There’s no doubt that the most action-packed room in any house is the kitchen. Beyond food prep and cooking, it’s where everyone heads to grab their favorite snacks, to catch up at the end of the day, and to congregate at parties. If you have a small kitchen space in your home, then it might feel like there’s never enough room for the things and people you’d like to invite into your kitchen. Laura Powderly, senior designer at Mosby Building Arts, is a master of maximizing small spaces. She approaches every small kitchen project with the same five rules to help get the most of every inch of space and to make any small kitchen look and feel bigger.
1. Take stock of what’s going in your new kitchen. “I ask every client to make a catalog of what we need to create space for,” says Powderly. “What will go in the cabinets? What will live on the counters? Consider what you currently own that you’re holding onto or getting rid of and what new things you plan to buy. Once we know our storage needs, we can utilize some pretty creative solutions to find a home for it all.”
2. Blind corners are a blessing in disguise. “Designing cabinets in small spaces often leads to blind corners, which are difficult to get to, so they become the place your things go to die,” says Powderly. “Blind corner pull-outs allow you to properly use that space and utilize every inch of storage your cabinets can offer. You might also have a 6-or 9-inch space that seems hard to use, but those are great spots for pull-out spice racks. This frees up more space in your drawers as well. I also like double-layer drawers as a way to utilize the unused space in the height of drawers.”
3. Take the cabinets all the way to the ceiling. “Your cabinets need to do a lot of work in a small space, so taking them to the ceiling is a must, even if you’re short and your ceilings are tall,” says Powderly. “The top shelves are a great place to store seasonal or specialty items. You might have the problem of too many doorways, which take away wall space and, therefore, potential cabinet space. I recommend closing up one or more of those doorways, depending on your layout, to add cabinetry. Another place to find extra space is in a closet pantry. By replacing it with a cabinet pantry, you gain storage in front and on each side.”
4. Use continuous materials to make the room look bigger. “I like to use quartz for countertops and continue the same look up the backsplash,” says Powderly. “By keeping it all the same color and style, it opens up the space visually. The same concept applies to flooring. If you have wood flooring leading up to your kitchen, continue it into that space. If you break it up with tile flooring, it will make your kitchen feel smaller and contained.”
5. Maintain a 48-inch walkway between cabinets. “This can be difficult to achieve sometimes, but a 48-inch walkway between cabinets is the best way two people can comfortably move around in a kitchen,” says Powderly. “The absolute minimum is 36 inches, but it’s a tight fit and can become problematic. The key to keeping from feeling crowded in your kitchen is to properly set up your work triangle. Some layouts can make that very challenging, but it’s worth talking through and considering all the options to make sure your kitchen is a functional and comfortable as possible.”
This post was created by SLM Partner Studio on behalf of Mosby Building Arts. To learn more, visit mosbybuildingarts.com.
