Coffee is an everyday passion for us. We spend a lot of time talking about coffee, brewing coffee, and drinking coffee, whether we’re at home or in the office.

Given how much we love coffee, it’s only right to create a special space in our homes for it. A space that showcases the things we’re most proud of, and creates a talking point for our guests (even if we try not to always talk about coffee).

The coffee corner is our little haven — a dedicated space to express and explore our passion and to share it with everyone who visits our home.

If you’re looking for ideas on how to make your own coffee corner at home, this post is for you! We’ll share our coffee corner design inspirations, help you decide what equipment and accessories you need for your coffee corner, and show you how to arrange your coffee corner at home so that it can be both functional and beautiful.

Choosing a location

The first step in designing your coffee corner is choosing the right space for it. Creating a coffee corner can be as simple as choosing a space for your favorite coffee maker and a few cups, or it can involve building an entire brewing station bristling with the latest coffee-making gadgets.

Creating a coffee corner can be as simple as making a dedicated space on the kitchen counter for your favorite coffee brewer. Photo: Rachel Claire

A beautiful coffee corner can consist of just a few well-chosen pieces on a kitchen counter, but creating a separate, dedicated space for coffee elevates the daily ritual of making coffee — and it looks great, too!

If you just want a quiet place to make a cup of coffee, then a dedicated coffee corner is a great way to take advantage of a small unused nook in your home. If you want to show off all of the latest and greatest brewing toys, however, then you might need to set aside a bigger space.

One thing to keep in mind is that the coffee corner doesn’t necessarily have to be in the kitchen. A coffee corner can be an elegant addition to a living space or dining room. If you love coffee like we do, you might choose to put a coffee corner in your bedroom, so you only have to walk a few steps to get your first cup of the day. You could even place a coffee corner in an entryway, so that you can easily grab a cup on the way to work, or immediately offer a coffee to your guests when they come to your home.

A coffee corner doesn’t have to be in the kitchen! You can fit a coffee corner into any small, unused space, like this alcove under the staircase. Photo: Super Snapper

Whatever location you choose, make sure that it has easy enough access to both electricity and a water supply. Carrying pots of boiling water around the house every time you want to make coffee can be pretty inconvenient, to say the least.

Working with a theme

If you want your coffee corner decor to look coherent, then it’s best to choose a theme and a color palette to work with before you start. You could keep it simple and describe your theme with general terms like ‘rustic’ or ‘modern’, or you can choose more specific descriptions if you want to, like ‘New York Art Deco, circa 1923’.

For the color palette, it’s tempting to pick neutral or subtle tones, but try and include at least one contrasting shade to create interest — even if it’s just black accents on your all-white setup. On the other hand, if you want to include a lot of different colors and textures, then feel free to embrace maximalism.

With those ideas in mind, it’s time to go hunting on Instagram and Pinterest for inspiration and start building up a mood board of colors, textures, and designs that inspire you. This will make it easier to choose pieces that fit with your design vision, once you start adding to your coffee corner collection.

The coffee corner table

Once you’ve chosen a location and a theme for your coffee corner, you need to find the right furniture for the space, whether that’s a simple table or sideboard, or a special built-in unit. The ideal table for your coffee corner has a solid, stable worktop, with plenty of built-in cupboards or shelves.

Almost any kind of sideboard or dresser can work as a coffee corner, but you can aso buy furniture sets specifically designed for use as coffee corners. If you want a modern and minimal look, you might consider this compact white corner unit or elegant white sideboard for your coffee corner. For a more understated look, this coffee corner has a pleasingly retro appearance and lots of shelves to display your coffee equipment.

Alternatively, if you’re a fan of quirky design, then you might enjoy this sideboard with contrasting materials and colors, or this offbeat dresser with built in trendy light fittings, available in a range of rich colors.

Choosing one of these ready-made units has the advantage that they are already set up with everything you need for your coffee corner table, including storage racks and shelving or cupboards.

Another option is to choose a rolling cart, to allow you to set your coffee corner up in different parts of the house. For example, you might keep it in your living room for everyday use, but move it into the kitchen to create more space when guests come round.

A rolling cart takes up little space and can easily be moved for entertaining. Just ensure that it can be placed close to power and a water supply. Photo: Blake Carpenter

The star of the show

The centerpiece of any coffee corner is your coffee brewer of choice, whether that’s a shiny new espresso machine, or a simple rustic pour-over brewer. The coffee corner arrangement needs to be arranged around your coffee maker, so that you have enough space to use it, and all the accessories that you need easily on hand.

The coffee maker you choose sets the tone for the whole coffee corner. If you’re basing it around an espresso machine, then La Marzocco’s Linea Mini is an option for a scaled-down version of the sleek, professional machines in your favorite cafe. Alternatively, if you want a more unusual design, then the striking lines of the Rocket Appartamento or the Eagle One Prima from Victoria Arduino fit the bill perfectly.

If you want the convenience of a super-automatic machine, this doesn’t mean you have to settle for a boring black box, either. The Amore has a pleasingly minimal interface but comes in a range of different colors — even an unusual shade of lilac.

On the other hand, if you’re more into filter coffee, then you might choose a coffee machine like the Moccamaster as your centerpiece. The Moccamaster is a classic filter brewer design, and is now available in a range of vibrant modern colors. If hand-brewing coffee is more your style, meanwhile, then an elegant pour over stand is the best way to showcase your craft.

Coffee corner decor

With your centerpiece in place, it’s time to arrange the rest of your coffee corner decorations. The most important factor is to make the space clean and free of clutter — this is where all the handy storage in your coffee corner table comes in useful.

At the same time, it’s much easier to make coffee if you can easily reach everything you need without having to fish it out of a cupboard. A great way to do this is to use high shelves and racks to make the most of the vertical space around your coffee corner. You can use the very highest shelves for decoration and personal touches; make sure that everything you need to make coffee is within easy reach on lower shelves or racks.

Using high shelves for storage and decorations saves counter space and lets you display your unique taste. Photo: Sarolta Balog-Major

Not everything in your coffee corner has to be coffee-related! The decorative details and personal touches that you choose will define the unique design of your coffee corner. Elements like framed prints, vintage finds, or art pieces can transform your coffee corner from a space that is solely functional, to an artistic representation of your personality.

The antique shop sign, sculpture, and vintage storage jars add a distinct personality to this coffee corner, and make an interesting contrast to the modern materials of the table and coffee machine. Photo: Amr Taha

Coffee equipment can often look quite functional or industrial by itself. Incorporating natural materials into your coffee corner can help the coffee corner look more warm and inviting. For example, you could upgrade your portafilter with a wooden handle (but check that the handle will fit your machine before buying!).

Carefully-placed plants or vases of dried flowers are another great way to soften the look of your coffee corner, and give it a more homely feel.

The white and chrome color scheme of this coffee corner is very attractive, while the houseplant and warm wood accents prevent it from looking too sterile. Photo: Declan Cronin

If you want to create the feel of a cafe in your own home, then try incorporating design elements from your favorite cafe, such as high stools at the bar, a jar full of sweet treats near the coffee machine — or even a menu blackboard. You can be playful with the way cafe accessories are used — for example, you could use a cake stand to keep your condiments and syrups close to hand.

Coffee corner accessories

The small details can make or break the design of your coffee corner — and your accessories are no exception.

The best part of making coffee is sharing it with friends. The cups, servers, and spoons you use to serve coffee to your guests are a key part of the look of your coffee corner. Stylish cups like these refined double-walled glasses, these charming rustic cups, or these classic cafe cups, available in a range of subtle shades, can really elevate the coffee drinking experience. Pair the cups with some cute teaspoons for your guests to stir their coffee with.

You can use any kitchenware that fits your design to store condiments and accessories — but coffee beans require special storage to keep them at their best. Fresh coffee releases a lot of carbon dioxide, which means simple airtight containers can burst open. These coffee bean storage containers look great and feature one-way valves in the lids, which keep out oxygen to keep the coffee tasting fresh, but let the carbon dioxide in the coffee slowly escape.

The tools you use every day can be beautiful as well as functional. For example, instead of plain steel milk jugs, look for designs that fit your theme — like this abstract art milk jug, or this beautiful butterfly milk pitcher. Similarly, your coffee corner might be crying out for this unique colorful wood tamper, or one with a futuristic finish. Even knockboxes are available in vibrant colors instead of dull black — so give some thought to the appearance of every single accessory that you use.

For filter coffee aficionados, a stylish pouring kettle and a beautiful set of scales can complete the setup, and make brewing coffee every day a simple pleasure.

The right accessories can also help you organize your layout and make the most of your space. For example, this wooden stand can store your espresso-making kit so it’s out of the way but easy to grab when you need it. You can even mount your portafilter out of the way when you’re not using it.

In the same way, if you brew a lot of filter coffees, then this elegant stand for filter papers means that they are always to hand. If you’re short on space, you could even opt for a complete filter coffee kit that packs away into a smart case when not in use.

Putting it all together

If you’ve read this far, you hopefully have an idea of what you want your coffee corner to look like, and the decorations, equipment and accessories you need to bring your dream coffee setup to life.

These days, nearly every piece of equipment that you need to make coffee can be customized to suit the theme and color scheme you choose for your coffee corner. At Qavashop, we carry a huge range of equipment and accessories, so there’s something to suit everyone’s taste, no matter how you like to brew your coffee.

It’s impossible to list every possible accessory in a single blog post, though. If you’re looking for the perfect accessories to match the theme of your coffee corner, then our expert team is happy to help — no matter how specific your request is. Whether you’re looking for a cup in just the perfect shade of green, or even a cat-shaped tamping mat, you might be surprised to find we have exactly what you’re looking for.