Traditional Home – kitchen with cheerful blue chairs and charming oversized light

Kitchens with Charm and Personality!

If your kitchen makes you yawn, maybe there is something you could do to give it a little more of a WOW factor!

How about a big oversized light?
A fresh color on the cabinets or walls?
What about colored furniture or a new patterned fabric?
Or maybe a unique design element?

BHG – fresh color on lower cabinets

I think a kitchen should have something about it that grabs your attention and that makes you happy every time you see it. I mean, think of how often we are in our kitchens? Um, several times a day? Or more? I want to LOVE being in my kitchen.

Traditional Home – unique orange banquette fabric

I love to see design that is fresh and fun and not the same ol’ same ol’ white cabinets or predictable popular fabric. I like a little charm, a little personality and a little eye catching something that makes me fall in love!

I don’t really care whether the attention grabbers are furniture, fabrics, lighting or the cabinets themselves, I just love seeing something that shows the owner’s personality, creativity or love for their home. It doesn’t take a lot of detail to make a kitchen special and unique!  A little thought and creativity will go a long way towards making your kitchen YOURS.

BHG Colorful tile backsplash and painted cabinet backs

I’d love working in a kitchen like this!
A fun backsplash
and painted cabinet backs make this
kitchen charming and cozy!

BHG – windows behind glass cabinets

The windows behind these glass cabinets
caught my eye! They definitely
make the room special and unique!
Not exactly sure how you’d clean them but
I’d be willing to figure it out
in order to have the benefit of the cabinets
with the light streaming in the room like that!

BHG – colored cabinets and orange accent wall

No predictable white cabinets and walls here!
The color combo warms up the kitchen and
gives it a charming personality all its own.

If you are wanting to freshen up a kitchen you already have without gutting it and starting from scratch, it really helps to be open to the unique. Anyone can redesign an entire kitchen with a big budget and make it charming and lovely, but if you are on a budget you can create a wonderful new-to-you kitchen using simple and affordable tricks such as color and accessories! I’m definitely dreaming up affordable charm for my own kitchen!

What design elements grab your attention in a kitchen and make you want to stay awhile?

Just for fun this weekend, I thought I would feature the top four blogger Room Tours from the past year, in no particular order!

PS. I’ve been a wee bit of an absent blogger this week because I’ve been a busy busy bee around my house! I’ve made quite a bit of progress on my office! Honestly, I am about to burst with happiness, I love it SO MUCH! I’m so happy with how it is coming together. More posts to come!

Have fun touring these rooms!

1. Master Bathroom Makeover by 320 Sycamore

2. White Kitchen Transformation by Lemonade Makin’ Mama

3. Serene Pink and Gray bedroom by Decor Chick

4. Client Family Room Makeover by Sarah Macklem Interiors

Check out more awesome Room Tours here!

So, I got a little something in the mail yesterday from PW. That is The Pioneer Woman in case you have been living under a rock and don’t know who PW is. It was awfully kind of her to send me her cookbook. Signed and all. It was a gift.

Just between you and me, I think she knows I can’t cook and thought she might help a sister out.  She is nice like that. But if anyone can make me want to cook, it is PW.

And truly, I’m grateful for this cookbook. I took that photo above with my phone the minute I opened the package, sorry it is kind of blurry. I was pretty excited when I got it and couldn’t stop jumping up and down.

The cookbook looks divine and the recipes sound so good! In fact, I got so excited about everything I could make from the cookbook I spontaneously found myself over at Anthropologie looking at cute baking stuff. WHAT? Yes. Because, that is what happens when I think about cooking or baking. I think about needing cute kitchen accessories. And then I want them. I have a problem. I’m aware of that.

So, come with me to Anthropologie (online) and shop, OK? Let me drag you along with me! I love going window shopping with you!

Ooo, pretty. I’m pretty sure I need this butter dish. 

Or, maybe this one!! Yes?

Oh, oh, OK, maybe this one.

You can never have too much butter, right?

Let’s just get them all.

And these little chalkboard herb and spice jars. Need. Cuteness.

My eggs would be pretty spectacular in this little tray, wouldn’t they?

I think it would make ‘em look fresh from the PW ranch, almost!

And these, how could I resist THESE little measuring cups?

I think PW would agree. I need cute measuring cups. Precious.

A milk bottle measuring cup?

That looks like it came straight off of PW’s ranch.

Gotta have that before I make anything from her cookbook. Must.

Wait. They call this a wallpaper juicer? Wah?

I seriously thought for quite awhile about how it could be used it for wallpapering.

Until I realized maybe they didn’t mean it was literally a wallpaper juicer.

Not sure.

But either way, I am thinking this is a must. 

And last but not least, I’m sure I will need this adorable little Farmer’s Market basket.

For, berries. Or, something.

Are you with me? ADORABLE, right? All of these are so fun for a gift to yourself or someone else, and they are actually all fairly reasonably priced considering how awesome they are. If I remember right, I think the most expensive thing was $38, everything else was $12 to maybe $25. I think I’m all ready to try out a recipe now. I’ll let you know how it goes and what I make!

This post is not sponsored by PW or Anthro, but I recommend both sites very highly. Although it is not yet out, you can preorder PW’s book on amazon by clicking the image below (you can also find it and some other books I like in my somewhat neglected shop).

So, what little kitchen gem from Anthropologie would you go home with?

And in a related question, do you cook more on the weekends or during the week?

All images of Anthropologie products are from Anthropologie.com