Glass racks

Measure the spot before you pick a size. A 30 cm rack takes up little room and fits under most wall units; 40 cm holds more glasses but calls for a shelf or ceiling that carries the weight. Hang the square 30 by 30 cm model in the middle above an island or a bar worked from both sides. Then count how many glasses you want to store: each rail holds roughly eight to ten wine glasses side by side, depending on the diameter of the foot. For the finish, what matters most is what suits the rest. Chrome is neutral and disappears against stainless steel, brass adds warmth to a classic interior and black vanishes against a dark ceiling. Do bear in mind that only stemmed glasses fit: tumblers belong on the shelf.

Slide the glass into the rail by its foot and let go; the bowl then hangs free and touches nothing. Do not hang glasses too close together, because two bowls tapping against each other are the most common cause of breakage. Put the heaviest glasses at the end where the rail is fixed and keep the far end lighter. Above a bar, hang the shapes you need most within arm's reach: wine glasses, coupes and the bowl a dry martini goes into. A negroni, by contrast, goes into a low glass over ice, so that shape need not hang in the rack.

A rack above the bar catches steam and grease particles, so wipe it weekly with a slightly damp cloth and dry it afterwards. Chrome shows fingerprints but polishes clean without effort. Brass can darken over time; if you want to keep the shine, use a brass polish rather than an abrasive. Black is powder-coated and tolerates a neutral cleaner, but scratches if you go at it with steel wool. Check once a year that the screws are still tight.

Once the rack is up, the question is mainly what goes in it: champagne flutes and cocktail glasses are the stemmed shapes that belong there. If it is stemless glasses you want off the worktop, glass crates are more practical. And to get deposit out of a bowl hanging just above the sink, use one of the glass brushes, whose long handle reaches all the way to the bottom of the bowl.