Kitchen cabinets, countertops, and appliances usually define the look of the room, but kitchen accessories add the finishing touches. From your style choices in everything from hardware to lighting, you have plenty of options to personalize this heart of your home.

kitchen faucets

More than just your sink faucet, the faucet is one of those kitchen accessories that provides both a decorative accent and an important function. Today’s kitchen faucets are available in a wide range of styles, from the conventional single-handle faucet to more contemporary designs like the Moen 90 Degree or the Kohler Karbon Wall Mount Faucet. The popular gooseneck style offers a high arch that makes it easy to wash large pans or fill large containers. A pull-out spray feature gives you even more freedom with your faucet, allowing you to reach beyond the confines of your sink to use water, such as watering potted plants.

To complement the color of your room, kitchen faucets are available in many finishes, including brushed or polished chrome, brass, nickel, copper, and the trending oil-rubbed bronze. Styles like the Herbeau Flamande present the true art of faucet work in a wide range of finishes, including polished or antique copper, and can be customized with the wood or ceramic handle of your choice.

In addition to the sink faucet, consider adding a pot filler faucet to your kitchen accessory wish list. This wall-mounted articulating (ie swing arm) faucet used to be found only in commercial kitchens, but today’s serious cooks enjoy the convenience of an additional wall-mounted faucet near the stove. With a pot filler faucet, you can do just that: turn on the faucet and fill a pot right on the stove and avoid loading heavy pots with water from the sink.

cabinet hardware

Known as the “jewels” of the kitchen, cabinet hardware (knobs, handles, pulls) is more than just a way to open and close doors and drawers. With hundreds of designs, you can customize your cabinets however you like with these kitchen accessories. A whimsical frog or seahorse, colorful ceramics, or the elegance of cast pewter or bronze can carry a simple cabinet and showcase your personal style. Dress up simple cabinets with more ornate knobs and pulls, like the Notting Hill Florid Leaves knob or the Amerock Euro Stone Square knob, and even add a backplate to draw more attention to the hardware. Sleek cabinets should be paired with simple hardware that doesn’t overpower the cabinet design.

When choosing hardware for your cabinets, you don’t have to match them all, especially if you have an eclectic design style, but keep your choices within the same color range. You should also choose a style that works not only with your cabinet style, but also with your countertops, flooring, and any areas adjoining the kitchen, such as your dining room, especially if it’s an open floor plan.

Before you commit to buying enough cabinet hardware for every door and drawer in your kitchen, which can add up quickly, buy a few samples of each design you’re considering to see how they’ll look in the room. When you buy two or three of a particular style, you can get a better idea of ​​the overall look than with just one knob or pull.

kitchen lighting

Your kitchen lighting performs a variety of functions. The upper ambient luminaire casts light over the entire room. Task lighting is placed in areas where you need specific light, usually above workspaces such as under cabinets or above the sink or island. Then you have decorative lighting to set the mood, like pendant lights suspended above a bar.

Your functional ambient lighting, such as recessed or track lighting, has a job to do, but can be accentuated with decorative light fixtures that better reflect the room’s decor. In addition to the many metals used in kitchen lighting fixtures, you can often find a variety of glass options, such as frosted, tinted, or rippled, that will cast a very different light in your kitchen. Some luminaires even have an additional function. The Golden Lighting Heartwood and the Jeremiah Lighting Brookshire Manor double as pot racks.

Consider adding dimmers to your kitchen lighting so you can change the mood from a fully functional prep to an intimate gathering, or anywhere in between.

Whether you’re planning to remodel your kitchen or just want to give it a makeover, take a look at your kitchen accessories for simple ways to personalize the room, enhance the function, or both!