It is beautiful. I like what you have done inside but am not crazy about all the candle sticks displayed on top. With all that you have going on inside, I don't think you need to decorate the top.

Agree, remove all candlesticks from top, immediately!

Do you have other things that could go in the cabinet --- which is lovely, btw--- that are not white or black glass? I don't think you are striking the right note of refinement the furniture calls for.

Since you are using this piece in the living room, I would suggest that you fill the shelves with books interspersed with a few decorative items which might include some of your glass/china items. Take a look online at how decorators have arranged bookshelves and apply those ideas. I agree with other posters that the top should be clear.

If you are not a reader, perhaps you could use the DVD books that have the pretty covers like these from Overstock.

Here is a link that might be useful: DVD Storage

Lovely cupboard.....and lovely candle sticks....I give you permission to leave them on top of the cabinet, but you must not line them up like soldiers...and you must put candles in them.....and at least some of the candles should be burned. Sort of push them together in groups of 3 and 4 and see what happens.
If you are striving for an informal "living room-ey" look then ditch the doilys....actually ditch the doilys unless you are going for the country cottage look which doesn't go with the Hepplewhite cupboard.
Try not to "balance" the milk glass footed things....put one on the top shelf and another on the bottom...the addition of some fake grapes would help, make a stack of all the plates that are alike, and pretty much put like things together.....and as the previous poster suggested add things that are not dining room stuff....perhaps a picture on an easel frame a small pile of small books, perhaps a china figurine or 2. Put some of the glass ware behind the doors and get some other stuff out for the shelves you see.
Linda C

I agree with adding books, etc to make it more of a living room piece. Still think the candle sticks should live else where though.

Wow! Thanks so much for the responses! There are a lot of great suggestions and I'll have to see what I can do and what will work. I do have some old books in another room, I didn't even think of that.

The candlesticks are there because I had nowhere else to put them and it seemed like a good idea at the time, lol.

Re: things that are not black and white glass. The problem I've been having is that nothing really shows up very well, as can probably be seen with the depression glass fading into the back of the cabinet. I thought the milk glass would stand out, which it does, but the black depression glass doesn't really show up to well. (This is the reason for the doilies, btw. I wasn't too thrilled with them either, but it was the only thing I could think of the make some of the glass stand out.)

And, looking at the photo more, I do agree with putting like things together. I think I got a bit out of control while unpacking things that have been boxed up for about 5 years since this is my first china cabinet. :-)

Thanks again for the feedback; such a wealth of knowledge and talent here. I'll give it another shot soon and post another picture. :-)

Thanks, forhgtv, that a great idea too. I'll have to keep that in mind, especially cutting it so I don't have to adhere it.

I've made a second attempt utilizing many of your suggestions. (Please tell me it's ok to keep the bowl on top of the cabinet!)

I already see that I need to find a way to make the green depression glass pitchers (middle shelf, blocked by the frames) more visible. And the candle holders (if they can stay, lol) on the top shelf are uneven, so I'd need to remove a book on the right or put an extra one on the left.

I tried to keep the carnival glass on the top shelf, but had to put one on the middle shelf (on top of the stacked pile of books). The rest of the middle shelf is depression glass.

The lower shelf is all Iris & Herringbone glass (except the vase, of course) as is the bowl on top. Keeping like with like does make it look better.

Also, I think the bottom shelf, right side, needs some work. But how is it so far? I think it's loads better than my first attempt and for that I thank you! :-)

The milk glass has gone to decorate my Goodwill sideboard. I actually think I posted a photo of that last year in the Goodwill finds thread when I bought it. So I have registered before but I forgot about it and made another user name just recently, oops.

That's looking much better. Good job! I can't really see the lower right segment but it appears to need a taller element in it. I think I would remove the bowl from the top. Perhaps the bowl could be filled with seasonal potpourri and displayed on a table?

I made one more attempt at it, I think this may be it - other than removing the bowl :-). I'm pretty happy with it.

(forhgtv, I thought the lower right needed something higher too!)

And lindac, I didn't meant to ignore your suggestion about adding candles; the votes to remove them seemed be the majority. I also think that your suggestion would work better in a home with higher ceilings. It's not obvious from the photos that our ceiling is about 8'.

Still open to suggestions and thanks again!

Putting books in the cabinet is a good idea, but what happened to the white, I would assume, milk glass pieces?

If it were me, I would group all the like colored objects together..... all the whites on one shelf, all the pink on another, all the green, etc.

The reason for this is because you've got it in the living room and it shouldn't be too jumbled or 'busy' on the eyes.

A more cohesive grouping of objects would look better. You can even lay some of the books flat and put an object on them for interest, but things need to be neatened up a bit.

I really like this last arrangement. Very nice!

I like it! And I see how you "snuck" in the candle sticks. Very clever. But, my vote is to remove the bowl from the top. It is distracting as is. Let's get other ideas for up there!

I like your last arrangement the best but I feel it is still too busy especially the last shelf.
I would remove the candlesticks completely and the bowl on top of cabinet.
That is a beautiful cabinet you found.

I love the cabinet! I like the books in there and overall I think it looks good. But I think it's too symmetrical. I think you need to mix it up a little.

I like this last version a lot. I love the symmetry and the visual interest. Once you remove the bowl, I think you'll have a terrific display. I think I forgot to mention how much I like your cabinet...very pretty.

Great improvement!!!
But "the rules" say never to display candle sticks without candles in them.
Put a pair on top with the bowl....with only about 3 t4 inches of partially burned candles in them.
And stop with the pairing of stuff...green thing on the left, green thing on the right... red glass on the left, stack of red glass on the right.
Think balanced stuff, not matching.
But this is really beginning to look good.....great cupboard!!
Linda C

I like the last one too~ good job!

Thanks so much for all of the suggestions and encouragement! And I appreciate the compliments on the cabinet itself; not bad for $225 on craigslist. :-)

colorwheel, the milk glass is now in my kitchen to decorate my sideboard. I understand what you mean about the cabinet being jumbled but my decor is Early 21st Century Thrift Store (and yard sales), so it really does kind of "fit". I do plan, when I get actual furniture for the living room, to go with a simple design and a plain/neutral pattern.

The candleholders do need to stay because I've nowhere else to put them. I'll experiment with some tapers in them, to see how that looks.

lindac - I think the whole symmetry thing with me is a bit of an OCD thing (not to diminish true OCD; it's just the best way I could describe it).

Anyway, I really have no creative talent whatsoever (hence not even thinking about putting books in there) and there are so many talented people on GW. My home will never be magazine-worthy as many of your homes are but, thanks to this forum, I'm able to inject a bit of style into it. I flip back and forth between photo #1 and #3 and I'm amazed at the difference, thanks to you all.

And the bowl will be relocated, I promise! I'll leave the top of the cabinet alone.

As one who collects Depression glass also, I'm thinking the bowl on top of the cabinet is much bigger in person than it is in a picture. I think it looks nice that way. Maybe if you have two other clear glass pieces you can put them on top with the bowl.

The third picture is very classy looking, IMO, and perfect for a living room.

I love the candlesticks the way you have them now.

Colorwheel, I did color groupings with my Depression glass on my kitchen hutch, not knowing if it was a good idea or not. lol. I'm glad you mentioned it because now I feel like I made a good choice!

Welcome to the board, CatMagnet! Do you have other Depression glass? If so I'd love to see pictures.

Beautiful cabinet! I would try putting the bowl off-center on the top. Just because it kinda looks like a hat on the head of the round platter on the top shelf.

ML

I don't display much in the way of glass, but am wondering if it's possible to get some kind of holder to stand the bowl somewhat on its side so it shows the shape and it makes more of a statement? I know they make plate stands, but not sure about something that would hold a bowl. If it were on its side and moved off-center, you could add something else up there, like a pair of your candlesticks with candles. Great improvements so far.

Great improvement. I think it looks wonderful with the books in it, but I am one who would not necessarily make sure the stacks were even-I am an asymmetrical sort myself. :) I would also opt for nothing on top.

Wonderful find and a terrific start to your living room!

I like the last arrangement very much. I like the added books and the symmetry.

I also don't mind the bowl on top of the cabinet.

LOVE the cabinet -- and the new arrangement is wonderful! Adding books was a grest idea! :)

Perhaps you could hang some of the glass plates on the wall beside the cabinet? Maybe the gold-toned ones? Maybe just two on each side -- matching pairs? Or a larger one on the bottom (on each side) and a smaller one on top (on each side)?

Just a thought! :) You have marvellous collections of glass! :)

Maybe the black glass would look nice on top of the cabinet? Maybe the tall black glass vase on the left-hand side -- and the black bowl sitting in front of it?

Love what you have done so far, but IMO there still needs to be some paring down. Here are my suggestions:

Remove bowl from top of cabinet
On bottom shelf left, remove glasses, leave pitcher
On bottom shelf middle, remove object in front of book
Middle shelf, remove items in front of plates that are standing up
Top shelf, remove bowls and/or platters holding compotes, keep compotes

beautiful cabinet, lots of pretty stuff!

for some reason the yellow vase on bottom right is throwing off the look for me...it's the right size though!

i don't love the bowl on top either, but i think you need something on top...something taller...(the yellow vase???)

Looks MUCH better, quantum leaps better!

But I would remove bowl from top and take glass candlesticks out of cupboard. They look out of place. It took me a long time to realize that I dio not have to display everything I own all at once. (Jo in Little Women said it was like wearing all your clothes at one time so folks would know you have them, lol)
Also, the star of this show Is the cabinet itself, not the contents. Dont have too much in it and have a pleasing arrangement that can be discovered as a person walks up to the cabinet and peers through the glass. It doesn't have to be visible from 20 paces.Great changes, maybe a fewleft. :)

Oakleyok, I"m glad that you grouped like things together.

If you have a collection of something, it's usually better that they're grouped together as a collection, rather than just thrown in with other objects.

There are, obviously, exceptions. You just have to try things out and see what works best.

Thanks Colorwheel! I have so much depression glass I did't want to hide any of it, so I grouped them according to color.

I never really collected it, but I ended up with a lot. Thankfully the different colors match my kitchen, except the solid color pink glass which I have in a grouping in the living room among dark green houseplants. Pretty contrast!

Kswl, I think depression glassware is meant to be shown, not hidden. She really doesn't have that much in her cabinets.

Cat, I like the "layered" look you have going on in the cabinet.

Wow, what a difference adding the books made. It looks great and really changed the feel of the piece. I have a very similar china cabinet still in your "before" stage that I want to tear apart now and update---this is a great post and you have received wonderful ideas.

Actually, depression glass was meant to be used :)

Just saying that not everything has to be displayed all the time if doing so renders the display unremarkable, that's all.

The cabinet is lovely-- congratulations on a great find and a great buy.

memazz, I agree, I have received fabulous ideas. :-) While I think I'm going to keep it the way it is for the time being, I'm definitely going to save a copy of this thread so I can refer back to it again and again for all of the great suggestions.

oaklyok - I do have other depression glass and I'd be happy to take some photos and post them (I'll start a separate thread though, since it will no longer be relevant to this one.) I'd also love to see your collections, particularly the groupings by color. Mine are usually grouped by like item since I don't think I have enough to really do them by color and have it look nice. For example, I have a lot of green pitchers (now in my china cabinet); anything I have in yellow is plates, pink is generally creamers/sugars - just whatever I'm fortunate to find along the way.

busybee, the vase is kind of throwing me off too now that you mention it! But I think I'm going to live with it for a while. I plan on redoing the cabinet in December for Christmas (I have a lot of forest green and ruby red glass that I can't wait to put in there).

To those I didn't address directly, I definitely read and considered your feedback (compliments and suggestions). I'd just be here all day if I answered each post. I really do appreciate each and every post in this thread, which will be filed away for future reference. :-)

Thanks again for helping me stay on the right side of the line between "charmingly cluttered" and "hot mess". LOL