Kitchen decor ideas needed

Stephanie
by Stephanie
Our 1969 kitchen needs updated. We rent, so we inherited the apple/basket border on the soffit. On the left side, you are seeing my portable dishwasher, and a 9 cu.ft. chest freezer. The dishwasher has to stay, but the freezer is garage ready and can be moved out of kitchen. The wall behind those two appliances is just that--a wall with wood wainscoting and off white painted wall above that.
I guess my biggest problem is that I have no counter room. Right now, I am making use of the top of the freezer as my counter. If I move the freezer out to the garage, I would have room for a counter/table/workspace, but would like recommendations as to a STURDY surface that I can work on (I don't want it to just be cute, and don't want it to move around as I work).
The cabinets are also original, right down to that little medallion on each one. They're okay, except for the obviously replacement-type handles. There are 2 built-in lazy susans inside the corner top cabinet, so kinda nice!
The vent over the stove is original equipment--1969 Ventrola! It needs a bit of appliance paint, but otherwise, I like it (and it works very well!). I like the retro look of it, and wouldn't mind using that theme to decorate.
In summary, I am looking for advice on a work area, place to put little appliances, colors and décor.
Just as an aside, I don't like the oven, but stuck with it unless we do major overhaul. It's a 27" drop-in GE Spacemaker. Don't ever get one--- UNLESS you like bending almost to the floor to retrieve things out of the tiny, tiny oven.
  11 answers
  • @Stephanie ...I would suggest finding something you can use a an " island' in your kitchen. ...' had the same issue, somewhat small kitchen, no counter space....and devised the use of ' an island' out of old dresser , put 4"x4 '" tiles onto the top and it worked out good...plus lots of drawer storage. You can use most anything that will fit your space, but you need something at least 17 to 22 " deep for it to be useful. I would go with a ' farmhouse ' sort of thing for your kitchen, ..using creams ( to bring in ' light' , ) whites and a restrained dose of whatever your favorite color is. ..that is kitchen friendly. My own kitchen is creams/ whites/ deep barn red,and various shades of apple to pear green. AND it DOES NOT look ' christmasy" lol. I would change out your hardware, you can find hardware for cheap on CL, yard sales, etc. :) I noticed you have an area above your sink , where the window is ( between the cabinets ) that would be perfect for a DIY open display shelf , for ' pretties' , or whatever you like to display. I personally think every kitchen needs some ' open shelving' for display or whatever, keeps your kitchen from feeling ' closed in'. My refrigerator was in the same area as yours, I moved it and it freed up that space , where I now have a free standing ' cabinet thing I got the cabinet at yard sale . Its where my Microwave sits and it has shelving ( open) above the MW and an area below that has glass doors and tons of storage. , All of this helped get A LOT of things off my counters , which always help make your kitchen look neat and clean. I hope this helps you out a bit. :)
  • Cloudrider53 Cloudrider53 on Feb 25, 2015
    I think I would put a free standing shelf where your freezer is right now. Measure and make sure it fits exactly to the space. having maybe 5 or six shelves with the shelves on the bottom being wider up to counter height so you can use it for cutting or whatever, the upper ones less wide up as high as you like. I would do an open back with a criss cross wood for stability. Hand towel rack on the side. With that, I would move everything possible off of my counters.
  • Glenda Glenda on Feb 25, 2015
    Yikes! I don't know how you manage with so little counter space! I would definitely look to storing as much in the cabinets/garage as I could. Take the freezer to the garage and invest in a nice portable kitchen island with lots of storage space and maybe even with a drop leaf. Here's one we got: http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Arts-and-Crafts-Kitchen-Cart/8771579/product.html. To free up space in your cabinets (and therefore store more stuff off the counters), invest in a pot rack, maybe to hang over the island? Then take everything you don't use on a daily basis (but fairly frequently) off the counter and store it in the island or cabinets. Things you use only once a year or so could also go into marked boxes and taken out to the garage to be brought out only when you need them, along with any duplicate items (don't need 3 muffin pans, do you?). All of these changes you can take with you to a new home. I too have a smaller kitchen and I constantly have to fight the battle of clutter! Good luck!
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    • Glenda Glenda on Feb 28, 2015
      Yes, it is sturdy and the wheels do lock into place, although if you were kneading bread, I don't know if it would stay in place. We just got ours put together and I haven't had a chance to really try it out yet. It is a little higher than a normal kitchen countertop though and unless you are a tall person, that might make it harder to knead bread. The only other problem is the top is decorative, not practical. I really wish they had made it stainless steel, butcher block or something else that could have withstood normal kitchen use. But I searched 100's of islands and this one offered the most features (i.e. Cabinet space, shelves, storage) for its compact size. on another note, I hadn't realized it until you mentioned it, but yes, our mothers didn't have to worry about microwaves taking up space did they? But there is about 2 sq ft of valuable counter space gone when one sits there, which is why I moved mine to the bakers rack in our dining room. I don't cook with one either, but must admit I'm a wiz at boiling water in one!
  • Katrina Warren Katrina Warren on Feb 25, 2015
    @Stephanie Have you checked to see if the apple border might easily peel off, some boarders are made with 3m type adhesive that easily sticks on & peels off. I would look for an old dresser to use for added counter space & storage.
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    • Gail Salminen Gail Salminen on Feb 28, 2015
      @Stephanie a lot of times the paper just peels off but the backing stays on. Easy to remove though - spray with warm water and use a putty knife to lift it off, then wash the glue off. They also have a wall paper chemical, that you use on the paper - use a razor knife to score the paper then apply the mixed chemical wait a few minutes then remove the paper.
  • @Stephanie ..I meant to include that placing locking casters on your island will allow you to move it about, if you wish.I stored my bakeware , pyrex dishes for baking and mixing, and in the top two small drawers of the " island" , I had my utensils and measuring cups, etc. I had looked at some of the ' islands' that are KD furniture that you put together...but wasnt impressed, and did my own. I painted it to match my kitchen colors, and now my daughter is using it in HER first apartment. :) I will post a photo of the shelf I have in my kitchen, its between two cabinets , at my window, exactly same configuration as your window and cabinets. :)
  • Patty G Patty G on Feb 26, 2015
    Wow...this is my kitchen set-up exactly. I desperately want a kitchen island for storage, but currently use the oven, in the microwave, and in an awesome vintage pie cabinet I pricked up recently. Good luck!
  • Marion Nesbitt Marion Nesbitt on Feb 27, 2015
    Would definitely remove the wallpaper border. The kitchen seems a bit gloomy. I would paint the cabinets, and put some colour on the walls. Like the suggestions about an island on castors. This could store a lot of things that are currently on your counter and free up some room.
  • Karen Karen on Feb 27, 2015
    You could get a microwave cart with storage, that would free up your counter. I would put up a valance to tie in the colors in the boarder.
  • Gail Salminen Gail Salminen on Feb 28, 2015
    @Stephanie you could consider getting an old low dresser from a thrift store - or if you are lucky you may find one at the side of the road. Refinish to your taste, add rollers under the dresser and voila a travelling kitchen island. There are examples on here.
  • Kayo Frazier Kayo Frazier on Mar 18, 2015
    Ok, Here's my 2 cents...Warning ~ This is going to be a LONG post...1st ~ Find out if the cabinets are the cheap MDF, or real wooden ones. If they are real wood, then you can sand them down & paint them white. If they are MDF, there are products that you can find at Lowe's or Home Depot that will work, again paint them white. You can change the look of the doors by getting decorative trim. Replace the door pulls w/ black round ones, you can find those for relatively cheap. 2nd ~ Can't tell by the picture whether you have a wood back splash or tile, but if you have a wood one, you can place silver metal ceiling tiles as decorative or as plain as you want right over existing w/ adhesive. 3rd ~ Paint the door & trim in the whole room white. Take down the border on the soffit, and paint whole room in your favorite color. IMHO, I think a rich, darker cornflower blue would look amazing. 4th ~ Remove the freezer to the garage. 5th ~ Move the portable dishwasher down the wall so that it's not in front of the fridge. Put it in the middle of open space left by the freezer. 6th ~ See if your landlord has anymore floor cabinets to place on either side of the dishwasher & raise them so that it is flush w/ the top of the dishwasher. Paint these white to the match the other cabinets. These will store all of your kitchen equipment such as baking dishes, stand mixer, toaster etc. You can also get those large office letter dividers & re-purpose them to hold your baking sheets. Then add a butcher block counter on top, that you can secure to the cabinets, but still be able to remove the dishwasher for maintenance. 7 ~ Above the those cabinets you can make 2 shallow shadow boxes w/ 2 shelves & dowels across them to hold any decorative trays & platters instead of hiding them away. 8th ~ One last thing, take out the mini blinds from the window above the sink & put in white sheers. I've given you plenty to think about & any of what I've suggested can be changed to fit your style. Hope this helps.
  • AGirland2Drills AGirland2Drills on Aug 24, 2015
    I am from Fremont originally! I would lose the backsplash, border, and handles and replace with lighter colors on walls and backsplash. I would put shelves around the soffit all the way across to store more items. Maybe try to add depth to the cabinets above the fridge by bringing them out more, it will add function. I would get a stationary island or cart with a stainless steel top to reflect light and make the room feel larger. You could also use some form of plate rack/hutch above the work surface to store the items you use the most.