Low budget tricks to improve your kitchen

Lily Cichanowicz Lily Cichanowicz
kitchen ​custom-made, edictum - UNIKAT MOBILIAR edictum - UNIKAT MOBILIAR Rustic style kitchen
Loading admin actions …

When it comes to decorating the kitchen on a budget, it’s normal to feel a bit limited. After all, cabinets, refrigerators, sinks, kitchen islands, and ovens are typically immovable. Additionally, making significant changes to the walls and flooring can be quite expensive and require the help of a professional. Plus, if you live in a rental apartment, such changes are usually out of the question even if you do have the funds. 

So what’s left? Actually, we’re here to say that there are a lot of little changes, that when made in conjunction with one another, can make a big difference in the look of your kitchen. Here are seven of our favourite techniques for improving the look of your kitchen without breaking the bank.

Open up your storage

If you’re looking to make your kitchen feel more dynamic whilst also adding a bit more space, we recommend opening up your storage with exposed shelving and cabinetry. Many of us take great care when it comes to selecting our cutlery and dishware as well as in storing our herbs and spices. You can get these items to play double duty as decorative pieces by placing them in places where they can be seen. 

Install some floating shelves to maximise your vertical space whilst keeping the look minimal. We also love the idea of taking off the doors on your cabinets like we can see in this example. Leaving these spaces open will create a more unique and interesting look in your kitchen without causing you to have to purchase an entirely new storage setup.

Good looking backsplash

While painting the walls or adding wallpaper can be both time consuming and costly, it’s not the only way to add colour and pizzazz to your walls. Leaving the walls as they are, we suggest you direct your focus to the kitchen backsplash instead. You can add a coat of paint to the backsplash in a fraction of the time it’d take to paint even one wall within the space. Plus, there are possibilities beyond painting to consider. 

At first thought, the idea of tiling the backsplash may seem beyond your skill set. Luckily, you can achieve a look like this one by MoonWallStickers.com with the help of adhesive tile stickers. You can opt for the same pattern across your entire backsplash or mix and match as we can see in this example.

Bring in flowers and plants

It’s important to strategize when it comes to adding décor to the kitchen, especially if space is limited. Kitchens must be as functional as possible, and purely ornamental items can easily clutter up your precious space. Plus, purchasing new decorations can quickly burn a hole in your wallet. 

For these reasons and more, we recommend decorating the kitchen with flowers and plants. They will add a sense of freshness to the space, and can even help to purify the air. Not to mention that most plants are relatively cheap. Add a plant to the centre of your table to make the kitchen look pulled together. We recommend putting plants on the windowsill or a shelf to keep the countertops clear, however.

Buy large chopping boards

To maintain your budget and maximise space, we are big fans of accessorising with the essentials. We realise this might sound a bit contradictory. What we mean is that your kitchen necessities actually possess a lot of decorative potential, and this goes beyond just your dishware. 

A large chopping board, for instance, can help to make your countertops more work cooking and cutting friendly whilst simultaneously adding style. To achieve this effect, invest in a couple of special kitchen items like this artisan cutting board. This way you can cook in style without creating excess.

Show your funky appliances

Another way to add style to your kitchen with practical items is by showing off your quirky or speciality appliances. Perhaps your grandmother gave you a vintage toaster or you found an amazingly funky old breadbox at a flea market. These items can do wonders for making your kitchen look unique and stylish. 

If you have a coveted coffeemaker or knife collection, you ought to show these items off! Quality kitchenware can be pricey in its own right. Instead of investing in extra accessories on top of this expenditure, allow your special kitchen appliances to shine by keeping them on an exposed shelf, countertop, or magnetic strip in the case of the knives.

Show your tea towels

Now that we’ve sufficiently made our point that kitchen essentials can actually help your to decorate the room, it’s time to move onto the linens. It’s no secret that the right set of curtains can add the perfect amount of pizzazz to the walls. Another, perhaps less obvious variation of this is that tea towels can do the same for your kitchen. We usually tend towards tea towels in colours and style we find pleasing anyways. 

Instead of stowing these things in cupboards where they tend to get forgotten, hang them from hooks or knobs on the walls. In fact, you can even loop them around the handle of a cabinet! This way, your bound to get more use out of them as well. This otherwise neutral kitchen is given an apt pop of colour with the help of these tea towels in combination with the matching print on the wall behind them.

Add a carpet

While we are aware that the idea of including a carpet in the kitchen may seem impractical, we beg to differ. Arranging a small rug in front of a sink can help sooth your tired feet as you clean up after a day of cooking. A carpet beneath the table can help tie the room together. This simple textile can add contrast or cohesion to your existing colour scheme. 

We aren’t advising that you opt for a fitted carpet, just a rug that can add some colour and style to the look. Choose durable fabrics or even rugs that are made for the outdoors if you are worried about wear and tear. Alternatively, there are rugs on the market that are machine washable.

For more ideas on how to effectively decorate your home on a budget, check out these cheap and creative ways to colour up your life

Need help with your home project?
Get in touch!

Highlights from our magazine