Interior designers love remodeling small kitchens. Their limited space poses a real challenge that gets the creative juices flowing. Small kitchens, particularly, force interior designers and homeowners to think outside the box. They are compelled to judiciously use every square inch of the floor and vertical space. One small messy corner can make the entire kitchen look unkempt. Here are some of the best small kitchen remodeling ideas for dealing with a small kitchen challenge.
Sliding Doors Can Be Your Savior
For apartment renovations and small kitchen remodel projects, an open floor plan is the key to unlocking more space or at least the perception of spaciousness. Open floor plans make the house feel bigger, and it applies to kitchens too.
Also, go creative and conceal it instead of merely opening up the kitchen. Let the kitchen stretch from floor to ceiling with storage, a cooking range, and a sink. Once you are done with the kitchen, you can conceal it with full sliding doors. So, when the kitchen is not in use, your home will look like one cohesive and big unit. You can use a neutral color for the door to blend it into the overall décor. Alternatively, you can paint the sliding door with a bright color to make it a statement piece in the house. You can go with sliding doors or bifold doors, depending on how much space you have. Find what works for you and your house’s overall décor.
With houses getting smaller, rooms need to be multi-functional. When the doors are open, you have a fully-equipped kitchen; when they are closed, you have a paneled feature on the wall.
Use the Magic of Light Reflection
Many homeowners are now opting for reflective surfaces that can make their kitchen look and feel bigger than it really is. Transparent glass shelves, metallic-colored appliances, high-gloss doors, and other kitchen features with highly polished surfaces are a huge trend these days. When light bounces off these surfaces, it gives the impression of a roomier kitchen.
You can also install a mirror in the kitchen if the space permits it. The back of the doors is usually a great place to install these mirrors. You can also find an opportunity to include glass in the kitchen layout with glass tiles or antique high-gloss tiles. The dance of natural light in the kitchen will make it feel more spacious.
Strategically Chosen Kitchen Flooring
You can create an illusion of more space in the kitchen by choosing the right kitchen flooring and installation. For instance, hardwood floors draw the eye. If they’re installed along the length of the room, they make the space feel longer. If they are installed sideways, they make the area look wider.
The visual impact of these ideas amplifies when the kitchen flooring overflows into the rest of the house and stretches into the living area. When the same floor stretches uninterrupted into other areas, it gives it a sense of depth. Flooring is one of the most expensive fixtures in a house, so you must have a concrete vision and detailed plan before making any changes to it.
Smart Kitchen Fixings
No, we are not just talking about smart appliances. Multi-functional appliances are a great idea to save kitchen space. These include combination microwaves, slimmer dishwashers, drawer-style refrigerators, etc.
If you are building a kitchen from scratch, you should start by compiling a list of needed appliances. Then find out if you can use a multi-functional appliance to replace two or more kitchen appliances. You can also create nooks in your kitchen to house such appliances. These decisions must be made before you start your small kitchen remodel project.
Open Shelf Plan
Complement your open floor plan by opting for open shelves instead of closed cabinets at the eye level. Store your pulses, spices, flour, and rice in glass jars so they are always visible. This way, you don’t need to dig through your entire pantry when you need something.
An open shelf plan will also make it easy to restock your pantry when your supplies run low. But, most importantly, invest time in decluttering. Keep only what you use in the kitchen. Regularly used items go into the open shelves. Other pantry items go into the lower closed cabinets.
A Kitchen Cart for an Island
Kitchen islands have become increasingly popular in American kitchens. These islands serve several purposes – prep for meals, laying out the food, conversation central, and more. Everybody wants an island, but everybody does not have space for one. That’s because an island requires at least 36 inches of space. You need to ensure that there is enough walking space once the island is installed.
Smaller kitchens can use a rolling kitchen cart instead of an island. You can move it around wherever you want and use it for various purposes. In fact, if you have more people in the kitchen, you can roll the cart out. Not everything about remodeling a kitchen has to be about fixtures and décor.
Put Your Ceiling to Use
In small kitchens, where every square inch counts, you cannot forget the fifth wall, i.e., the ceiling.
If your kitchen cannot house all the pots and pans, it’s time to hang an industrial rack on the ceiling. You can easily hang multiple utensils on the rack. It will automatically lend your kitchen a rustic feel and add character to it.
You can also use racks hanging from the ceiling to place plants. Plants always add a sense of freshness wherever they’re added. Potted plants allow you to bring nature indoors, and ceiling racks let you do that without utilizing precious kitchen space. They’re perfect!
Small Kitchens are an Empty Canvas for Your Creativity
Small kitchen remodel projects push you to stretch the limits of your creativity. From sliding doors to roll-out carts to ceiling racks, there is a lot you can do with a small kitchen. Push the envelope.
Need inspiration or creative help? 5blox’s team of interior designers, home remodeling experts, and project managers will help you come up with brilliant kitchen remodeling ideas that’ll level up your kitchen, maximize space utilization, and help you make a powerful statement. Talk to us!
