Welcome!
The kitchen. A place where you spend quite a lot of time. You might be in there making food, planning meals, putting groceries away, baking, getting your coffee or tea, washing dishes and so many other things. It's a high traffic room, and when you have company over, it is a room that is seen quite often, and don't you hate when it looks messy and cluttered?
Well, we have 5 ways to help you keep that room updated and organized and it will change the way you feel about your kitchen. These are great ways to update your kitchen on a budget without doing a reno! Let's make it a joyous space!
We are going to share with you some really amazing ways to update your kitchen and cooking space that will not only help your room look polished and refined, it will also help you in organizing your everyday kitchen items as well. We are going to give you some splurge ideas and ways to update your kitchen on a budget as well.
Here we go!
One thing that is always neglected I find, is the trim in a kitchen (or in any room!) If you look closely, there is likely dust, splatters, shoe scuffs and all sorts of things that you don't notice now, but will sure add to a clean look once they are updated, clean and bright.
There are two ways to update your trim:
You can clean your trim using Mr. Clean magic erasers. I love using these to clean the hard to get rid of stains (somehow marker always finds its way to my walls...) This will take a bit of elbow grease to get that trim sparkly again, but it always looks so good afterwards.
The second way to update your trim is by painting it! I have always painted my trim with Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore because I find it is just a clean, bright white. However, I have recently changed! After interviewing paint experts and chatting with contractors, I now go to the paint store and get the trim paint right off the shelf without adding any colorant to it!
Let's take the stress out of choosing trim paint! Keep it simple. And as for sheen, I always like to go with a semi-gloss. Even though you are not mixing color in, you can still get the store to shake it up for you. I just bought a gallon this week as I am about to update the trim in my house. I could go without it, but having freshly painted trim makes a huge difference in the appearance of a room!
If you talk to a real estate agent, one thing they will tell you to do to quickly update a kitchen is to change the lights! And what a difference it makes!! You don't need to spend a fortune doing this either. We have lights to recommend to you that work for your kitchen update budget.
I really love pendant lights as they can be clean and simple and they can gorgeously accent a room.
Try to go with something that doesn't have a million individual little crystals, otherwise, they will collect dust and you will find yourself cleaning them constantly. You can find some very nice, inexpensive pendant lights through Amazon! Check out this hanging pendant light I found. This would work nicely in a small space, perhaps above the sink area, or you can get three to go above a kitchen island.
Find more lights on Amazon here.
If I didn't have proper storage containers I would be queen of the kitchen clutter I think lol. As a mom, I am constantly finding new ways to organize kitchen items that often get left on the counter or in a drawer from the kids (and hubby!). Here is what I have kitchen containers for, which have really helped me stay organized:
Onion and potato containers (they take up soo much room and can leave a mess). Check out these cute vegetable storage bags that can hang on a wall in a cupboard or pantry! These are very affordable, they are cute and won't take up room as a bin on the floor or on a shelf, plus, they will keep all of those onion papers together and not collecting messily on the floor or in a bin in the refrigerator.
Wooden spoon container
I didn't realize how many wooden spoons I had until I decided to get a container to keep them in! And this could go for any big tools that you have that take up soo much space in a drawer- ladles, spatulas, whisks, the list goes on. But if you find a cute container, you can keep them on your counter for easy access, they will look nice and will have their own place!
There are so many out there, but I prefer a nice ceramic one. I bought one with a tight-fitting lid, and I just have my lid underneath the container so it sits on it, and it looks pretty cute.
Reusable Baskets
I use several matching cloth baskets for kids lunch prep items such as sandwich and plastic containers, squeezy applesauce, packets of goldfish, granola bars and juice boxes. I tell my kids that they can choose 2 basket items and have them help make their lunch or snacks!
Matching Containers With Labels
I also love keeping all of my food items in the pantry in airtight containers that all match. Especially those food items that come in bags which don't stack and ultimately add to the clutter. Check out this 7 Piece Container Set with chalk labels! These are so cute and would organize any cupboard or pantry beautifully.
Can Dispensers
Can dispensers are also a popular way to stack those cans in a cupboard so they take up so much less room than they are right now. You could even have one in the cupboard for soup, 1 for canned vegetables and 1 for your canned drinks!
My favorite tip for updating a kitchen and bringing in some joy is to bring in some green. This may be in the form of real plants, or if you don't quite have a green thumb, fake plants. Any color of kitchen can handle some green, and it does amazing things to feel that connection to nature.
I love to bring plants into my kitchen, like small shrub-looking plants, and I keep them in all white containers on the counter. You don't want to have too much on your counter if you want it to be an organized, joyful space, but these I would say yes to! Check out these really cute fake plants. They come in a pack of 4 and they are just perfect for a kitchen counter! If you really love them and want to keep that clean feeling, you can DIY and paint the bases white for a fresh, clean look.
Put all of that other clutter away. You can keep the toaster in a cupboard and take it out when you really need it. Leave one or two main kitchen items on your counter and put the rest away. Let's try to keep more peaceful, clean things on the counter. Greenery and plants are the way to go.
Yes, we already talked about updating with hanging lights, but here is a trick that will add a sense of calmness and will actually help you keep the clutter off of your counter!
This is something I used to do in my classrooms as an elementary teacher. It would help the kids calm down and be more mindful and I loved it. They sure did too.
I would buy very small table lamps and keep them on my counters. We would have mindful minutes, where we would turn off the classroom lights and just keep these lights on and it was calming and tranquil.
How can this help you keep an organized counter? Well, let me ask you this.
In the evening, would you turn these countertop lights on if your counters were full of clutter and all messy? It would literally highlight that! lol. This will remind you to put the mess away, keep things in containers and not on the counter. Then turn on your light, look at your clean kitchen and the greenery you put on the counter and feel joy. Feel organized, feel refreshed, feel clean in your updated space!
I really like this small light for a number of reasons: it is touch light so you don't have to go and find a switch, it is super affordable so great if you are looking for updates on a budget, the lighting is adjustable so you can have it bright or dim, and it has a battery! So no need to have a messy plug in anywhere!
I also love the natural detail of the wood and think a few of these lights would go so well with the plants on a countertop. What a nice space that would be!
Find some other small lamps on Amazon here.
Well, I hope you enjoyed reading about some simple, affordable things you can do to update your kitchen on a budget! If you found some good ideas and inspiration, be sure to pin any of the above pictures now to come back to it later. We would appreciate that!
Have a joyful day!
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Steve Jones
May 24, 2019
Thanks for the useful post! I’ve seen people using Downlight Pendants in their kitchen. Suitable for fine-detailed work and task illumination, these lights supply intense, direct light to areas such as kitchen islands.