The truth is, few people plan to have a small kitchen. Having a limited space as a central home base is often a daily challenge for those confined to this footprint.
But, for homeowners who love to cook or bake, need to accommodate a growing family or love to entertain, a small kitchen layout goes way past being inconvenient. Thankfully, kitchen designers have solutions up their sleeves and in their creative libraries that can make any space work to the clients’ satisfaction.
CABINETS FIRST
When creating optimal storage for a small kitchen, homeowners often focus on how the interior cabinet space will function. For designers, however, the starting point is the cabinets themselves. Choosing the right cabinets for the room – and how they will meet the needs of the homeowners – is critical to the overall success of the design.
According to Janell Bartlett, PMP, owner, JKC Design in Colorado Springs, CO, going as vertical as possible with cabinets is a trend that’s been popular for many years. In keeping with that idea, “we always recommend kitchens with upper cabinets to the ceiling or stacking cabinets to reach the ceiling,” she reports. “Even if the client can’t reach the upper shelves or stacked cabinets without a stool, it makes use of the empty space and allows the client to store items they may not use on a regular basis.”
In smaller kitchens, space can be maximized through the use of larger-sized cabinets, adds Alison Glen, principal, LA Dwelling in Los Angeles, CA. For example, she stresses that a 30″ drawer base will hold a lot more pots and pans than two cabinets that are 15″ wide. “It’s also more economical to purchase one cabinet than two,” she observes.
Tom Collins, president, Colmar Kitchen Studio, with locations in Margate and Avalon, NJ, adds that, for his firm’s designs, small space often translates into the use of narrow cabinets. “It is very difficult to access the items that are stored in the back of a 24″-deep cabinet that has a narrow opening,” he explains.
And here is where the interior fittings of the cabinets make their mark.
If the budget allows, Collins is a big proponent of accessories that pull out, such as a 9″ pull-out next to a range or a 35 cm. Kessebohmer Convoy sliding pantry system. “You typically can’t fit a wide pantry cabinet in a small kitchen, so we will often place a narrow pantry cabinet at the end of a run and add side access,” he explains. “This essentially provides a 24″-wide pantry that is 12″ or 15″ deep.”
Collins notes that clients are amazed with the amount of storage they gain with this setup, one that provides easy access to interior items.
Glen says that she almost always incorporates a built-in trash cabinet into a small kitchen design. “Although it takes up valuable space, it’s a clean, simple way to gain floor space – and you don’t have to look at an unsightly garbage can,” she reports.
INTERIOR SPACES
Using every inch of space is key to the optimal function of a small kitchen, agree designers, and this often makes them more challenging to design. Even the smallest of spaces needs to be examined to see if its functionality can be enhanced.
“Regardless of the size of a kitchen, some of the most common spaces are not utilized to their fullest capacity,” stresses Collins. “The interiors of the drawers should be as planned out as the rest of the kitchen. This is magnified in a small kitchen; every inch of storage must be designed to be as functional as possible.”
“Clients who are remodeling and like to cook want an organized kitchen, so they like all of the extras that organize the space,” reports Liz Schupanitz, CKD, Associate ASID, owner/designer, Liz Schupanitz Designs LLC, in Plymouth, MN. Her must-haves for her small kitchen designs include a dedicated garbage pull-out, vertical pan storage for platters and large cookie sheets – usually placed over the ovens – a pull-out for a blind corner, spice drawer slanted inserts for spice storage, kitchen utensil drawer dividers and large utensil drawer dividers.
“I also use pull-out shelves on the lower cabinets in widths from about 6″ to 18″ for spices, oils and vinegars, or baking goods,” she continues. “They are good for tight spaces that aren’t large enough for a full-sized cabinet, and they can usually be strategically placed for ease of access in a particular work zone, like spices near the cooktop or range.”
Bartlett likes including narrow spice racks in her designs, since they can be used not only for spices but for small cooking utensils, oils and even cleaning supplies. She also recommends roll-out trays in all base cabinets or drawer banks to ensure all of the space in the cabinets is usable and easy to access.
“We always have requests for drawer organization,” she states, and adds that her firm always provides one free organization kit for every kitchen it sells. While the cutlery divider and trash/recycle bins are the most commonly requested items by clients, she notes that her firm has been installing quite a few peg boards in drawers, as well as double-sliding cutlery dividers, tray dividers and sink base organizers.
For clients who don’t have or want a lot of upper cabinets, or for easy access to dishes, Schupanitz agrees that peg-and-board inserts for stacking dishes in a drawer are a reliable option, but warns, “while they are more accessible, you need a well-built drawer with heavy-duty glides [in order for this to work well.]”
“Some of my favorite challenges are in using every inch of space within each cabinet,” stresses Sarah Robertson, owner/lead designer, Studio Dearborn in Mamaroneck, NY. “Any amount of ‘airspace’ is wasted space!”
In that regard, Robertson believes the sink cabinet is one of the most challenging and often underutilized spaces. “I’ve designed cabinetry for under the kitchen sink that can fit one or two waste cans and cleaning supplies, while still leaving room for plumbing, a garbage disposal and the sink. Clearances can come down to fractions of an inch, but everything fits,” she stresses.
Blind corners are the nemesis for homeowners, and used to require bending or kneeling to get access to the interior. But with items such as super lazy susans and blind-corner pull-outs, access to contents is easier than ever.
“It’s critical to make good use of corner cabinetry in a small kitchen,” says Robertson. To do so, she has been using the Hafele Magic Corner II unit on almost all of her kitchen designs – big and small. “It is super easy to pull out, and really maximizes the utility of the blind-corner cabinet, which used to be the ‘black hole’ of kitchen storage areas,” she explains.
For blind corners, Schupanitz likes using the Rev-A-Shelf Cloud Contemporary Blind Corner, which she believes uses the space better than other corner units. “It’s also easy to pull out, with no jerking or wiggling side to side,” she offers. It also looks nice, too, she adds, offering a smooth maple bottom and short chrome sides.
CLEVER IDEAS
In a small kitchen, it’s critical to keep as much off of the countertop as possible, to free up space for food prep, notes Robertson. Keeping that in mind, the designer has developed several custom cabinet elements that her firm uses regularly.
“The built-in paper towel holder is one item; it keeps paper towels off the countertop, and within reach of kids, who are often the perpetrators of spills anyway,” she explains. “It’s great to enable them to clean up on their own.”
In addition, when drawer space for utensils is scarce, Robertson incorporates a pull-out utensil holder. “It does double duty, holding oils and spices on the lower rack, but can pack a ton of utensils into one spot [and keep them off of the counter],” she reports.
Bartlett notes that, in one recent project, she installed a magnetic knife holder by the food prep area. “This freed up the drawer space for other utensils, freed up the countertop space and made it easier for the client to grab the needed knife more quickly,” she says.
Getting electronics off of the counter and contained in their own little space has become a headache for homeowners, who deal with multiple devices and endless wires. To the rescue comes Docking Drawers, a client favorite, according to Robertson. A UL-listed, in-drawer charging station, “it takes all of those electronics and their cords and puts them in a tidy drawer, leaving your kitchen counter space clear for…cooking,” she declares.
“I really like using Docking Drawers for charging electronics,” notes Glen. “It keeps surfaces clear, and a small kitchen needs counter space.”
Using the countertop for storage in an uncluttered way is hallmark for Schupanitz, who puts “some kind of ‘to-the-counter’ cabinet” in all of her designs. “Sometimes it is an appliance garage and sometimes it is a glass-door cabinet that shows off pretty dishes and kitchen wares. It helps break up the space, uses the dead space in the corners and creates a focal point. It also makes items more accessible,” she explains.
Collins points to the backsplash as a missed opportunity for storage. “We often think of the backsplash area only from an aesthetic point of view, rather than for functionality. There is a lot of space there that can be utilized so a small kitchen can operate like a large one,” he notes.
Glen agrees, and notes that built-in niches by the range work well in small spaces. “They can be used for storage of oils and spices,” she says.
Of course, open space can also be used for storage, with designers recommending hanging bars, hooks and the increasingly popular open shelves. Glen is a fan of using open shelves, especially in a small kitchen, because it “keeps a small space feeling airy and bright,” she says.
SMALL-SPACE CHALLENGES
Most kitchen designers agree that small kitchens prove to be some of their most challenging projects. As with all kitchen spaces, each has its own specific trials, but the issues must be dealt with in smaller square footage, which can lead to big headaches.
For one project, Bartlett was tasked with creating much needed storage for the homeowner of a 1930s craftsman-style home. “The client is an avid baker, so she needed as much storage space as possible for all of her baking supplies,” explains Bartlett. To take advantage of her high ceiling, the designer stacked 12″ cabinets above 39″ upper cabinets and used a smaller crown molding to hide the uneven ceiling. To give the client as much countertop space as possible, the microwave was moved from the countertop to a microwave base cabinet in the island. At the refrigerator area, a custom pantry area with a full 24″-deep cabinet above the refrigerator provided nearly floor-to-ceiling storage.
“We used roll-out trays and drawers for every cabinet. We also installed a spice rack on one side of the range, with another 9″ full-height door base to be used for baking trays and cutting boards on the other,” explains Bartlett. “Floating cabinets above the sink window provide a space to showcase her grandmother’s antiques and provide task lighting.”
For Schupanitz, a medium-sized traditional kitchen posed problems similar to those of a small kitchen, due to the number of entries and lack of wall space. The designer’s solution was to create pantries that divide the kitchen area from the family room.
“It gave her a lot more storage, and had the surprising benefit of making each space feel larger but more intimate at the same time,” she reports. To make them feel a little more open but without putting items on full display, Schupanitz used a metal diamond grill and mesh in place of glass or a solid door. “It gives it character and lightens it up,” she remarks.
A recent challenge for Collins was converting a small kitchen into a workable Kosher kitchen for a young family of four. While it would be difficult enough to create a functional kitchen that had just one set of dishes and cookware, adding a second set that had to be housed in separate cabinets really increased the complexity.
“We used a unique configuration of a three-drawer base in Goldrief by Poggenpohl cabinetry as the bulk of the kitchen. The series offers two smaller top drawers and one oversized bottom drawer, which differs from most manufacturers three-drawer bases that have a small top drawer, a larger middle drawer and even bigger bottom drawer. This particular split allowed us to accommodate both sets of silverware and cookware,” he adds.
Small kitchen footprints and the need for storage space are not a great pairing, but that marriage is a lasting one. Thankfully, clever design and products that push the functional envelope are proving to be a successful union as well – one that will continue to meet the needs of today’s homeowners.