Reconstructing a new kitchen for your home takes a lot of planning, design, patience, and money. They get so much use that the decor and functionality of your kitchen wears out over time. Your counters are covered in stains, your cabinets are outdated, and your stove no longer works as well as it used to.
Instead of working in a drab kitchen, consider these great ideas to breathe new life into it. Not only will it modernize one of the most important rooms in your home but you’ll also love working in there more. And many of these great ideas don’t involve you spending a lot of money to overhaul your kitchen either.
1. Decluttering
With all the counter space you have, it’s easy for it to get cluttered with unnecessary things over time. Before you start spending money to get a new look, consider getting rid of stuff you don’t need in your kitchen. Get some organizing tools to keep everything where you need them and you’ll be thrilled to discover just how much more space you have to work with.
Spray down your countertops and wipe them clean. Stains will accumulate over time to the point that you don’t even remember what colour your counters are supposed to be. You’ll be surprised at just how much brighter your kitchen will look just from a simple wipe-down. Take this cleaning process to the rest of your kitchen as well: wipe down the door of your fridge, scrub off your shelves, and wash your kitchen windows. The look of your kitchen will definitely improve and that may be all it needed!
2. Changing the Countertops
If you’re still not happy with the look of your kitchen even after wiping them down, you may want to consider changing your countertops altogether. There is a wide range of materials and colours to choose from that better fit your style, and countertops are generally one of the easier things to change in your kitchen. They’re also not that expensive, depending on the materials you go with. You might be surprised at just how much difference a new quartz countertop can make.
3. Changing the Splashback
The splashback is the area of your kitchen walls that gets the most abuse when you’re cooking or preparing food. You want to protect the wall itself from food splatter, and most people do with with tiles. This prevents the food from getting caked on and having mold grow to increase the longevity of your walls.
The splashback, however, can become stained and dingy-looking. Even scrubbing can’t get everything off, so there’s no harm in changing it out altogether. Choose a different colour tile or a different material altogether to create your splashback. It’s an easy job that you can do yourself or you can get a professional to do it for you, depending on what you want.
4. Install New Lighting
Maybe the reason your kitchen doesn’t look great is because of the overhead lighting you have. Bulbs wear out over time and fixtures can start to look dated. Consider pendulum lights to add a romantic atmosphere or flush ceiling lights to add an ambient glow. You may want to consider adding dimmer switches as well so that you can control the amount of light that you need and to set the mood for your meals.
5. Painting the Floor
Bored of your floors? Why not add some paint? Painting some intricate designs into your floors with some painter’s tape and/or stencils can really bring out the other elements in your kitchen. Choose colours that match with your decor or go wild and pick contrasting colours that clash together. It really depends on the look you’re going for and what you want your kitchen to look like.
6. Built-in Bars
If you have a small cubby area of your kitchen that you don’t know what to do with, why not consider transforming it into a small bar area? You can prepare drinks for your friends and keep everything out of the way while still on-hand if you need a little drink. Add some colourful wallpaper and painted shelf and cupboards to match, and you have a quaint little bar space.
7. Paint the Cabinets
Dark wood can get drab and boring. Spruce them up with a pop of colour. You can paint them white, red, yellow, or whatever colour you have going on in your kitchen. Remember to remove the handles first before painting so that they don’t get stained. Or you could throw them away altogether and get new ones. Just changing your cabinets with some paint can brighten up a room and update its look.
8. Create a Display of Artwork
Getting some big and bold pieces for your kitchen walls can really spruce up the place. GO for colours you wouldn’t normally choose and let the artwork be the focal point of your kitchen instead. Or get small pieces that you can cluster together to draw the eye. If you’re feeling particularly creative, you can buy a few small canvases and create your own art to put on display.
9. Open Shelving
It may seem counterintuitive to have open shelving where you increase the risk of your tableware breaking. However, exposing your storage can make your kitchen feel more open and airy. Bistro-style shelving is a great choice, providing you with more display space and surface area for you to prepare meals. It’s a minimalist take that can definitely add a lot of character to a kitchen.
10. Grow an Herb Garden
There’s no reason any decent chef shouldn’t have access to fresh herbs in their kitchen. And they’re not that difficult to maintain, either. Adding a few small planters on your kitchen’s window sill to grow fresh herbs will definitely add some life to your kitchen and you’ll definitely taste the difference too in your cooking.
Upgrading your kitchen doesn’t have to feel like you’re constructing everything from the ground up. Just a few changes here and there to update the look of your kitchen may be all you need. Just don’t be afraid to experiment to get the aesthetic you’re really looking for.