We are in the throws of moving houses so there's lots of domestic goodness and decorating fun going on at Being Bianca these days! I am pleased as punch to report that all of the "necessity" items have been unboxed in our new home and we are slowly making progress on our purgapalooza planning for the spring neighborhood garage sale! I have a hard rule as we get situated at the new house: nothing (absolutely zero, zip … nada) makes its way into the house unless it is completely organized, needed and {almost} picture perfect. Tall order, indeed!
My first order of business was to set up and organize the kitchen. It's indeed the heart of our home. Given that counter space always seems to be at a premium, I opted for some very versatile, functional decor.
Here are five ideas to use functional items as decorative touches in your kitchen:
1. Add coffee mug storage to your counter top.
First up, Coffee… it's the most important meal of the day, right? Ok, technically that's breakfast, but they are one in the same at my house! To save on cabinet space, I placed a petite drying rack next to the coffee machine so that my cups are on the ready when the coffee starts my day. After looking high and low at antique and reproduction options of all prices, I found this perfectly, counter sized gem and simply added white coffee mugs and sprinkled in a few moscow mule mugs for interest. ((source: drying rack from World Market))
2. Use a decorative pedestal for treats.
Now, what's better than a treat to go with that cup of coffee? Keeping a covered cake stand on your counter is a great reminder to bake (or buy) something tasty. I have other more traditional glass cake pedestals, but this one was love at first sight! Since it is wooden, I use parchment paper to create a small round to protect my treats and my cake stand. Simply just trace a dinner plate on the parchment and cut using scissors or an exacto-knife {{{I make a stack at a time so I always have these on hand for entertaining}}}.
3. Save sacred drawer space by displaying utensils. Next to my stove, I have room for one drawer of cooking and serving utensils. ONE…UNO. Let's just say that isn't enough and so this little utensil holder makes a very useful touch next to the cooktop. I simply picked out a few of my wooden and metal utensils to add to the container and find that I'm making a grab for one of these whisks or spoons at least once a meal while cooking! A small salt cellar next to the utensils also comes in handy when I'm busy at work.
4. Make {{healthy}} food choices easy To balance out those sweet treats under the cake pedestal, I keep a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter. Again, this is a total space saver and very functional; plus it helps us remember to grab a piece of fruit on the go! I placed this wooden bowl atop an oversized cheese board so it's a two for one on storage. ((source: wooden bowl from World Market and cheese board from Pottery Barn))
5. Put your serving pieces on display I love to entertain and keep ample supplies on hand just about every occasion. In my last house, I stored most of my paper products, platters and such in various cabinets. Now, I've pulled them from behind closed doors and put these cuties on display. I cleared off shelves in my pantry and styled them with my wears so that now I can grab them easy as pie. I must confess, I've used these platters, cookie cutters (yes, I realize there are waaaayyyy too many of them), cookbooks and the likes more in the past few weeks than I have in years. Why? Because I can see them and am gently reminded to put these cuties to good use. It's a shame to keep all that fun behind closed doors, wouldn't you agree?
Hope y'all are inspired to add some pretty function to your kitchen!
As for me … back to those boxes!
Bianca is that overzealous, type A, go getter, Martha wanna be, over-achieving, style conscious, serial decorator, enthusiastic hostess, semi-crafty gal in all of us that’s just itching to get out. Share in the mis-adventures, musings and fun as she explores little every day ways to be bianca over at her blog.
and at Coastal Charm and Savvy Southern Style
Neglect your chores like me and don't miss a thing:
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