My Spring Kitchen Refresh + Video

Hey friends, I can’t wait to take you behind the scenes and show you how I’m infusing my kitchen with all the thrifted finds, vintage heirlooms, and cozy touches I’ve been collecting—let’s jump right in!

I’m so excited to share the cozy kitchen refresh I’ve been working on! Over the past few weeks, I’ve been collecting thrifted treasures, rummaging through antique shops, and rediscovering sentimental family pieces I tucked away ages ago. In today’s post (and in the accompanying video), I’ll walk you through all my styling choices—from adorable fruit needlepoint art to a handmade shelf I fell in love with at a local market.

So grab your favorite warm drink, settle in, and let’s chat about how a few simple touches can transform a kitchen into the heart of your home. Enjoy!

You can read the video transcript at the end of the blog post.

Thrifted and Styled: Kitchen Refresh Video

Originally published February 17, 2024. Updated January 2025.

There’s something magical about giving your kitchen a fresh update, especially when it involves a mix of thrift-store gems, vintage heirlooms, and sweet family mementos. I’ve spent the past few weeks collecting (and rediscovering) pieces that truly speak to me—and I’m so excited to share how I used them to transform my kitchen into a warm, welcoming space.

Thrifted and Styled: Kitchen Refresh

In this post, I’ll walk you through my process, offer some styling tips, and hopefully inspire you to breathe new life into your own kitchen!

Gathering Thrifted & Sentimental Treasures

I started this refresh by pulling out all the thrifted finds and sentimental favorites I’ve been collecting over the last few months.

• Needlepoint Art: Apples, pears, and other fruit designs that instantly bring a cozy, vintage vibe.
• Vintage Cookie Jar & Fruit Bowl: Handmade by my brother during his time in Italy (you can’t beat a piece with a story!).
• Heirloom Pieces: Family cookbooks, my mother’s sugar bowl, and other special items that hold cherished memories.

Before I began styling, I set them all out on my dining table so I could get a sense of what would work together. I love seeing everything in one place because it sparks so many ideas and helps me decide on a direction for the final look.

The New Star of the Show: The Antique Shelf

One of my favorite finds for this project was a handmade shelf I stumbled upon at an antique market in Woodstock, Georgia. The moment I saw it, I knew it would be perfect for displaying pretty plates, small décor, and other bits that make my kitchen feel personal.

1. Mounting: We anchored the shelf into the wall with screws, making sure it was super secure.
2. Styling Options: Each shelf has grooves for displaying plates—perfect for layering in cookbooks, framed needlepoint, or even small photo frames.
3. Future-Proofing: I plan on swapping out items seasonally. This shelf will be such a fun piece to rearrange year-round!

Simple DIYs & Quick Fixes

Part of the charm of a kitchen refresh is making little updates that have a big impact:

• Using Command Hooks: Rather than drilling into tile or cabinets, I used Command hooks to hang my new décor pieces (like the small needlepoint frames) without damaging the surfaces.
• Refurbishing Ribbons & Frames: I swapped out old, worn ribbons in baskets for new, neutral ones. I also scored a thrifted frame for just $1.99 that perfectly fit a favorite piece of needlepoint—no glass needed!
• Repurposing a Wooden Box: Originally intended as a letter box, I turned it into a candle box and hung it with a Command hook. A small tweak, but it adds so much character.

Embracing a “Fruitful” Theme

When I gathered everything to style my kitchen, I realized I had an unexpected fruit theme going on—apples, pears, and colorful fruit motifs in my needlepoint and ceramics. Rather than fight it, I fully embraced it! Displaying those sweet, fruit-themed items together gave the whole space a fresh, vibrant feel.

Why Sentimental Pieces Matter

I’m a firm believer that your home should reflect your story. Mixing in old family photos, heirloom cookbooks, and handcrafted items can transform a simple kitchen into a heartfelt gathering space. Here are a few of my favorite personal touches:

• Family Cookbooks: Worn pages, handwritten recipes, and heartfelt memories add a special warmth.
• Heirloom China & Tins: My mother’s sugar bowl and a little tin bank from my childhood stay out on display.
• Meaningful Artwork & Photos: From family campout pictures to framed mini artworks, these are the details that turn a house into a home.

The Final Reveal

After placing the baskets on top of the fridge, styling my new shelf, and hanging up treasured needlepoints, I took a moment to soak in the transformation. I lit a few candles (great for cozy ambiance), stood back, and admired how everything came together.

• Top of the Fridge: A few strategically placed baskets add both texture and extra storage.
• Butler’s Pantry Shelf: A delightful mix of plates, tins, and my mom’s old sugar bowl.
• Kitchen Counters: The fruit bowl and cookie jar find a new home in the corner, bringing a touch of color and a fun, nostalgic element.

The great thing about a thrifted and heirloom-heavy kitchen is how effortlessly it evolves with the seasons. I can add greenery or flowers in the spring, swap out the fruit motifs for autumn leaves come fall, or incorporate festive décor during the holidays. My new shelf and rearranged countertop displays make it easy (and enjoyable!) to switch things up whenever I feel inspired.

Ready to Refresh Your Own Kitchen?

If you’re feeling inspired to give your kitchen a little makeover, remember these tips:

1. Start with Sentimental: Pull out those special items you’ve tucked away—they’ll give your space a one-of-a-kind feel.
2. Shop Thrift & Antique Stores: Keep a wish list of items you need (frames, baskets, cute decorative boxes) and don’t be afraid to wander the aisles to see what catches your eye.
3. Use Low-Commitment Fixes: Command hooks, removable adhesives, and ribbon swaps make it easy to experiment.
4. Embrace Surprises: Unexpected themes (like my fruit theme) can help guide your decorating choices in a fun, organic way.

Thank you so much for joining me for my kitchen refresh! I hope this thrifted kitchen refresh sparks your own ideas for creating a cozy, meaningful space in the heart of your home.

Let me know in the comments how you incorporate heirlooms and thrifted finds into your kitchen—or if you’re just starting to explore the world of antique shopping. I can’t wait to hear about your own transformations!

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Video Transcript

Hi, everyone! Welcome to my kitchen. Today, I’m going to style some of the pieces I’ve thrifted and found in antique shops over the last few weeks. I’ve been promising to make a video like this for a while, and I finally have some time to refresh and redecorate around the house. We’ll be working in the kitchen—starting with the butler’s pantry—and we’ll see if I get to any other areas later. Thanks for joining me, and let’s get started!

I pulled together a few things from around my house—pieces from my collection that I think will help refresh my kitchen space—as well as a lot of the items I’ve thrifted over the last month or so from different thrift and antique stores. That includes lots of baskets and other fun finds I’ve been planning to incorporate into the kitchen. I’m excited to finally put them all out!

Lately, I’ve noticed I have a bit of a fruit theme going on. I found these little needlepoint fruit pictures at an antique store a few months ago, and they feature apples and pears. I also have a cookie jar and fruit bowl that my brother made for me when he was stationed in Italy. I haven’t decorated with them in quite a while, so I thought I’d bring them out again. There’s also this little wooden box I found last week that I love, and some baskets I’ve picked up recently. Before I start rearranging, let me show you how the kitchen looks now.

I think I know where I want to hang the needlepoint fruit pictures, so I’ll start there. I’m attaching them to my tile using Command hooks. Here’s how the apple and pear needlepoint turned out; I think they look really cute!

One of the things I’m most excited about is a new shelf I found at a market in Woodstock, Georgia. It makes me so happy! We hung it a couple of nights ago, and it has grooves for plates on each shelf. We anchored it into the wall with screws, and I think it’ll be a lot of fun to decorate for each season. I love the style, the size, and the fact that it’s handmade. I feel so lucky to have found it.

I’m not completely sure how I’ll style it yet, but I’ve pulled a few things that might work with the butler’s pantry décor. Let’s get this shelf styled!

This little pitcher on the shelf is actually something I bought for my mom. I won’t see her for a couple more weeks, so I’m temporarily using it here until I can give it to her. I’ll eventually replace it with something else of similar height. The sugar bowl on the shelf belonged to my mother when I was growing up, so it’s very special to me. I also have these little chicken salt-and-pepper shakers. I’m not exactly sure where they came from, but I liked how their red and white colors fit in with my kitchen’s color scheme. Someone suggested adding books to the shelf, which is a fantastic idea. For now, though, I’m pretty happy with this arrangement.

Next, I have a wooden box that I originally thought was a letter box. Several viewers mentioned it could be for holding candles, so I decided to try that. It has a little hole at the top so it can be hung on the wall. I don’t like to put nails in my cabinets, so I’m using another Command hook. The taper candles I’m putting in were just in my stash—I didn’t even realize I had them!

I also picked up this trivet in Hawkinsville, Georgia, for $3.95. I’m thinking about placing it under my soap dispenser in the kitchen as a little riser. Then I grabbed some tan ribbon at Walmart to replace the existing ribbon in one of my baskets.

I’ve never really decorated on top of my refrigerator, but I recently saw someone else do it with baskets and decided to try it. I love how it looks!

I also have this fruit bowl and cookie jar that I haven’t used for a while. They were a bit dusty, so I gave them a quick clean and placed them in the corner of my kitchen.

You might remember a little fruit needlepoint piece I picked up at an antique shop in Gatlinburg. I paid $6.99 for it, but it didn’t have a frame. Amazingly, when I went to Goodwill today—specifically looking for a frame—I found one for $1.99 that’s the exact size! It doesn’t have glass, which is perfect for needlepoint. I couldn’t believe how perfectly it fit. That kind of thrifting luck has happened to me before, but it’s always exciting when it does.

I also thrifted a brass frame a while back that was missing the pins to hold it together, so I used tiny safety pins instead, and they worked great. I printed a photo from our last family campout to put inside it. I’m still figuring out where I want to hang it, but I’ll probably use another Command hook on the wall or cabinet.

I think I’m done now, and I’m pretty happy with how everything turned out. I lit some candles, and it feels really cozy. Let me give you a final tour of all the changes I made!

(Shows final reveal.)

I’m a very sentimental person, and I love filling my home with things that mean something to me—beyond just thrifting or occasionally buying new items. For example, this blue plate here was given to me by Mrs. Jackson, my children’s great-grandmother, who mentored me when I first became a mother and taught me so much about homemaking. This little tin is actually a bank that my mom gave me one Christmas when I was a little girl, and I’ve displayed it my entire life. Over here, I have a cutting board with a honeybee on it that says “Home Sweet Home,” a Christmas gift from my daughter, Sarah. My name means “honeybee” in Greek, so it’s perfect.

I also love having family photos everywhere—these are my two youngest daughters, Hannah and Laura, and this other photo is from our family campout in October. Here, I have a very old cookbook called The Homemaker Cookbook that belonged to my mother-in-law who passed away a few years ago. I also have more of my beloved cookbooks here—some of them are falling apart because I’ve used them so much. One of them was given to me by Mrs. Jackson in 1991, and I still treasure it.

I just want to encourage you to fill your home with items that hold meaning for you. Displaying special pieces and family heirlooms really adds warmth and nostalgia, turning a house into a home.

That’s it for today’s video! Thank you so much for watching. Please give this video a “like” and subscribe if you haven’t already. I’d love to hear from you in the comments, and I’ll see you next time. Bye!