Making Your Kitchen More Inviting
creating an inviting kitchen
The kitchen is a room with a very specific purpose, food. However it is also a source of warmth, good smells, savory treats, and all of the love that goes into the preparation of nourishment for the entire household. As such it often draws people towards it naturally, acting as a kind of social center for the home. This aspect can be enhanced using a variety of decorative and organizational tricks, which can make the space seem more comforting and inviting to the people throughout your home.
While the kitchen may be a highly functional area, there is some room for decorative endeavors. These small touches can serve to add personality to the space, changing it from a stark environment, to one with a bit of vibrancy and life.
You should be careful to limit any decorative pieces cluttering up the counter or floor space within this room however you do still have the walls to decorate in any way you see fit. Portraits, landscapes, or family images are very popular ways to add a personal touch to the space. Images of food, or other delicious, nourishing treats, can also reinforce the inherent nature of the space.
One way to add color to the space is through items such as throw rugs, or curtains. These inherently functional pieces are also quite visible, and actually add to the usage of the space. Some good kitchen colors include the whole range of earth tones, as well as various greens, and shades of white. Blue hues tend to repress hunger, and so should be avoided, and darker colors such as grays and blacks will just make the room feel claustrophobic and hot.
If you want a more dramatic effect, the walls themselves can be painted, or wall papered, to bathe the room in a particular pattern or color. However you have to be careful about which tones you use in the kitchen, as certain colors will tend to make the space feel warmer, which will in turn cause people to avoid the space, and can also interfere with the chef’s ability to work. Generally you should avoid black and red tones, as these will produce the greatest feeling of heat within the space.
Another great way to make this space seem more inviting is to add a kitchen table and chair set. This makes the kitchen a destination, not just a transient space to enter and leave. It gives people somewhere to sit, to congregate, so that they don’t have to wander aimlessly about the space, getting constantly in the way of the chef on duty. The very existence of such a set will invite people in, luring them with the promise of comfort and welcome, and giving them a place and reason to stay a little longer.
If you kitchen isn’t sized for a full table set, you can use lunch counters or a small bar setting to achieve much the same effect with only a minimum of space sacrificed. Place a couple of bar stools adjacent to these pieces and you have a destination where people can sit and eat, that doesn’t take up all that much room within the kitchens necessary floor space.
Creating an inviting kitchen is about developing an environment that makes people feel comfortable. Using color and decoration, you can give the space personality and make it feel more like a destination than just a place of work and toil. Providing a place for people to congregate and sit will also help set up the space as a functioning social center, where others are encouraged to come and enjoy one another’s company.
Natural shades or wood blinds are also a great, eco-friendly way to add character to your kitchen. Check out some great options at http://www.greenbaliblinds.com.