Decorating Your Kitchen with Chili Peppers
Heat up your kitchen Mexican and Southwest-style by adding chili pepper decor. You can add small flashes of color and style with accessories and textiles, or do custom finishes on furniture for spicy panache. Use warm wall colorings, fixtures and finishes to complement the chili pepper motif and you have a complete kitchen redesign. Viva Mexico!
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Real Chili Peppers
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A chili pepper-themed kitchen should include some authentic specimens of the food that inspired it. String a line of chili peppers near the stove or by a window. Fill a hanging metal basket or an earthenware bowl with chili peppers of different shapes, sizes, colors and varieties. Plant a rustic wooden window box full of chili pepper plants and cactus, and add decorative rocks and bits of cobalt blue glass for contrast. Bottle oil infused with chili peppers and display the bottles on open shelves or cabinet tops. Establish a spicy collection of salsas that you spoon on traditional comal pottery dishes when entertaining.
Accessories
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You can outfit your kitchen in various chili pepper accessories. Textiles are a natural choice. Go for curtains, a throw rug, upholstered chairs or a table runner printed with chili peppers. Paint walls a warm yellow or rustic finish and add chili pepper wall art in the form of a still life or a wreath made of dried chili peppers. Ceramics and tableware are good surfaces for chili pepper art. Alternate plates with chili pepper designs with plates in deep reds or greens to accentuate the peppers' hues. Buy a painted ceramic bowl painted with chili peppers, and fill it with lemons and limes for a burst of contrasting color. When entertaining, string chili pepper-shaped party lights across the window for added spice.
Do-It-Yourself Projects
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Try your hand at a do-it-yourself kitchen décor project, using chili peppers as your inspiration. Use chili pepper stencils to add trim to walls, furniture or window frames. Repurpose an old desk drawer and paint it a mottled, distressed finish. Hammer it to the wall to create a Mexican-inspired altar. Place a photograph of a loved one inside and surround the image with dried flowers and small chili peppers. Add a small chili pepper motif to cafe-style curtains by embroidering small chili peppers along the hem or ironing on a chili pepper patch. You can dress up a panel of a cupboard door with a handpainted chili pepper, using a contrasting background color of sunny yellow or antique white. If you want to update upholstered chairs, use thick fabric printed with chili peppers and carefully staple it around the wooden base of the seat. You can also wrap chili pepper fabric around a canvas for a quick piece of wall art.
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