3 Crafty TikTok DIYs to Optimize Your Kitchen On a Budget
Your kitchen deserves a little love.
Your kitchen is the beating heart of your home: it’s where you prepare food for yourself and your loved ones, gather together, and make memories. And because our kitchens are so well-loved, they often get run-down more quickly — the constant cleaning, cooking, and communing can take a toll. The good news: if you want to breathe some new life into your kitchen, you don’t have to break the bank. Try these three kitchen DIY crafts from TikTok to make your cooking area fresher and more functional.
1. DIY Rotating Fruit Basket
Yes, it’s important to eat your five servings of fruits and veggies per day — but that sometimes means sacrificing counter space to accommodate all of your fresh produce. It’s not ideal to cram all those fruits and vegetables next to each other on your countertop, either. Did you know storing certain fruits and veggies too close together can cause them to ripen too quickly or rot? Some emit ethylene gas, which causes accelerated ripening, so it’s wise to keep high-ethylene-producers like apples, tomatoes, and bananas away from ethylene-sensitive leafy-greens, according to Eating Well.
If your kitchen is like mine, and the limited amount of countertop real estate makes produce organization more complicated, you might want a dedicated fruit basket. This can help you consolidate and organize your produce more effectively, as well as maximize counter space. Fruit baskets also allow for better air circulation, preventing that ethylene gas from becoming trapped, and they help you see what you have more clearly, making it easier to get in those five daily servings.
Check out this DIY for a cute, rotating fruit basket on a budget from TikTok user JordansGems.
Supplies you’ll need:
- Hot glue
- A paper towel holder
- Two cake pans
- Craft nautical rope
- Twine
- Four lightweight baskets
- Four or five zip ties
- Marbles
Directions:
- Hot glue a paper towel holder to bottom of a cake pan.
- Hot glue rope to bottom of cake pan and around paper towel holder.
- Use twine to tie four baskets at different levels to paper towel holder. Use zip ties to stabilize them.
- Fill the bottom of another cake pan with marbles, and place cake pan with paper towel holder on top.
Watch JordansGems make it and follow along here:
2. Two-Step DIY Cabinet Organizer
You would probably prefer not to see unsightly cardboard containers in your kitchen drawers — but you need things like plastic baggies, aluminum foil, and plastic wrap, so those boxes are an unfortunate necessity. Some of the containers, like those for foil, also have sharp, serrated edges for tearing off the bits you need, which can cut your fingers if you’re rummaging in a cluttered cabinet. Ugly and painful? Talk about adding insult to injury.
Luckily, there’s a way to keep these things organized, and it may have added benefits besides helping your fingers stay cut-free: Keeping clutter at bay is also good for your mental health. A mess at home (especially one in a functional space like a kitchen) can cause anxiety, stress, and tension, according to VeryWellMind. Cleaning and decluttering, on the other hand, can lead to improved mood, focus, and a sense of control over one’s environment.
Try this two-step cabinet organizer DIY from TikTok user GratefulGlamper to promote a feeling of zen by keeping your ugly boxes and containers out of sight but still easily accessible.
Supplies you’ll need:
- One over-the-cabinet bar
- One dish rack
Directions:
- Hang bar over cabinet door.
- Loop top rung of dish rack on bar.
Check out GratefulGlamper’s video here:
3. DIY Pillar Stand
Yes, your kitchen is a functional space — but who says it can’t be cute, too? You spend a lot of time in there, and you deserve an attractive backdrop for all that cooking, cleaning, and merry-making.
Also, if your kitchen space looks and feels good to be in, you’ll want to spend more time cooking — and a home-cooked meal is good for more than just the soul. In a piece for Harvard Health Publishing, doctors Monique Tello and Rani Polak confirm that when you cook at home, you are more likely to eat healthier and consume fewer calories. They also note that having more control over your food may help prevent future health problems.
To beautify your space, try making this chic, minimal pillar stand from TikTok user HappyHome_WithSara79. You can put it anywhere (she positions hers next to the sink) and use it to hold soap, plants, or anything at all. Plus, it’ll take you all of two minutes to craft.
Supplies you’ll need:
- One bowl
- One plate
- E6000 glue
Directions:
- Glue bottom of bowl to bottom of plate.
- Put something heavy on top to weigh it down, and let dry overnight.
Watch Sara79’s video here:
Are you ready to get crafty? There are so many fun and cost-effective ways to refresh your kitchen — so get that hot glue gun out and have some kitchen crafting fun!
