Since the kitchen is most often considered the heart of the home, what better area to show off your personality? Here are 10 budget friendly ideas that will transform your kitchen decor from boring to soaring.

1) Use Decorative Containers
Use your favorite baskets or bowls to store those non-kitchen things you often leave on the counters like the mail or car keys. These containers can easily be removed when you need the space for something else, yet provide function and beauty in the meantime.

2) Paint Kitchen Cabinets
Paint your bottom cabinets a darker color than your top cabinets. This not only grounds the area, but also adds an unexpected punch of charm to the room. You might also consider applying paint techniques to all the cabinets such as glazing or stenciling. Paint is a cheap way to instantly and dramatically transform the most expensive part of your kitchen.

3) Transform the Kitchen Island
Make a simple departure from stock cabinetry and convert an old dresser into a kitchen island for a unique look. Add simple hooks on the sides for towels and cooking tools. Top with an inexpensive laminate or save and splurge on a small piece of granite or butcher block.

4) Display Your Dishes
Remove the doors from a few cabinets and display your prettiest dishes. Whether they are all one color or a mix of designs, displaying your dishes always provides a wonderful sense of style to a room.

5) Focus on the Details
Focus on the details by changing your cabinet knobs. You can paint your own by buying some plain round wooden knobs and a few bottles of acrylic paint. Have fun getting creative!

6) Tile a Backsplash
Buy colorful ceramic tile on sale at your local home improvement store and create a one-of-a-kind kitchen backsplash over the stove. This is a very simple project that can provide exciting zing to your kitchen!

7) Create Functional Art
Create some functional art by making your own clay vessel or painting a ceramic pitcher to store your kitchen utensils. No need to cram them into drawers when they are used every day. Put them close at hand in something you can visually enjoy and take pride in.

8) Repurpose Those Guest Towels
Use pretty embroidered hand towels as curtains by sewing small ribbons or tabs onto the end. Hang on a dowel rod that you've cut to size and painted a complementary color. If you don’t sew, then look for towels that have a large opening at one end where you can slip the dowel rod through.

9) Change the Lighting
Install your kitchen lights on a dimmer for instant ambiance. Turn them up for efficiency and down when you prefer to add a warm glow to the space.

10) Display Favorite Art
Display at least one piece of significant art. Whether it’s a framed picture that your child made or something purchased on your last vacation, adding art to the kitchen supplies a great conversation piece.

As you can see, it’s not difficult to find inexpensive ways to add personality to your kitchen. Make this heart of the home one that beats with excitement and anticipation by bringing your own style and creativity to the space.