Open Kitchen or Closed? Get Both With a Sliding Door

We like to dream about our ideal kitchen, but we run up against one difficult decision in our fantasizing. Open kitchen, or closed? Open is great for entertaining and people flow, but what about hiding the dirty dishes during dinner? Oh the dilemmas of kitchen dreaming! Well, we may have found one solution with this sliding wall.

The homeowner in this story over at Sunset actually opened up her kitchen, removing a wall that made it feel cramped and small. She wanted a farmhouse kitchen feel, and she also wanted to make the kitchen inviting for her young boys. So much of the time the kitchen is open and easy for the boys to run in and out of.

But this sliding barn door, hung with off-the-rack hardware that was treated to make it look warmer, can close the kitchen off for more formal dinner parties.

We love this and (someday!!) when we have the chance to redo a kitchen of our own we may return to the idea.

• Warm kitchen makeover in a farmhouse-style kitchen

Related: The $30 Kitchen Makeover

(Image: Thomas J. Story/Sunset)