Create a cheerful summer kitchen with sunny citrus and bright garden flowers!

Summer is here and that means it’s time for gardening, thrifting, and cooling off with refreshing citrus fruits and drinks! All of these fun summer joys have influenced the cheerful summer kitchen refresh that I am excited to share today. I am honored to once again be participating in the annual Summer Home Tour hosted by my friend Marty of A Stroll Thru Life!

These annual seasonal tours featuring thirty fabulous bloggers are always so much fun and full of beautiful and creative inspiration. At the end of my tour you will find links to all 30 gorgeous summer home tours you won’t want to miss. If you are coming over from Casa Watkins Living or if you are just stopping by for a visit, I am happy to invite you into my cheerful summer kitchen. Grab your favorite citrusy-summer beverage (or iced coffee or tea) and enjoy the inspiration! 

 

 School just ended last week so I haven’t had much time to devote to my summer decorating just yet, but it has been easy to refresh the kitchen using some free gifts from the garden, fruits from the grocery store, and some favorite vintage and thrifty finds. I will be sharing several different tours of our home this summer, but I decided to start off here in the kitchen corner nook because this is where I have been spending all my free time lately (when I’m not in the garden!)

 

 

This is the first summer for decorating and enjoying our bright and cheerful kitchen corner nook, and it has been so easy and fun! This time last year we were smack dab in the middle of a stressful 8 month-long kitchen renovation, but it was worth it. We just love our sunny vintage French Farmhouse/Cottage style kitchen, especially the window seat “breakfast nook.” As you can see, I have taken cues from nature to really brighten up this corner for early summer using fresh flowers I gathered from my garden, various citrus fruits, and some cheerful, summery pillows.

 

From my window seat I can look out and see the entry to my backyard cottage garden. Here you can see where I found the day lilies for my bouquet! I just love sipping my morning coffee or tea and looking out my window to see butterflies and bees playing around in the garden, enjoying whatever is in bloom. Right now the lilies are just beginning to bloom profusely!

 

 The orange lilies bouquet gave me the idea to use this gorgeous orange tree tapestry pillow in the kitchen nook (I had been using it in the living room since late spring.) The inspiration from the pillow design then led to the  cheerful citrus-themed summer kitchen refresh. Do you also find a spark of decorating inspiration from just one piece of artwork, textile, decorative item or even your garden?

 

 

I recently shared some photos of how I used the orange tree pillow as part of my Spring-to-Summer Decor Refresh with Birch Lane.

 

 

While we are “here” I thought I’d share a peek back into the dining room. Not much has changed in this space since late spring, other than removing a few small nods to Easter. I am still loving the look, so I see no reason to change something that I am enjoying. Everything is still working for early summer with the bright colors and garden themes which flow nicely from room to room.

 

 

I had been wanting to use more blue in the living room for summer to tie in with all the blue in the rug in the dining room. I have found that changing out pillows (mainly pillow covers) its the easiest and most inexpensive way to create new looks in no time.  In this photo you can see how two cotton velvet blue pillow covers and the colorful orange tree tapestry pillow on the sofa worked harmoniously with the dining room rug.

 

 

 

The European (Hines of Oxford) orange tree tapestry pillow is just so gorgeous! I loved it in the living room paired with the blue velvet pillows almost as much as the green velvet and yellow buffalo checked pillows in the kitchen. The orange branches in the large demi john behind the sofa were purchased from Target in late spring. I also moved the orange branches into the kitchen for early summer.

 

I am always playing musical pillows!

Up until this week I had been enjoying the orange tree pillow in the living room, but I think I am going to keep it in the kitchen for a couple of weeks. It will be easy to find other pillows to pair with the blue velvet ones in the living room for summer. As I have mentioned many times before, I am always playing musical pillows! You will have to stop by again next Friday as I share more of my Summer Living Room Tour to see the changes I come up with.

 

Cheerful Summer Kitchen Refresh Ideas

If you want to give your kitchen a cheerful summer refresh, you can’t go wrong with fresh flowers and fruit! With the exception of the limes I didn’t purchase any new items specifically for today’s tour, but as usual I tried to use what I already had on hand. I shopped my house for the basket tray, thrifted vintage green vase, thrifted French “orangeade” glass, and two farmhouse style coasters from Dollar Tree.

 

 

The flowers were all free from my garden! I do have pineapple mint growing in my garden but the sprigs weren’t quite long enough yet to use in this arrangement, so I filled in the gaps with some faux pineapple mint from my stash.

 

This pretty glass is part of a set of three Williams-Sonoma “Harvest Market” tumblers I scored for quarters at a yard sale years ago. You might remember my “Citron” glass from my previous posts where I have shared ideas for Summer Decorating with Lemons.

 

 

 

 

Beinvenue  Summer! French Cottage Summer Porch Tour 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the first time I have used this orangeade glass, and also the first time I have made orangeade. Traditional orangeade recipes call for lots of sugar, but I try to stay away from refined sugar. I actually love simple fruit-infused waters during the summer months. My “orangeade” is simply ice water infused with few organic orange slices, juiced squeezed from the remainder of the orange, and a few leaves of fresh pineapple mint from my herb garden. If you prefer something sweeter, try adding a few stevia leaves.

 

 

 

Refreshing and light drinks are a must this time of year in Kentucky when it is super hot and humid! I always need something refreshing after being outside, even if I have just spent a few minutes in the garden gathering flowers and herbs for mini-bouquets to place lovingly around the house. 

 

 

The pretty little mixed bouquet in the green bottle under the cloche was picked especially to share with you during this tour! The glass cloche is a recent junkin’ find (a smaller version of the cloche I am currently using as a centerpiece on the dining room farm table).

 

 

All my little garden gatherings are no-fuss, willy-nilly arrangements made up of whatever is blooming currently. I am loving how the small green bottle fits under the glass cloche, leaving just enough room for a dainty arrangement.

 

 

This colorful gathering is made up of coreopsis, thyme, lavender, argrythemum, salvia, oregano, pineapple mint, spearmint, and daisy fleabane. 

 

 

I am looking forward to creating different little cloche bouquet displays as the gardening season progresses from summer and on into fall. It’s fun to use free decor from my garden!

 

 

 

My French graywashed basket tray is often used for centerpieces on the farm table or for serving food and drinks outdoors, but I found the perfect everyday spot for it here in the kitchen corner. 

 

 

For early summer I have created a simple citrus/garden-theme basket vignette using some of my favorite faux plants, vintage ironstone platters, a chippy salvage furniture piece, chippy farmhouse candlestick, a thrifted boho marble cake stand and my DIY French Farmhouse graywashed basket filled with the orange branches I swiped from the demi-john in the living room.

 

 

Towards the end of the month I will start adding some patriotic decor touches to these cabinets and countertops, but for now I am just loving the simple vintage elegance of the ironstone, the garden basket vignette, and the French farmhouse flower vignette in the cabinet cubby. I think I have captured the look of a simple vintage French cottage summer kitchen…with a citrus twist!

 

Speaking of Patriotic decorating…have you checked out the July issue of Country Sampler Magazine? You’ll find all kinds of creative ideas for adding “Sparkle and Spirit” to your Fourth of July tablescape! 😉 

 

You can also check out THIS POST for all the star-spangled details!

 

 

 

After a long and stressful year of teaching virtual/hybrid choir, it is nice to start summer break with a cheerful, refreshed kitchen! This past weekend I finally got a chance to get caught up on house work and it feels like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders and mind. Now I can really start my summer! 

 

 

Not only does the kitchen look and feel refreshed, it smells refreshed too! I found this Citrus Basil essential oil cleaner at TJ Maxx and I it smells amazing! The scent has inspired me to create a summer stove top simmer using citrus fruits, basil, and other fresh herbs from my garden. I plan to experiment with the simmer this week. I will share a post some time next week to let you know how it turns out!

 

 

Keepin’ It Real!

Of course it’s not perfectly clean, tidy, and stress-free because right as school was ending our dishwasher broke and we have to get a new one this week! I didn’t really style up the sink area because it has been full of dishes for two weeks, but I hand washed and cleared everything out of the way to include a picture of this part of the kitchen for the tour. I also wanted to share this view because it will change soon with the addition of the European style kitchen island my husband is building in the next few weeks. (We were supposed to have it finished by last Christmas, but you know, real life happens! There’s always DIY projects and always repairs every time you turn around!) 

 

 

 

 

I certainly hope you have enjoyed my cheerful summer kitchen refresh (with a citrus twist!) and that it has inspired you to brighten up your home inexpensively for summer using fresh flowers, summer fruits, and thrifted vintage thrifted finds! Now it’s time to continue the summer home tour inspo by heading over to Chalking Up Success . Don’t forget you can check out all the amazing tours via the links below.  

 

Thanks so much for visiting and do stop back by again soon! Have a great summer ahead!

Amber

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure: If you purchase one of these items I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you.

 

   

 

Monday, June 7th

A Stroll Thru Life – Worthing Court – A Pretty Life – Pink Peppermint Design – StoneGable – Hymns & Verses

Tuesday, June 8th

Southern State of Mind – This Is Our Bliss – Up To Date Interiors – It All Started With Paint – Decor To Adore – Cuckoo4Design

 

Wednesday, June 9th

Remodelando la Casa – Whispering Pines Homestead – Cassie Bustamante – Inspiration For Moms – Making It In The Mountains – White Arrows Home

 

Thursday, June 10th

Our Southern Home – CitrineLiving – The Wood Grain Cottage – Grace In My Space – Thrifty and Chic – Designing Vibes

 

 

Friday, June 11th

Casa Watkins Living – Follow The Yellow Brick Home – Chalking Up Success – Bloom in the Black – Quarters One – Clean and Scentsible