While waiting on my new countertop installation, I have started pulling together some of the smaller decor items. As I’ve mentioned before, I really want to keep a retro vibe for the kitchen and keep it original to the design of the home. I am keeping the birch cupboards as is, and just refinishing the wood since the finish is starting to wear off.

Since we are trying to rebuild the hole that was cut where the dishwasher was put in, I realized I would either have to match the current hardware or purchase new hardware. My current cabinet pulls are a simple rounded silver handle that I don’t hate, but I was having a difficult time finding the exact same handle. I knew it would bother me if all of the handles didn’t match, so I ended up purchasing new simple silver handles.

It was more difficult to choose the handles than I thought. First, I had to work with the existing holes in the cupboards which are a 3″ space. I didn’t want anything too decorative for my retro-looking kitchen, and the trendy farmhouse look definitely doesn’t work either. I was also shocked by how not-cheap pulls are. I need 41 of them so it adds up quickly. At first I thought the simple handles were too stark for my kitchen, but after looking at a few kitchens with similar handles on pinterest, I did like how totally simple it was. It fits my kitchen and will give a clean updated look.

I think I previously mentioned that I want to soften the green paint of my walls to more of a light gray green. I think this will make it look a little more modern but still nod to retro 50’s green. I also think this will look really pretty with the birch wood and new white counters and backsplash. I love this kitchen as inspiration for the color palette and style I want my kitchen to have.

I’m excited to clean and organize my cupboards once they are redone, and got really pretty peel and stick wallpaper on clearance to use as shelf liners instead of contact paper. The insides of the cupboards are in really nice condition and I want to keep them that way!

I have been collecting some wall art as I’ve found things that I’ve liked. I’m not sure that I will use all of it yet, but I’ll play around with it once the other updates are made.

I also picked up some cute kitchen curtains on clearance at Target. I’m not sure if they will look too country in my kitchen (or if I even want curtains), but the fabric is really pretty, and I again thought that I could see how they look when everything else is complete.

If you haven’t noticed, I spend a lot of time thinking about rooms and always keep an eye out for the right pieces. (I also am currently storing all this stuff under the bed in my guest bedroom until it can be used!).

One of my favorite pieces for the room is a beautiful rug that I wanted to be a focal point of the room. I think this will bring a really modern pop to the room and it is really me that it is hot pink. There are also bits of gray green in it that will tie into the walls. This is also why I want to make sure other decor pieces work with the rug and don’t feel too out of place in style (especially the curtains– I think they might be the odd guy out!).

I’m super excited to start working on painting the walls and to start pulling it all together. Stay tuned for updates!