A cook with a chaotic kitchen equals instant chaos, and sometimes kitchen supplies can lead to just that. For example, no one wants to be in the middle of building a gingerbread house and see a ceramic vase crash on top of it. Then there’s that collection of Crown Royal on the window sill that may have seemed like a fun idea until a bottle fell in the macaroni, splashing cheese and milk everywhere. And that oven mitt collection was cute until your cabinet hooks started looking like a restaurant supply closet. Kitchen decor can too easily look junky, and countertop decorating ideas should be chosen carefully. Here are seven suggestions to start.

Lazy Susan Turntable Organizer

This may be the first countertop decorating idea to put into place immediately for two reasons: it can make cooking much easier by accessing spices faster than digging through a cabinet, and it comes in handy for storage. Just make sure the 360-degree turning table isn’t so big that nothing else will fit on that counter space.

Artificial Plant Assortment and Holder

If you have a black thumb and are fed up with killing plants, an artificial plant assortment is eye-catching, doesn’t require being moved around for sunlight needs, and you never have to worry about soil or plant food falling into your food. Air plants are also a good suggestion to enjoy the look of a plant without a dirty, soiled mess. Depending on the size of your counter, choose narrow vases, wide vases, fat vases or a variety of all three. Both types of plants can brighten up a room, match other decor and improve the mood of a kitchen.

Funny or Thoughtful Kitchen Signs

Sure, meme-like signs don’t serve a purpose for cooking or storage, but if you choose one that fits your personality, it can get a laugh from your houseguests. It also sets the tone for what type of cook or host you are. Choose a couple of heavy-duty kitchen signs that can fit on a stand without constantly falling over, and reread them when you need a laugh or a moment to digest your thoughts.

Smartphone Rack

Whether your text bubble is green or blue, a smartphone rack should be universal for both. Instead of risking wet or stained pages in a recipe book, a smartphone can be used to house the same recipe without the paper waste. Although the display may be shorter and food-stained fingers may end up on the display screen, the smartphone rack can do one thing recipe books can’t: hold the perfect angle to watch recipe videos.

Bamboo Dry Sink Caddy Organizer (On a Raised Rack)

A liquid soap dispenser or a glass dish for a soap bar are both convenient for washing hands while cooking. No more trips back and forth to the restroom. The only problem with this is, unlike ceramic sinks, kitchen counters come in a variety of materials. Water stains and pools of water can also show up far too often, and be dismissed in hopes everything will air dry. By choosing a solid bamboo dry sink rack instead of a plastic version, the latter option is both sturdy and actually does help soap dry much faster. And if it’s raised, that eliminates the pools of water.

Coffee or Tea Bar Organizer

If you’re a fan of coffee or tea, you may have quite a few add-ons: sugar, creamer, tea bags, honey or agave, coffee press, and filters. Instead of spreading them out all over the kitchen counters and cabinets, a coffee or tea bar organizer helps to keep everything organized and in one place. And if it has a few hooks on the side, you can even store your favorite mugs too.

Wine Glass Rack

Shoving fragile wine glasses in a cabinet makes them far too easy to fall or break after one clumsy move. Instead, try a hanging wine glass rack that can either sit on your countertop or hang upside down underneath your cabinets. Both options give freshly washed glasses a chance to air dry and keep them far enough apart that they won’t easily clatter.

Make Decorating Fun But Safe

Of course, as you add any of these seven pieces of decor to your countertop decorating ideas, you’ll probably come across more. If you decide to keep adding on, again, keep in mind that being able to have enough room to properly prepare food is the most important factor. Also, keep some decorative ideas outside of the kitchen if they cause a safety hazard. (For example, that incense holder may get rid of the burning food smell in your kitchen, but it’s also a fire hazard and the burned chemicals from incense can spread to your fruit bowl and any open containers.) If the kitchen gets too crowded, expand your shopping spree to other rooms for you and your family to enjoy.