I have no walls for art in my kitchen. And only some very narrow areas in the breakfast nook. I have room for a sign or a piece of arch sal above the breakfast nook window and as soon as the wallpaper border is removed and the walls painted, I’ll hang a sign I have stored.

The kitchen itself is all cabinets, yes! I know I’m lucky, I have more cabinet space than I need,  plus a walk-in pantry. And a small area for a desk with a tiny bulletin board above it. No complaints. Our kitchen isn’t huge but it has plenty of space for our life and the things we need.

I do like art and feel it’s a great way to add personality to any room. While thinking about art in my kitchen I quickly came to the conclusion there was no space.  I won’t drill into my subway tile backsplash to hang something,  I could use command strips, but I love my subway tile and don’t want to cover it up. I have a couple of feet above my cabinets (tall ceilings) that could take some long narrow art pieces, but I want to keep that to a minimum in order to show off a collection I have planned for there. There really isn’t a place to hang art of any significance. So I stopped thinking about it.

There is a belief in our house that countertops are for function and should be kept clear. Um…..that is not necessarily my belief, but it is someone’s. And in the spirit of compromise and a good marriage, I agree with that belief……up to a point. We’re a weird couple. I don’t like functional things displayed because most of them are ugly. My beloved doesn’t like non-functional things out…. because, well…they don’t function.

We compromise and keep most of the functional pieces under or in the cabinets. (Except for that blasted coffee pot, I lost that battle. Sigh.) And I keep most of the counters free for the cooking part. But I’ve claimed certain areas for me. I have planted my flag and designated areas for cute stuff! Yes! Because while the kitchen is used to prepare food, I get that……and I do enjoy eating, I still want it to be pretty.

I see all the photos with farmhouse signs, cows, chickens and all manner of farmhouse critters on Pinterest, in blogs and in my Facebook groups.  But I’m not interested in those, as cute as they may be……and there’s the no wall space thing to contend with…. so I’ve not been on the hunt for anything for the kitchen. My mason jars and some scales and other vintage finds live on the counters and I’ve stopped thinking about framed art.

While out on one of my junking trips last year I stopped at my local Goodwill. I wasn’t looking for anything specific, just browsing, when I noticed a small matted and framed print of an old tractor thrown in with the other orphan frames. It looked hand drawn, not mass produced. I picked it up and put it down, picked it up and put it down again,  then went on my way to the furniture area. That little print kept calling me.  Of course I went back and got it, thinking I could use it in the guest room. And there it’s lived for a year or so, although it’s never seemed at home. I hung it up, took it down, hung it on another wall and took it down again. Then I leaned it up against the mirror on the dresser and called it a day.

Last week while moving some things around in the guest room I looked at that little tractor and decided on a whim it must go in the kitchen. I leaned it up against the backsplash in my corner just to see and it suddenly found its place.  I like the way it draws your eye to that area but doesn’t overwhelm the space. I could hang it on the subway tile with command picture hanging strips, but I like it leaning….for now.  Mr B has not complained…but that’s my corner and the little print can’t possibly interfere with cooking….. right?? That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

You never know where something may end up, at least in my house. Things purchased for a specific area sometimes don’t want to live there. And I like to change things up. I already notice I need to re-arrange a couple of things in this photo. That’s the way of it in the Sanctuary. Look around your home for something you may have intended for one space and try it somewhere else, you may be happily surprised.

And…..if you love art but have a tiny kitchen, or one like mine with no wall space, don’t despair. Try leaning something against the backsplash, use a small easel, or command strips to hang it. Or hang it on the ends of upper cabinets. If you have space above the cabinets, hang a long, narrow print. No window over your sink? Hang a painting or enlarge a favorite photo of somewhere you love, the mountains, the beach, a field……

And if you have lots of wall space, well….I hate you. But with love.

Create the home you see in your heart. Create a sanctuary no matter where you live.

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