Decorate Your Kitchen

A beautiful kitchen can be more appealing to work in, so why not seek to decorate your own kitchen and let it reflect your taste, your cooking, and your hospitality style?

Simplify.

Go through your kitchen and find anything that you don’t use. Remove those things to give away or donate. Try to consolidate your supplies into versatile items, not single-use items. Clear counters and start from a clean slate.

Organize.

Separate and group your cooking supplies and appliances into stations for the most efficient use. You’ll want stove-top utensils near the stove, and the dinnerware cupboard near the dishwasher or drainer. Straighten everything in your cabinets and drawers and under the sink. As you’re organizing, keep out anything that you think is decorative for the next step.

Decorate.

Look through all the items that had been on your counter. Also, take a look at the items that you noticed as you were organizing the cupboards. What are the items that 1) you need accessible, 2) that are useful to you, 3) and that are beautiful to you? Decorate the counters or back-splash with beautiful things that you use often. I like to find tea tins, fruit bowls, cake stands, etc. that are decorative of themselves, and have those be the things that end up on counter rather than the pantry—doubling as decoration. Don’t decorate your counters with things not used in your kitchen, or it may feel too cluttered. You’ll need space for cooking.

Are there things you use that could be grouped into a basket or tray to keep them consolidated and on display? Do you have a cookbook stand that you use often? Keep a favorite hardbound cookbook in it. Do you have a favorite painted ceramic dish? Use it to hold garlic bulbs, or as a spoon rest. Do you reach into canisters often? Get some that are beautiful to you. The larger that a kitchen is, the more room there is to decorate, of course–but don’t go overboard. But perhaps you could hang your heavy stainless pans on a decorative pot rack, or set your favorite vases on a shelf.

Sometimes it helps to purchase a couple of new items to tie together the beginnings of your kitchen style. Do you notice a theme or color scheme surfacing? Maybe you like red accessories; perhaps you could get a new red dishtowel for the oven handle, or a nice red butter crock. Perhaps you like French-country or Nordic style like I do. You could get a lined wire basket or painted wooden tray that reflects a certain style. (Some favorite stores for kitchen shopping are World Market, IKEA, Crate & Barrel, Sur La Table, and Williams-Sonoma.)

Too often we muddle through with the things we have always used, and the place we have always cooked, instead of giving it all a refreshing makeover. If you’re happy with how your kitchen functions and how pleasing it is to you, that’s excellent. But if not, think about how making a few changes in the purchase of a few coordinating items such as towels and baskets—or in organizing what you have and decorating with the most beautiful items among those–will make your job in the kitchen happier.

Extend your beautifying and decorating to the pantry, too. You can store frequently used items in coordinated mason jars or metal tins. You could place random loose packages in baskets or fabric bins. Personally, I love to buy things in pretty packages. I like to buy locally-made foods, or artisanal or specialty products that make me smile when I see the pretty label on my shelf. Perhaps that’s superfluous, but it’s a simple way to add pleasure and beauty, and since I’m usually buying natural or organic products anyway, it’s not usually more expensive.

Additional examples to get you started:

*Look at Pinterest for examples in common with some element that is already present in your kitchen. This is my Kitchen Style board though my style has changed over the years and it’s definitely influenced by the existing kitchens I have had.

*Dress up and refresh your kitchen with new linens. I think it’s hugely rewarding to have substantial towels and wash cloths and aprons to use. If the textiles you use are sturdy, absorbent, bright and clean, you’ve taken a great stride toward a satisfying kitchen. Screen-printed terrycloth ends up looking old and faded very quickly. Get printed broadcloth or double-sided woven designs in 100% linen or cotton from a reputable brand—and of course in your developing style or color scheme.

*You could keep a few often-used seasonings in a wire basket or turntable. You could leave one cutting board flat, in its own place and always ready to use. You could set on a windowsill or kitchen island an item that was a gift or sparks memories of a trip taken. You could buy dish soap—often a sink fixture—in a decorative bottle {and make sure it’s a healthy version of soap} since you are seeing it constantly.

*Make a focal point for yourself and others entering your kitchen. Exit and enter, paying attention to where your eye travels first. It might be on the largest item, or whatever is directly in front, or the biggest pop of color, or the most cluttered area. Place something beautiful there instead, such as a grouping of decorative dishes, or a cookbook stand and vase of flowers. Try not to have electric appliances be the first thing seen—though sometimes that is inevitable due to the arrangement of space or outlets. Think artistically about how the image flows to your eye, and about whether there is balance between sides of the room or things on the countertops or distribution of color.

*What is working for you as you decorate your kitchen?