SO WHAT MAKES A RENTAL KITCHEN FEEL LESS TEMPORARY?

Photo: Imad Clicks, Pexels

A rental kitchen can be such a specific kind of irritating, because technically, yeah, it’s a kitchen.

It has cabinets. It has a sink. It has some pretty nice kitchen appliances that mostly do their jobs (and probably some that came with you when you moved here).

There’s probably a drawer that sticks (and needs to wiggle), a cabinet shelf that makes zero sense for its placement, and lighting that was probably bought from the landlord at IKEA without thinking much about it.

And because it’s a rental, it’s easy to get into that mindset of, “Well, this isn’t really mine, so whatever.”

Which makes sense, you want to get your deposit back, so doing anything fun sounds like a bad idea.

But then this means that the ugly bin stays. The weird cupboard layout stays. The random clutter pile grows. The counters become a landing zone for random things. Well, basically, everything stays, nothing changes, and it’s just not you.

It’s technically your home, you’re paying to live there, do you really want to have a sad kitchen? Well, probably not.

But really, just the idea of sitting, eating, and cooking in a kitchen that feels more like you is possible in a rental. So, where to begin?

Stop Waiting for a Future Kitchen to Care About 

Well, sure, it makes sense that you don’t really want to make such an effort if you don’t even own the place.

Maybe if you owned it, you’d have fun, so what’s the point? But yeah, in general here though, there’s this trap with rentals where people keep saving their effort for the “real” home later.

The owned home. The renovated home. The dream kitchen with beautiful counters, proper storage, lovely lighting, and cabinets that don’t look like they’ve emotionally given up.

Again, makes total sense to think and feel that way, really it does.

But life is happening in this kitchen right now. Like, right now. No, really, it’s true because the meals are being made here, groceries are being unpacked here, mornings are starting here, and after-work snacks are absolutely being eaten here while standing in front of an open fridge.

But you get the point here, though. So yeah, it’s worth caring about the space, even if the cabinets aren’t perfect and the landlord clearly chose the cheapest handles available. 

Sure, that’s a shame, you don’t need to change things like that, but you can add things to sprinkle your personality into it, though.

Make the Stuff You Use Every Day Less Depressing

Well, the easiest place to start is with the things that get used constantly. It’s the things that you own, not the landlord, like dish towels, mugs, utensils, a chopping board, a soap dispenser, storage containers, a drying rack, all of that everyday stuff can either make the kitchen feel a little more pulled together.

And no, everything doesn’t need to match in a showroom way (usually at big box retailers, you can find a kitchen rug that matches the tea towels, which matches the apron, which matches the oven mitts).

That usually feels a bit too forced anyway.

But having a few items that feel nice to use makes a difference. For example, here, maybe a wooden chopping board that can sit out without looking sad, a proper set of cooking utensils instead of three half-melted spatulas from different eras.

And one last example: a dish towel that's not stained and looking gross even though it’s washed. But these tiny upgrades don’t scream for attention, but they do make the room feel more settled. 

That’s really the point here, though, because a rental kitchen starts feeling less temporary when the stuff inside it looks like it belongs to someone who actually lives there on purpose.

It’s Time to Upgrade the Practical Things 

Which goes with the part above since that’s also practical. But at the same time, though, this is usually where people sometimes get it wrong.

They want the rental kitchen to feel nicer, so they buy cute decor first, but the actual practical stuff is still dragging the room down.

Maybe it’s something gross like a stained plastic bin in the corner (worse if it lacks a lid), a drying rack that looks like it’s on its last legs, a cleaning sponge situation that should probably be discussed in private, a drawer full of tangled utensils, or food packets shoved into cabinets with no clear plan.

Yeah, all of that affects the feel of the room. You can’t have a cute kitchen if that's the setup.

Sometimes the most useful upgrade is not decorative at all. It’s just replacing the thing that looks cheap, messy, or irritating every single day.

No, really, that’s literally it, like getting a better dish rack, proper containers, a cleaner-looking recycling setup, or a stainless steel kitchen bin can make the kitchen feel more grown-up without touching the walls, floors, counters, or cabinets.

Besides, if you plan on being a renter for a while, well, when you move to the next place, you’ll still have all of this fabulous stuff.

Yes, You Can Still Add Personality 

Well, you can add personality, and on top of that, you can also keep your deposit and not make your landlord angry! But it just depends, though.

Sure, a lot of people will use peel-and-stick tiles for the counter, floor, or even backsplash. Sure, those work, but some brands have stronger adhesive than others, so just be aware of that when it’s time to remove them before moving out. 

You can use Command hooks, they’re pretty renter-friendly, the same goes for runner rugs, a pot of herbs, framed pictures leaning on the wall, and some people will use adhesive strips and tape plates to the wall.

So there are clearly some options out there. But the kitchen doesn’t need to become overly styled.

Actually, that can make it feel less natural. Just in general, though, you honestly aren’t all that limited on how to make a comfortable, renter-friendly kitchen.