to do shelves that are the same depth as the radiator cover itself - deep enough for cookbooks and the like. To the left of the pipe we are limited by the door - we need to be able to open the door all the way, so these shelves have to be as shallow as the door frame. They will look a lot like Oliver’s figurine shelves upstairs - perfect for displaying little things (like little latte bowls). Above the door frame we’ll have the space to do one deeper shelf for additional storage.

This bookcase will look very similar to the one in the nursery, crisp white and completely custom so it looks like it came with the house. When we finished the nursery bookcase, it felt like the bookcase was meant for the room and we loved it. Hopefully we feel the same way about this one in the kitchen because custom shelves are a lot of work!