Decorating a Retro Kitchen on a Budget
One of the most memorable traits of a retro kitchen is the black and while check floor. You have many options to great retro kitchen flooor on a budget. Peel and stick tile are one of the easiest as well as one of the cheapest. For about $1.00 per square foot you can immediately change your existing kitchen in to a retro inspired eatery. Painting your linoleum floor is also an option to creating these black and white checks. If you can’t commit to changing the floor, or you don’t own your home, try buying a black and white checked area rug that fills up a large portion of your floor. For a custom rug made out of canvas check out the article at www.associatedcontent. There are step-by-step instructions and the project is cheap and easy.
Now that you have tackled the floor, think about the area your might notice next. The cabinets or the walls. Either one is a great second place to start making over your kitchen in a retro theme. If you have dark dated wall cabinets from the 1960’s, 1970’s or 1980’s try painting them. White always works well, but many retro kitchens have two-toned cabinets. The lower cabinets could be a darker retro blue, while the upper cabinets should be a lighter version of the same exact color. Replace door pulls with great silver pieces with a deco feel. Chrome is huge in a retro kitchen. Any door pull can be made to look like chrome with a coat of chrome spray paint. Save that chrome spray paint when you are finished. You will be surprised how useful it can be when redecorating your kitchen in a retro theme.
Walls in a retro kitchen were usually white, or even some shade of white that had a hint of the color of the cabinets in the paint. A bluish white if you refer to the example above. Other retro kitchen wall ideas include stenciling cherries, apples, bananas, and almost any fruit on your walls. For an earthier retro kitchen that gives the Pottery Barn or Martha Steward look go for an earthy green or yellow with white cabinets. You don’t have to embrace bright colors to get a retro kitchen.
Hanging stuff on the walls is essential to creating a truly retro kitchen. I do mean stuff. Retro kitchens strove to be functional in any way they could. Little painted shelves above the stove for spices, funky little art on the walls, and calendars are always great starting points. Visit your local flea markets, www.ebay.com, thrift shops, and Craigslist to find retro kitchen utensils. Hang them on the wall like art.
If you have enough room in your kitchen a few retro inspired bar stools are always great additions. You can find reproductions at stores like Bed Bath and Beyond and Target. The little old metal stools with the steps that fold down are fabulous! Leather seats with chrome legs are also very good design ideas.
For some final touches to making your kitchen retro, don’t over look the light fixtures. Go for chrome surface again. You might even luck onto some actual vintage pieces while you are at the garage sales. Dishes are also an inexpensive design element great for creating a retro kitchen. Fiesta ware can be purchase new or old. Serve some guest fresh coffee from your chrome percolator in some vintage Fiesta ware and they will immediate be transported to the 1950’s!
