Want a kitchen with personality? Skip the big box stores and head to your local thrift shop! Uncover five fabulous secondhand finds, from quirky art to vintage treasures, that will make your kitchen truly one-of-a-kind. Click here to see what you should be scooping up!

5 Must Have Secondhand Kitchen Items

The next time you’re secondhand shopping, don’t forget to consider the kitchen! You can score some wonderful pieces for this room of the home while frequenting estate sales, thrift stores, and more – whether you’re looking for decorative pieces, functional finds, or a mix of both. 

Scoop Up These Secondhand Kitchen Finds

Keep reading to learn more about five of my favorite secondhand finds to scoop up for any cooking space. 

Artwork

Even if you have limited wall space in the kitchen, you can likely find a spot to display a small piece of artwork. If I can do it, you can! 

The walls in my tiny kitchen are tile, meaning I can’t nail directly into them, so I stuck a Command hook above my oven. Now,  the cutest vintage fruit painting that I scored at a thrift store hangs there. 

When you’re at estate sales, secondhand stores, and flea markets, keep your eyes peeled for art pieces of this nature. Of course, anything food themed is great for the kitchen, but you don’t have to go so literal if that isn’t your style.

Live in a coastal area? Display kitchen artwork depicting fish or seashells. 

Love to garden? Frame some botanicals as artwork for kitchen walls. 

The only type of artwork I advise skipping in the kitchen (and in general) is word art. It had its moment in the sun and now is generally seen as dated and overdone. 

Drinkware

I may or may not have a slight addiction to shopping for secondhand glassware—and mugs and teacups, too. I’ve accumulated quite the collection of chic cocktail glasses and day to day drinking vessels, all of which I’ve found secondhand. 

Given that glassware is all too easy to chip or break, I find that buying secondhand glassware for kitchens makes more sense than investing in brand new, pricier options. I also love the variety of secondhand drinkware that is out there; these older pieces just have so much more detail than what we see in department stores today. 

Finding a matching duo (or set of 4+) of glasses is always a win when going the secondhand route—though if you only come across one pretty glass and it doesn’t have a mate, you may wish to leave it behind. 

Vintage Cookbooks

Nowadays, many of us rely on the internet as a resource for new recipes, but there’s nothing like flipping through a traditional cookbook every now and then. The good thing about (most) recipes is that they never go out of style! 

Grab some vintage cookbooks for kitchen decor the next time you’re shopping secondhand and take some time to browse the recipes inside—you may easily find inspiration for your next dinner party. 

Cookbooks make for excellent decor, too, so display a few vintage ones on your kitchen’s open shelving. They’ll make for instant conversation starters. 

Organizational Items

You can find gorgeous coffee jars, utensil crocks, and more while shopping secondhand, and these items are sure to add instant character to your countertop. 

I was thrilled to find a trio of Delft-style canisters for coffee, tea, and sugar at one of my favorite thrift stores and love how they look in my kitchen. They cost less than brand new canisters would have gone for at a big box store and are different from anything I’ve seen in anyone else’s home. 

Keep in mind that you can get creative and turn pretty vases into utensil holders or use small decorative boxes to house tea bags. Think beyond the literal and you’ll be extra amazed at all the secondhand organizational items for countertops and storage finds that await you. 

Lamps

These days, many people (myself included!) opt to display small lamps on their kitchen counters. Kitchen lamps really do warm up the space and make an ordinarily utilitarian area of the home feel a bit more cozy. 

Keep in mind that it can sometimes be difficult to find a secondhand lampshade and base in good condition, but even if you can find one of the two, you’re off to a great start. After all, there’s nothing wrong with mixing old and new. 

The crystal lamp base in my kitchen is something I scooped up affordably at a New York City flea market, while the striped shade is from one of my favorite new lighting retailers, Pooky. 

So, the next time you're looking to refresh your cooking space with unique and budget-friendly pieces, remember the potential and possibilities of secondhand shopping kitchen finds. You might be surprised by the treasures waiting to be discovered!

Written by:

Sarah Lyon

April 14, 2025     Updated 02:04 PM

Sarah Lyon is a Washington, DC, native living in New York City. As a freelancer, she frequently covers pieces pertaining to interior design, travel, and other lifestyle topics. Her pieces have appeared in outlets including Apartment Therapy, Architectural Digest, MyDomaine, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and more. When she isn't writing, Sarah works with designers to help them style spaces for photo shoots (and can't stop rearranging and redecorating her own apartment, either!). She has a penchant for shopping secondhand and loves giving preloved pieces new life. Sarah’s own spaces have appeared on Apartment Therapy, The Everygirl, Houzz, and Washingtonian.com. Her Dupont Circle apartment was featured in both the spring 2019 print edition of Small Space Decorating and the January 2019 print edition of Washingtonian Magazine.

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