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Image | Dulux
Kitchens are a place to socialise with friends and family, eat delicious food (hopefully), and cook together.
Alongside the living room, a kitchen is often the bonding area of the home and another great place to entertain.
So you’ll need an effective strategy to hide all those kitchen gadgets and gizmos as space utilisation and functionality is super important in any kitchen, but especially in a small kitchen!
Image | Old Brand New
I’d often bake with my son when he was younger, so messy doughy fingers were frequent in my modestly sized kitchen, we had lots of bowls and tins that were poorly stacked in a cupboard with no proper shelving inside.
I still live in the same home today, so over the years, I have found many ways to make it more functional for its size like using my cooker’s glass lid as an additional area to prepare food due to a lack of worktop space.
Here are 16 helpful tips that you can use too.
1. DECLUTTER YOUR CABINETS
Pictured: Tria Giovan
It may seem like a hassle, but you wouldn’t believe how much space can suddenly appear if you just organised those cupboards.
It could also be a chance to throw out food that is well past its sell-by date that you had forgotten about, like that old box of Quakers porridge oats from 2004 hidden at the back!
2. ADD A DROP LEAF DINING TABLE OR WALL-MOUNTED TABLE
Pictured: Norden Birch Gateleg Table from IKEA
Drop leaf tables have long been the space-saving solution for kitchens. They take up little room, are easy to store (some can even be wall-mounted!) and they can extend to accommodate more people.
The Norden drop leaf table by IKEA in the featured image has little storage drawers for cutlery and napkins for extra convenience.
3. INSTALL A HOOK RACK TO HANG YOUR CUPS
Pictured: Meera shelf unit from Cotswold Company
Most people love a cup of tea or coffee in the morning, so the convenience of having cups out and ready when you’re in a rush to catch the train is a great idea!
Using a peg rook rack will create so much room in your cupboard that you could otherwise use for things like glasses, tumblers, and wine glasses.
5. OPT FOR FITTED OR SMALL APPLIANCES
Pictured: David Giles
Built-in appliances not only give the kitchen a sleek and seamless look, but they also free up your worktop and floor space.
Bulky microwaves don’t need to take up vital worktop space and built-in ovens and fridges make the floor space feel bigger.
5. INSTALL A POT RAIL WITH HOOKS
If you lack a lot of cupboard space, the biggest things that are taking up that area are likely pots and pans.
If you have an empty wall space, hanging your pot and pans on it is ideal instead of stacking (or throwing) them together in a cupboard.
You could also hang them from a rack on the ceiling (typically seen over a kitchen island).
6. REMOVE ITEMS THAT DON’T NEED TO LIVE IN THE KITCHEN
Pictured: Future PLC/ David Still
Sometimes the big items in our kitchen really don’t need to be in there!
Maybe that chest freezer could go into the utility room or garage, perhaps the living room is big enough for the dining table.
Given that these are large items, you’ll instantly create much more space in your kitchen in the blink of an eye.
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7. USE LIGHT OR NEUTRAL COLOURS TO VISUALLY EXPAND YOUR KITCHEN
Pictured: Robert Brinson
A simple colour swap will give the illusion of a bigger kitchen. Lighter colours are known to visually expand a room, so they will work wonders in a small kitchen.
Light-coloured cabinets, worktops or a lick of paint on the walls (being the most cost-effective) are great ways to reflect natural light.
White will instantly brighten up the room, but pastel hues of yellow and green work well too.
8. UTILISE SPACE ABOVE CABINETS
Pictured: One Kings Lane
It really is the area we don’t really think about, isn’t it? But the space above the wall cabinets is really a golden area for storage in the kitchen.
As seen in the image, it’s the perfect space to store items like jarred grains, pasta, bowls, and wine, but you could use that area to store anything you don’t use that often.
If you have a particularly high ceiling in your kitchen, invest in a small folding step stool.
9. CONSIDER A MIRRORED SPLASH-BACK
Pictured: Humprey Munson
Mirrored splashbacks help to add additional light and create the illusion of more space.
The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house for buyers too, so finding ways to make the kitchen look bigger improves the overall appeal and value of the home.
10. ADD A PEGBOARD
Pictured: Living In A Shoebox
Why did we not think about having pegboards in other rooms besides the garage before?
They are so convenient and strong! Because if they are sturdy enough to hold items like a handsaw, screwdrivers, and hammers, I’m sure they can handle the salt and pepper mill.
So if you need clever wall storage, why not give a pegboard a try?
11. USE MIRRORED CABINETS
Pictured: Francesco Lagnese
We’ve seen glass cabinet doors here and there, but what about mirrored ones? It’s another trick to give the illusion of a bigger kitchen (and check your hair and makeup while you cook.)
Their reflective quality makes the room feel modern and lighter, though, you’ll probably have to clean these cabinets a bit more often!
12. BUY A COOKER WITH A LID
Pictured: Indesit Double Gas Cooker from Very
This one is personal! My kitchen is so tiny, and I barely have any worktop, so buying a cooker with a lid was a must!
They are so convenient as they simply can be lifted up and down, they are made from tempered safety glass, although, if you are using the oven, make sure to keep the lid up!
If you already have an oven that doesn’t have a lid but could still use some more worktop space, consider a hob cover instead.
13. USE A BREAKFAST BAR AND STOOLS
A breakfast bar is a great space-saving option as it doesn’t take up a lot of room, and unlike most dining tables, they are narrower and smaller.
For extra convenience, the bar stools can simply be placed under the bar when not in use.
Another box that breakfast bars tick is how stylish they are. Colours and designs vary so you’ll likely find a set that suits the theme of your kitchen.
14. REMOVE HIGH CABINETS FOR OPEN SHELVING
Pictured: Home Edit
Having open shelves in place of cabinets makes the kitchen look more welcoming.
They also create the opportunity to show off your fancy glasses or dishware, so you’ll feel much more inclined to keep it tidy and organised.
Shelves will not have the same depth as a cabinet, but that doesn’t mean you get less room – because the width of the shelves makes up for that.
15. PORTABLE KITCHEN ISLAND
Pictured: Dunelm
If your kitchen is lacking cabinets or worktop space, a kitchen island may solve that problem.
Kitchen islands are available in many different designs like ones with pull-out drawers, cabinets, and shelving and provide an extra surface to prepare food.
If you sometimes need extra floor space, they can simply slide out of the way or even into another room.
16. LET IN SUNSHINE
Pictured: Kimberley Marie Interior Design
Pretty easy for this one – simply let in more light! You’d be surprised how much nets can cut out natural lighting in a room. When it’s daytime – keep the curtains wide open and the roller blind right up.
Or if you are remodelling your kitchen, you could consider knocking down a wall that doesn’t need to be there or adding in French doors which will instantly flood the kitchen with natural light.
