This Handy Old-School Feature Everyone Either Had Or Wants In Their Kitchen

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

As interior design trends shift away from minimalism and toward eclectic coziness, we're looking at ways to design the retro kitchen of our dreams. Many of us are turning to past aesthetics for a hint of nostalgia and more artful style. Moreover, because space is such a hot commodity in a cooking area, it's ideal when kitchen decor items are also functional. A perfect example that has made the rounds on social media is the use of cookbook holders.

Instagrammer @creatingannalise posted about a built-in shelf under their kitchen cabinet that unfolds down to hold an open cookbook, calling it their favorite part of her kitchen. The poster even thrifted cookbooks just to use it. The Instagrammer adds that the house was built in the 1980s. This is the kind of handy feature that would have made perfect sense before laptops and smartphones made it easy to pull up recipes online, and many people moved away from physical cookbooks. But with the current vintage vibe going strong and people looking to unplug, cookbooks are making a return to popularity along with the holders you need to use them when your hands are busy slicing and stirring.

That vintage feature didn't go unnoticed in the comment section. "Omg I want this so bad," said a social media user. Another remarked, "These need to be made popular again, adding that the holders would be just as useful for tablets. "I WANT ONE AND CAN'T FIND IT ANYWHERE!!" someone else exclaimed — luckily, we can help with that.

Cookbook holders, especially built-in ones, may have spent years as one of those vintage kitchen features nobody remembers anymore. Happily, nostalgia, vintage trends, and the current interest in hands-on activities may have helped revive the use of actual cookbooks and holders. You don't have to live in a home that was built 30, 40, or 50 years ago to have a built-in holder: snag this under-cabinet mounted shelf from Store Yoshie on eBay and install it yourself.

If you want something without the installation process, a simpler, standing cookbook holder certainly does the trick — and it's conveniently portable. You can find decorative ones that match your overall kitchen design motif at flea markets, secondhand shops, or even online. This French country-chic wrought iron stand on Etsy is elegant and extra useful with weighted chains that hold books open on the page you need. And this pinewood farmhouse-style stand even features a recipe card drawer.

You can also keep things simple and order an understated cookbook holder on Amazon, at least to make sure you like using one before committing to a statement piece. This Mocoosy two-pack of gold-plated stands is a sleek and convenient bargain. Once you fall in love with this old-school detail, you'll want to learn how to collect the best vintage cookbooks to use with it.