Work With What You Got Microwave Stand

When we first toured our new home we failed to notice that the kitchen did not have a microwave.  We also didn’t notice the living room did not have a ceiling light.  Maybe we were so high on house love that we didn’t even think about those things, but after we went through the initial “oh crap where will we microwave our food” phase we learned to adjust. 

First, we set out to Target to buy a counter top microwave.  This was a big decision and we considered many factors – most importantly was “where do we see our relationship with this microwave going?”  We asked this question because we didn’t want to buy the cheapest microwave on the lot if it was going to stay in our kitchen throughout the many updates we had planned, and reversely we didn’t want to splurge on something that was only going to be there for a couple months. 

After some long hard thinking, and consideration of our kitchen layout we decided that in keeping the current cabinet setup (which we have grown to love and don’t see changing in the near future) a mounted microwave is just not an option.  Soo…our counter top microwave is here to stay!  We chose a stainless steel model because we envision updating all our appliances to stainless steel and want our little microwave to fit in.  

So then comes the next question: where do we put this thing?  Our kitchen has limited counter space and after several placements to test the waters I hated the look of every one of them and the thought of the microwave taking up precious space.  So that left one option: a microwave cart. 

We then went back to the first question we asked ourselves when we were buying the microwave “where is this relationship going” and I decided that I didn’t want to spend money on a gaudy microwave cart that I was going to hate while waiting for a permanent solution. 

I then considered what we already have in our house that could be a temporary solution.  I came up with these two matching wire shelves, from Target.  Combined these two shelves are around the same size that I want our permanent microwave stand to be which is great because I can see if I actually like the size and the way it flows with the room BEFORE we build it rather than after and having it be the spatial bane of our existence.  The kitchen also leaves a bit to be desired in the drawer space department, which explains the baskets, which are full of kitchen utensils. 

I started out with the shelves low, but soon realized that you could see…well all the junk and it didn’t look pretty.  I fixed that by moving the middle shelving units up so you can just see the great wicker baskets (which I already had from Ikea!) and not the mess.

Since I had a whole lot of empty space on the bottom of the shelves I decided that I could hang my pots and pans from the racks to create a utilitarian look.  I absolutely am in LOVE with hanging pots and pans, not only for storage, but as incentive for me to keep them sparkling clean! In our kitchen there is not enough room to hang them from the ceiling so I thought this was a great alternative – it’s all about compromise right?

After using this makeshift microwave stand I have really decided I love the design, and hope to model our permanent microwave stand (which I hope will look more like a farmhouse kitchen island) after my quick and easy DIY stand.  The best part about this was I already had all the materials to complete the project and just had to purchase S hooks to hang the pots and pans for under $3.00.  That sure beats buying a $60.00 stand that I hate!