Having your kitchen remodeled is a fantastic way to reenergize your home and turn the space into one that looks inspiring, while functioning appropriately for all the family. If your kitchen is small, however, you might feel that there is little you can do to change its cramped or outdated features.
Fortunately, with a little creativity and attention to detail, you can successfully remodel just about any kitchen, of any shape and size, and often, without having to spend a fortune, too.
To help you remodel your small kitchen, here are 7 tips to follow:
- Try downsizing
If your kitchen is very small, it’s important that it at least enables you to prepare meals and cook in relative comfort. So, when remodeling, talk to your general contractor or designer about selecting some innovative appliances and downsizing the sink and other areas that aren’t used for preparing food. Have a clear floor space to minimize congestion when more than one person is in the kitchen, and take advantage of clever storage solutions to avoid clutter.
2. Use open or innovative storage
As touched upon briefly above, clever storage solutions are a must for any small kitchen; overhead or big, chunky cabinets can feel oppressive and turn the whole space into a boxy, claustrophobic one, so avoid these at all costs. Try trading higher cabinets for open storage, and consider pot racks, shelving, and magnetic knives holders.
3. Make your color scheme a crisp one
Neutral color schemes can help to make even the smallest of kitchens feel lighter and airier, but you can also try blending other, crisp colors to reflect light and make the space feel bigger. For added effect, paint the cabinets in a color that complements the walls.
4. Try a gallery kitchen design
Initially designed for kitchens aboard boats and ships (or other particularly compact cooking areas), it can also work wonderfully well for a small kitchen inside a home. Talk to your designer about the possibility of a galley kitchen to make the most of the space available.
5. Go for large and bold floor tiles
When you choose small tiles for the flooring in your kitchen or even on the walls, the large number of grout lines can make the space look cramped and busy. Opt for large, bold tiles instead.
6. Carefully consider lighting
Under-cabinet lighting can help to give the illusion of space inside a small room such as a kitchen, and you can also have soft LED ceiling lights and a control with a dimmer so that you can adjust the lighting as per your mood or the occasion.
7. Swap an island for a table
Kitchen islands are great for certain kitchens, but in a smaller one, they often take up too much space and limit where you can sit to eat. Try buying a table and placing that in a workable position so that you can use the top and underside of it for storage, too.
With a good general contractor and design team onboard, any kitchen of any shape and size can be improved and made to reflect the needs of you and anyone else using it.