European Country Kitchen Elements: How to Creatively Add Style

European Country Kitchen Elements will help if you’re after Country French, Belgian Minimal, French Cottage, English country, Nordic, or Tuscan flavor. It may sound like a tall order, but many of the tenets apply to a number of European influenced schemes. Also, I’m a dreamer with a wide imagination. Sometimes you just need an imaginative friend to see things from an alternative perspective. Whether you love color, no color, and especially if you’re after an effortless, unfussy look, these design elements may add sophisticated simplicity.

European Country Kitchen Elements

You’ll quickly see that “European Country” is far from a singular look! So many ways to design a unique European inspired space for living, cooking, and dining. But what if you have no plans or budget to remodel or change your sink? My suggestions below will help you see the possibilities. And we DO seem to live in our kitchens today so it pays to be extra thoughtful when you’re planning yours.

Vintage & Antique Textiles

It’s funny. Islands and kitchen peninsulas are so popular these days that we don’t see a lot of traditional eat-in kitchen spaces with tables set with linens. But fabrics that are old or have an Old World look can certainly add personality and European country identity.

In Ruth Gay’s kitchen (above), the antique fabric is upholstery on these gorgeous chairs.

I used an antique German grain sack as a runner on a dining table in our former home (above).

If there’s a place for a pillow on a chair, bench, or window seat like mine above, think about how you might bring age and texture with fabric or upholstery.

Fabric inserts in a cupboard can bring softness and balance.

The linen skirt in my current kitchen is a Belgian nubby sheer-ish fabric I collected years ago. Something romantic happens when you break up an expanse of wood cabinetry with a peekaboo surprise.

I independently selected products in this post—if you buy from one of my links, I may earn a commission.

Even vintage or vintage-inspired towels can be a design element to reinforce a European country feel. Look for Turkish or French stripes, linen, checks, and grain sack material.

How to Incorporate This Element

Have a spot where a linen runner can cozy up the space?

Even a large island that feels a little too sterile may be warmed by a runner.

I love the quality and timelessness of kitchen linens curated by Jenni Kayne!

Rustic Wood Ceiling

It’s not the easiest kitchen design element to add AFTER the fact, right? But the warmth of wood truly brings a layer of rusticity to European country kitchens.

Sometimes it is about subtracting what’s there to reveal ceiling rafters and the stuff above drywalls. And in the high end projects we see, it’s about adding reclaimed wood that has developed patina you simply cannot duplicate without the passage of time.

I love how creative homeowners think about smaller areas where wood planks can make a big statement.

Sometimes homes come with dated features that no longer serve such as garden bay windows (hello, 1970s) or bump-outs that don’t make sense with windows that are failing.

So if you’re renovating and have the chance to elevate them and turn them into a design feature? Score.

It also bears mentioning that rustic wood kitchen ceilings don’t belong in every home. Cottages, mountain lodges, farmhouses, and rustic country houses are more likely going to be a good fit.

But there are wood ceilings that are less rustic and feel right at home in more modern homes.

And even in kitchens with low ceilings, there may be an opportunity to enjoy wood beams that won’t compete.

What a blessing when your rustic wood ceiling is original and who knows…maybe hiding within popcorn texture.

Notice the difference a light painted ceiling makes when compared to…

a richly dark one:

How to Add Rustic Woodsy Warmth

If you love the look and feel of rugged old wood but won’t be touching your ceiling, think about how you can add it with useful items that double as decor.

It’s so easy to find old boards these days everywhere. I have four rustic wood cutting boards on my counters this minute.

Some will be decorative only and can be hung on the wall or styled near the range. But don’t underestimate the power of new boards as well.

After all, with use and time, they will begin to age and get better looking!

Texture from seagrass bowls is another way to bring a bit of warmth that feels relaxed, timeless and casual.

Alternative Wall Cabinets

Whether you are redesigning your kitchen and repurposing existing cabinets as we did or buying new, you need not line the walls with upper wall cabinets if you don’t need the storage.

So many American kitchens are characterized by jamming as many wood boxes on the walls and floor as possible.

But you skip wall cabinets completely if desired. Or skip the doors. There are so many creative ways to get a more relaxed European inspired look in the kitchen. Look what happens when you add a decorative custom trim to door-less cupboards:

And it’s not as though you have to make a solid commitment if you’re toying with the idea. As long as you finish the inside of a cabinet so that it is pretty to your eye, you can always change your mind and re-install the door.

Even including a teeny bit of glass on an upper cabinet can be glorious:

What a difference it makes when you tile the full wall and can enjoy it through glazed doors!

Adding just one glass door for your pretty things to glow is going to be an opportunity to inject personality and interest.

Realistic Idea for Adding an Alternative Upper Cabinet

If new, custom cabinetry is not in the cards, what about adding a freestanding cupboard for storage and display?

Another possibility is to remove a door, finish the inside, and add a few decorative molding pieces like this:

An Effortless Look (Or at Least It Appears Effortless!)

You can’t get too much more laid back than a Leanne Ford approach, and her sensibilities seem to echo those of European country.

Stay tuned for Part 2, and find more kitchen inspiration HERE.

Peace to you right where you are.

-michele

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