If you\’ve decorated your kitchen in a country style, it can be fun to create some country crafts to use as accents. Country decorating accessories often have a simple and homespun style. As such, it can be easy to create some of your own decorative pieces, even if you don\’t possess a great deal of artistic talent. If you\’re looking to add a few extra touches to your country kitchen, here are a couple of country craft ideas you can use to get started.

Quilted Wall Hangings

Quilts are a natural for decorating any country-styled room, and the kitchen is no exception. Quilted wall hangings are easy to make, even if you\’ve never done much sewing or crafting. Although quilts made from cut and pieced fabric squares and shapes are certainly beautiful, starting with a printed fabric panel is usually easier for beginners. Most fabric and craft stores carry a wide variety of printed fabric panels, many of which are perfect for making quilted wall hangings. You\’ll need a fabric panel that blends well with your kitchen decor, as well as fabric to use as the quilt backing, a piece of batting the same size as your fabric panel, and a needle and quilting thread. Or, you can plan on doing your quilting using a sewing machine, to make the work go quicker. Start by placing your printed fabric panel face down on the work table. Then, place the piece of batting on top. Finally, place the piece of backing material face up on top of the batting. Pin to hold the pieces together then flip the entire \”fabric sandwich\” over. Using a sewing machine or a needle and thread, sew through all the layers, creating the desired quilting pattern. You can add as little or as much quilting as you\’d like to create the look you prefer. When finished, sew a strip of fabric around the outside of the quilted piece to cover the raw edges, add loops for hanging, and display on the kitchen wall.

Painted Wicker or Woven Wood Baskets

Wicker or woven wood baskets can be very handy storage accessories in the kitchen. When displayed on the countertop or open kitchen shelves, you can use them to sort utensils and gadgets, store food items, or as a handy receptacle for the daily mail. To add a decorative country touch to the baskets, why not paint them? Although you can certainly purchase decoratively painted country-styled baskets, it can be much less expensive and a whole lot more fun to create them yourself. Start by choosing a plain basket, sized correctly for your desired use. Spray paint can be used to add overall color to the basket. Cover the work table and surrounding floor surface with newspaper or a plastic drop cloth to protect against paint overspray. Then, carefully spray paint the basket. After the paint has dried, you can use stencils, sponge applicators, or freehand painting techniques to add decorative country details to the basket. Floral designs, barnyard animals, or primitive country patterns all work well. When dry, add a gingham or country print fabric basket liner to add the perfect finishing touch. Display on the kitchen counter, filled with fruit, vegetables, or kitchen utensils.

Author Bio: Jessica Ackerman writes for WallDecorandHomeAccents.com where she provides detailed instructions for decorating with metal wall crosses and tree wall sculptures.

Category: Home Management
Keywords: country kitchen,country crafts,fabric panel,quilted wall,wall hangings,country craft ideas