Kitchens are the heart of a home, where families gather, meals are shared, and memories are made—so transform your kitchen into a more inviting, laid-back space with ideas from our favorite cottage-style designs. We showcase our best cottage kitchen ideas, from light to bold and patterned to bright. You will find cottage kitchen inspiration for any style of home, from coastal to urban country and from mid-century modern to family-friendly. These cottage kitchen ideas show you how to think about your cabinets and counters, how to creatively consider kitchen islands, and how to contrast the old and the new. Our cottage kitchen inspirations will have you feeling at home in the heart of your kitchen.
Open Things Up
Laurey W. Glenn
For her campy Lake Martin, Alabama, kitchen, designer and homeowner Raili Clasen ditched the original upper cabinets in favor of vertical paneling (painted Sherwin-Williams’ Clary Sage, SW 6178) and open shelving filled with treasured flea market finds.
Use Unique Walls for Backsplash
Cody Ulrich
Designer Leah Ashley Finn chose the same smeared stone used on her home’s exterior for the kitchen walls in lieu of contemporary backsplash tile. “Early German settlers would have used Texas limestone inside and out,” she says. A custom kitchen island was built to resemble a vintage find that was coated in lead paint, and refurbished pendant lights were sourced from Nomadic Trading Co. in Durham, North Carolina.
Work with What You Have
HECTOR MANUEL SANCHEZ STYLING BY: HOLLY SMITH
In her 1921 Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, cottage, designer and homeowner Laura Kay embraced the original range and brick fireplace, adding wooden corbels to tie it into the adjacent Shaker-style cabinets. Bunny-Mellon-inspired painted wooden floors by Hayden Gregg accentuates the room’s century-old character.
Reflect the Light
Brie Williams
Natural light floods this hardworking Charlotte, North Carolina, kitchen, where Magnolia Home’s French Ticking wallpaper adds understated interest and a coat of Sherwin-Williams’ Extra White (SW 7006) on the cabinetry and hood keeps things airy and light.
Play Up the Power of Paint
JAMES RANSOM; STYLING: Veronica Olson
A creative paint job made all the difference in artist Dorothy Shain’s Greenville, South Carolina, bungalow. Rather than replacing the kitchen’s existing dark cabinetry and flooring, Shain and her husband transformed them with paint, coating the built-ins with Sherwin-Williams’ Blustery Sky (SW 9140) and engaging decorative painter Hayden Gregg to update the backsplash, countertops, and floors.
Let Architectural Details Lead
Pretty beams punctuate the wood-paneled ceiling in this Seaside, Florida, kitchen, where designer Heather Chadduck Hillegas covered the cabinets in a creamy shade of Sherwin-Williams’ Natural Tan (SW 7567) and splashed the island in Sherwin-Williams’ Labradorite (SW 7619) for ocean-inspired pop of color.
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark
Amy Neunsinger
Dark countertops create warm contrast in the predominantly white kitchen (a custom blend of Benjamin Moore’s Linen White, OC-146, and Cloud White, OC-130) of this 1920s Dallas house.
Aim for Light and Bright
Designer Meg Kelly revamped the kitchen of her Nashville, Tennessee, home by tearing out the upper cabinetry to make it feel airier and coating the original wood-paneled walls with PPG’s Delicate White, PPG1001-1. A saturated print (Schumacher’s Lotus Garden) on the Roman shade delivers an inviting dose of color.
Add Decorative Touches
Decorative touches—like green soapstone counters and tole fronts on the upper cabinets—add color, texture, and style to a classic white kitchen. The marble-and-iron table also doubles as an island work surface. Together with the light fixture, this kitchen feels like it has passed down through the family.
Add Paneling for a Vintage Look
Push-out casement windows and wood-planked walls add a vintage feeling to this white kitchen. The clock and decorative platters add a nautical touch. The ivory shade and pale stone countertop keep the space light and fresh.
Make a Kitchen You Can Live In
This kitchen was designed to be the biggest room in the house. There’s no formal dining space except for the large farm table. And the industrial island offers a utilitarian twist to contrast with the room’s old-world style.
Add Cheer With Patterns and Color
In her kitchen renovation, Lindsey Ellis Beatty tossed out black tile countertops to create the cheerful gray-and-white space she had always envisioned. She built a custom pantry to make a floating fridge feel like part of the room, and brought in new breakfast table seating with a fun zigzag pattern.
Step Up the Storage
A small but efficient island holds refrigerator drawers and a bookcase for cookbooks. Painted deep gray to contrast with the lighter color of the cabinets and topped with marble, it feels vintage and authentic to the homes’ architecture. Built-in shelving in a wall of cabinets displays china and baskets.
Make New Feel Lived In
This pre-fab beach cottage was made to look like a well-loved family home with the help of a custom layout and finishes. The breakfast nook and kitchen occupy a separate wing that makes the house appear to have expanded over time, while a combination of closed-front cabinets and open shelves maximizes space in the small kitchen. The movable butcher-block-topped island also provides extra prep space.
Make Use of Reclaimed Materials
Reclaimed heart-pine flooring flows from the adjacent dining room right into the cozy kitchen. Cabinets built in a whitewashed Shaker style provide a soothing contrast to dark-stained floors and wood trusses above. Copper accents and China add a farmhouse feel.
Lighten Up the Room
In this light-drenched kitchen, the homeowner switched out traditional hanging fixtures for more eclectic choices, such as the vintage lantern over the island. But despite the unique ceiling lights, ambient light is the most striking source of light in the kitchen. Between the bright and cheery space and the easy access to plates and cups, your guests are sure to sit and stay awhile.
Create a Breakfast Table
A rustic farm table takes the place of a central island in this kitchen, creating a spot for casual meals. Scale your table to allow plenty of room to work around. You’ll find it easier than ever to serve and clean up after meals.
Blend Classic with Modern
New maple-veneer cabinets inspired by 1950s furniture give this kitchen a mid-century feel. The dinette set’s classic cottage style blends seamlessly with a modern light fixture and the wood-paneled walls and ceiling. Touches of color brighten the otherwise monochromatic kitchen.
Make New Look Old
This renovation of a 1950s kitchen, complete with white paneled walls, sleek dark wood floors, leather-finished soapstone countertops, and a dark steel hood, brought the look firmly into the 21st century while still feeling old. What’s more, the builder expertly excavated a small, hidden woodstove in the wall and transformed it into the kitchen fireplace that is the highlight of the room. This steel vent hood was buffed to a black matte finish to imitate the patina of an old woodstove.
Design for the Family
When Caroline and Andy Roeser purchased their Houston home, it was done with a love of the neighborhood and a lot of vision. Its windowless galley kitchen felt cold and dated, so the couple wasted no time renovating it to become a sunny, open space. Family-friendly features include a desk area and bulletin board, an attached dining table, and youthful fabrics.
Use Budget-Friendly Finishes
This homeowner painted the white walls and gray cabinets and flooring to enliven outdated finishes. She topped the existing counters with chinoiserie lamps found at a flea market. She mixed cherished hand-me-downs with modern appliances for a functional yet thoughtfully adorned kitchen, then added a final layer of vintage-inspired appeal with the fabric shade.
Keep it Classic
The builder of this home did a great job of making classic choices such as the white subway tile, the vintage-style hardware on the cabinets, and a mahogany top on the island. Green paint freshens the space, while glass door fronts make it easy to find the dinnerware you desire. A nearby bench seat and table allow for cross-room conversation.
Add Farmhouse Charm
Typically used for barn roofing, the kitchen’s corrugated material adds authentic farmhouse charm for only about $15 per sheet. A rustic butcher block table and wall decor add to the farmhouse feel. The light wood finish of the countertops balances dark flooring.
Embrace Rustic Features
This small cottage kitchen lets rustic elements shine, from the exposed rafters down to the knotty pine floors. A soft olive-beige paint unifies the walls, cabinets, and handmade kitchen chairs. The apron-front sink and skirt add vintage style.
Max Out Floorspace
Pushing the classically styled white cabinets and soapstone countertops along the walls maxes out floorspace in this tiny cooking area. Glass-front upper cabinets offer a more refined (and nearly as airy) option than traditional open shelving that is typically found in rural kitchens. A shiplap backsplash and old-timey louvered shutters reference Southern farmhouses. An antique pine dining table sits snugly in the kitchen and doubles as a food-prep station.