12 Rustic Touches That Add Warmth to a Kitchen

It’s getting darker earlier and earlier this time of year, making us crave a warm and cozy nest on cold evenings. The best place to start is the heart of the home, the kitchen. Gathering with family and friends for comfort food like butternut squash soup, Cincinnati chili or spaghetti and meatballs is even more comforting when the meal is casually served in the kitchen. Adding some rustic touches will make you feel like you’re cozied up in a Tuscan farmhouse or an English cottage. Whether you’re starting from scratch with a renovation or simply want to add a few accessories, here are some key ways to give your kitchen a homey, comforting ambience.

Copper pots. If you’ve got ’em, hang ’em! Copper adds a wonderful patina and shine to a kitchen. You can also incorporate this material by adding a hammered-copper bucket or smaller copper utensil canisters.


A fireplace. This one can be used for cooking, something that comes in handy on a cold night when the power goes out.


A farm table. A sturdy wooden table is a great place for family dinners and doing homework. If you are more of a kitchen-island type than a kitchen-table type, you can adapt a farm table to a higher surface height and use stools instead of chairs.


Mood lighting. While cooks need brighter light, like recessed overheads for cooking, eating in begs for some ambience. Add it with a metal chandelier that has some patina style, placed on a dimmer, for cozy suppers in the kitchen.


Antiqued brass. This can be as simple as swapping in antiqued brass cabinet hardware, or you can go all-brass by including light fixtures and faucets.

By the way, inside this custom cabinetry, it’s anything but primitive, and the room has a woodstove tucked in the corner.

See more photos of this kitchen


A slate floor. This beautiful, natural material grounds the room with its dark color, and it’s slip resistant. Just be sure you have it sealed well to make cleaning easier.


Exposed brick, beams, trusses and/or rafters. You don’t have to cover your primitive construction details with drywall. These elements subtly remind us of the craftsmanship that went into building our homes.


For instance, original or reclaimed beams layer history into a kitchen and can work with many design styles.


Unique vintage accessories. A charming apple sign and rooster weather vane add rustic personality to this inviting kitchen. Bonus: A rooster in the kitchen is said to bring good luck.


Soapstone. Soapstone is a wonderful natural material that’s been used on countertops and sinks for generations. It can take the heat of a pot without a trivet, and you’ll have to try hard to stain it.

However, it will scratch and chip, so I suggest the following closer looks at this material so that you can decide whether or not it’s for you:

Kitchen Counters: Durable, Easy-Clean Soapstone | Soapstone Counters: A Love Story


Reclaimed wood. There are plenty of places where you can repurpose salvaged beams, barn siding and other reclaimed-wood pieces in the kitchen. Open shelves are one of the easiest ways to bring the material in. Beams, ceilings, island surrounds, countertops and even cabinet doors are other places where you can use it. My own kitchen’s countertops are planed pine boards taken from my attic during a renovation, and I can’t tell you how much warmth they add to the space.


A stone wall. Adding rustic touches doesn’t mean your kitchen has to have a traditional look. If your tastes are more transitional, modern or contemporary, you can still enjoy the coziness of rustic touches. The locally quarried Telluride Gold stone wall and stained alder cabinets add rough-hewn character to this clean-lined contemporary kitchen.


Whitewash. Likewise, if you’re more of a white-kitchen person than a dark-stained-wood-cabinets person, you may be surprised to learn you can still go rustic. Details like a metal pot rack full of cookware, classic simple cabinet hardware and a dreamy Aga stove bring plenty of primitive style to this light-colored kitchen.

More: 11 Ways to Cozy Up at Home in Chilly Weather

Tell us: Does your kitchen have any rustic touches you love? If so, please share them with us in the Comments section.

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