Tiny kitchens – tips for kitchen design in smaller spaces

 
The simple fact of life is that for most people, space is limited. We don’t all live in multi-storey mansion houses complete with chefs, butlers and assorted servants. This means that we have to think smart and be prepared to work around restrictions and at the end of the day, from the point of view of designing a working kitchen, having a very small kitchen is one of the biggest restrictions there is:

Top Tips for Designing a Compact Kitchen

Make it Work Hard. Smaller kitchens just can’t do everything. Your principal aim should be to ensure that you can do all that’s necessary in terms of food preparation. Using tricks like compact microwaves, two burner stoves (also called domino hobs) and single sinks mean that you get all the function of a larger kitchen design while still having room to move.

Think about naked walls. Wall units in a small space can create a very claustrophobic air. Substitute overheads for attractive open storage space like shelving, pot racks and magnetic holders for knives and spices. This way you still have useful storage without hemming yourself in – on the downside you’ve got to be a little neater!

Think Glass. A great way to increase the amount of furniture without making the kitchen seem heavy is to utilize a lot of glass, which can allow you to see through many of your items, giving an illusion of what designers call ‘negative space’. Kitchen doors, tabletops and cabinets can all use glass to help your kitchen design seem much larger – it’s shiny reflective surface will give your kitchen tardis like proportions

Think Flooring. Picking the correct floor material can make a huge difference to the overall look of your kitchen. In smaller rooms, it’s best to go for a light color to create space – and pick something with hard wearing properties, because at the end of the day you’ll be walking over the same small area of flooring much more than if your kitchen was spread out. Linoleum is a great hard wearing choice that’s easy to replace, light colored laminate coming a close second – and if budget and floor structure allows floor tiling, or real stone flags are unbeatable.

Go for cozy. An alternative to trying to make the space seem light bright and airy – you can embrace the size, and go for a warm cozy sort of feel. By choosing rich, dark colors or texture you can create a really homely feeling that can make the small size of your kitchen one of it’s most endearing features.