Categories: Kitchens

16 No-Fail Ideas For Decorating Kitchen Countertops

Published by
James marcus

Elevate your culinary space with creative ideas for decorating kitchen countertops. Create a kitchen that is functional and beautiful, and infused with your own personal style.

One of the most coveted pieces of real estate in your home are your kitchen counters! They serve many purposes, from meal preparation to a workspace. We use appliances on the and even store those appliances in plain sight. Our kitchen counters act as a place to serve meals, clean them up, and they act as an organization hub. And if you are like me, they are also a great place to make DIYs. Our kitchen counters should not only be functional but should add beauty and style to our kitchen. Today let’s talk about ideas to decorate your kitchen countertops.

Our kitchen countertops are called to be very multifunctional! Here are 16 ways to keep your kitchen countertops in prime working order and looking their best too.

Here are 7 ideas for decorating your kitchen countertops.

Keep Countertops Tidy

Kitchen countertops are clutter magnets. And not only clutter but they also collect lots and lots of small appliances, crocks. jars and coffee, canisters, mugs, plates, dog treats, pencils, catsup bottles, pepper mills, décor, and other kitchen staples!

Kitchen countertops should ideally serve three main purposes…

  • any food-related task
  • add beauty and style to our kitchens
  • help us carry out all other kitchen tasks

It seems like no matter how much counter space we have, we could always use more! So to make the most of our kitchen counters, we should strive for then to be clutter-free!

Clean Off Your Kitchen Countertops

One of the best pieces of advice I can give you is to spend a little time and clear everything off of your countertops. And give them a good cleaning. Even in the most fastidious kitchen, stains, spills, and kitchen dust and grease can hide behind and underneath what we have on our counters. And give your backsplash a good cleaning, too, especially if you have grout.

A Word About Small Appliances

One of the biggest clutter culprits that make kitchen countertops overcrowded is small kitchen appliances! When possible, find a home for small kitchen appliances other than your countertops. Unless you use one every day, like a coffee maker, stow it away elsewhere! I have most of my appliances in the cabinetry closet next to the refrigerator. It’s a little crowded, but I really appreciate uncluttered countertops.

I keep my Air Fryer on top of my dryer and my mixer under the counter on the left side of the stove. We use our toaster often. But it’s not so hard to shake the crumbs out of it every time we use it and tuck it in a cabinet. My countertop stays cleaner, and so does our toaster!

I keep nothing on my kitchen counters that is not absolutely necessary, and there is A LOT of kitchen stuff that is not absolutely necessary!

Start cleaning off all your countertops by putting unnecessary items away! And always clean them and put them away after every use. This is huge!

Clean Your Sink

I know this is a post about countertops, but I think countertops and our sinks go hand in hand. A kitchen looks messy when the counters are messy, and it also looks messy when dishes are piled up in the sink!

Keep your sink clear of any dishes and your countertops free of drying dishes waiting to be put away! If you have soap dispensers or lotion next to your kitchen counter, put them in attractive containers. Add a drying rack under your sink to hang damp towels and dishcloths to keep them off of your counters.

I know you know all this! It’s just a gentle reminder for us.

Add Some Greenery And Organics To Your Kitchen

Plants and flowers make a kitchen come to life! Even the smallest vase of flowers can brighten up the whole kitchen. Potted plants and especially herbs are beautiful additions to a kitchen countertop!

Using Fresh Herbs

I like to keep something decorative behind our sink, like fresh herbs in little pots, like above, or cut herbs in a little measuring cup, like below. This is a great place to add a bit of greenery and life to a kitchen.

A Bowl Of Fruit

A bowl of fruit is a work of art and looks so pretty on a counter!

When my children were growing up, I had a saying, “fruit is an anytime snack,” and left a bowl of fruit out on the counter.

Fruit is a pretty and healthy way to decorate your kitchen!

Create Impact With A Statement Piece

If you have the room, think about adding a statement piece to your kitchen. It could be a large bouquet of real or faux flowers, a piece of art, or something that works as an attention-grabbing focal point!

I have hydrangeas ready to come in the house to be dried, so I put them in a big farmhouse-style vase along with seeded eucalyptus to create a big, beautiful statement and pop of color.

Here are other things to use as a statement piece in a kitchen…

  • a bold backsplash can be a statement piece in a kitchen
  • vintage or antique furniture
  • sculptures
  • a beautiful stack of plates with a distinct pitcher on it
  • open shelve display
  • colorful and/or designer appliances
  • oversized lighting fixtures
  • suspended pot racks
  • unique bar stools

Create Work Stations

Creating work stations on your kitchen counters and breaking them up into zones is a brilliant way to keep them organized, keep everyday items needed to do a task together in one place, and keep countertops relatively clear.

Think about creating stations on your counters.

Coffee/ Tea/ Drink Station

If you are a coffee (or tea) drinker, it is a good idea to create a simple and small area to corral your coffee maker and other things you might need.

We are huge coffee drinkers, so creating a pretty and useful coffee station in our kitchen was a must.

If you drink coffee or tea or some other beverage, having an area in your kitchen designated for that specific use is a great idea!

Three things to keep in mind when creating a drink station is to

  • keep it contained
  • the simpler, the better
  • and it should look attractive

Our simple coffee station has a streamlined coffeemaker, a small grouping of canisters with wooden lids for coffee pods, sugar, and sugar substitute, and a vase of hydrangeas from our front walk. I propped a wooden vintage cutting board behind them to add a bit of texture to our white kitchen.

It is also a good idea to use the cabinet space directly above or below a coffee/drink station for mugs, cups, saucers, and any creamers you might use. We also use the drawer underneath the coffee station to keep small square plates we use as utensil holders to put used spoons on and traveler mugs.

Cooking Stations

Most kitchens have an area next to their stove to keep things they use to cook food. It is so important to keep the most basic things you used every day at your fingertips.

I used to have a large crock filled with every spoon and spatula you can imagine and a variety of cooking oils and different salts and pepper on my counter. To be honest, it was a mess!

So now my cooking station is in a small wooden tray that holds…

  • a crock of my most used wooden spoons
  • salt and pepper mill
  • a blue olive oil dispenser (see it HERE) for a splash of color
  • and a thyme plant in a pot

The longer I decorate and organize the more I believe less is best and simple is perfect! Especially when it comes to the kitchen.

There are other things I use most often for cooking at the stove, so I stored them in the drawer below the kitchen station. That drawer holds a salt pig, Amish butter in a white butter dish as well as potholders, and a couple trivets. Out of sight but on hand to use!

For me having something pretty at each station is important! Right now, I have a healthy thyme plant that I use when I cook in the station too!

I love herbs in the kitchen, and growing herbs indoors is easy with just a little know-how. See HOW TO GROW HERBS INDOOR HERE.

Other Work Station Ideas

We should all tailor our kitchens to our needs. Create simple stations to help you better utilize your countertops and keep them tidy and pretty!

Cookbook Station

If you like cookbooks, like I do, then cookbooks are a big part of your kitchen. I read cookbooks like romance novels! However, my collection is rather extensive, and I don’t have space on our countertops or even in our cabinets for all the favorite cookbooks with my favorite recipes. Instead, I rotate cookbooks in and out of my kitchen, a few at a time, and display them on the far end of the long countertop that also doubles as Bobby’s pop-up bar.

I like to put one cookbook on a cookbook stand and lean a few more behind it on the counter.

Bobby’s Pop-Up Bar

Bobby’s pop-up bar is set up on the countertop of the long cabinets opposite the coffeemaker when we have family and company over for dinner. I put my cookbooks away, and a fun self-serve bar is set up.

The cabinets above and below hold bar glasses, liquor, and mixers, and the long drawer has all the gadgets he needs to set up a first-class bar!

Pop-up is the operative word here! His bar could get very out of hand, so we leave it up when we have company and put it away when they are gone. It only takes a few minutes to assemble and put it away, and then it has no time to get cluttered.

This part of the countertop also works as a dessert bar. If we are not setting up a bar, I like to create an easy self-serve area for desserts when we have a crowd over to eat.

Stations Most Kitchens Should Have

Here are some basic stations most kitchens should have…

  • prep station
  • cooking station
  • clean-up station
  • garbage disposal station
  • pet feeding station

Add Warm Elements To A Kitchen

If you have countertop materials like granite, stone, quartz, or other stone-like countertops, you might want to add a bit of wood to your countertop decor! Just a little wood or wicker will add a softer, warmer element to a kitchen that is much needed, especially if you have painted cabinets.

Think about adding…

  • wooden trays
  • wicker baskets
  • breadboards
  • wooden trivets
  • rolling pins

Show Off Your Food

If you have the room, think about leaving cookies or biscotti standing tall in glass jars on the counter. Or if you have baked goods, display them on a pedestal cake pedestal under a cloche.

Use Interesting Containers

Containing things on countertops is a great way to save space, decorate your kitchen countertops, and still have things at your fingertips.

Use pretty jars, pots, and containers that work with your kitchen decor!

Choose containers whose size works with the available room you have in your kitchen.

I hope you are inspired to clean and clear off your countertops and use them in a way that helps you be more efficient in your kitchen and enjoy a lovely aesthetic!

What kitchen counter decor ideas will you use?

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I make my kitchen countertops look nice without replacing them?

The easiest way to make your kitchen countertops look nice without replacing them is by painting them, using PVC countertop film, or getting a kitchen countertop refinishing kit. These are the most successful ways to make countertops look new.

What is the best way to keep countertops neat?

The best way to keep kitchen countertops neat is by cleaning them up every time you use them and also putting everything away.

Should I decorate my kitchen countertops?

Yes, you can and should lightly decorate your kitchen countertops to make your kitchen look and feel attractive. Just keep decor out of work areas.

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This post was last modified on 24/10/2023 12:49

James marcus

Garden Courte is a blog written by [James Marcus], a passionate gardener and writer. She has been gardening for over 20 years and has a deep understanding of plants and how to care for them. In her blog, she shares her knowledge and experience with others, providing tips and advice on gardening, plant care, and more.

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Published by
James marcus

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