Designing Fabulous Kitchens in Small Spaces: Ten Tips for Having It All

Maybe you live in a New York City apartment with a kitchen that fits into a converted closet. Maybe you're adding a second kitchen outdoors, in your master suite, or over the garage for caterers. Maybe your vintage home demands that you respect the small footprint of an original servants' kitchen. If your problem is not enough space for all your great big kitchen design ideas, then think again... in ten new ways:

1. SPACE OUT.
Explore the spaces around, above, and below your kitchen to see what you can borrow. Unused halls, closets, attics, and stairwells, for example, can be turned inside-out to add more room for your kitchen. Share space visually with adjoining rooms by eliminating unnecessary walls or narrow doorways. Today kitchens open onto dining rooms, living rooms, play rooms, and home offices, as well as outdoor spaces such as patios and porches. And if you're considering an addition, remember that even a modest bump-out of just a few feet can totally transform a space.

2. CREATE THE ILLUSION OF GRAND SCALE.
Add stature to your kitchen with architectural elements such as moldings, pilasters, rosettes, dado, and niches. When properly scaled and harmoniously integrated into the design and style of your home, these embellishments can add presence to even the smallest kitchen.

3. LIGHTEN UP.
Every kitchen must have ample general light, excellent task light, and just enough accent light to make it beautiful. Add natural light wherever you can. Skylights, glazed transoms, clerestory windows, translucent doors, mirrors, and other reflective surfaces will visually enlarge your room. Lights inside cabinets, over counters, and even in toe-kicks are a few of the many ways to make your kitchen work well and look great. When your options are limited, consider adding a painted landscape mural, a travel poster of a panoramic vista, or perhaps a faux skylight.

4. EXPAND YOUR SPACE AT EYE LEVEL.
Open shelves and glazed cabinet doors allow a kitchen to look as large as it really is. Cabinets that are glazed front and back make interesting windows on exterior walls, or define interior spaces without blocking valuable light. Because most of our time in the kitchen is spent at the sink, place it strategically where the view is most open—choose a spot under a window or pass-through whenever possible.

5. FILL IT UP.
Don't take any space for granted. Fill unused refrigerator shelves with canned goods. If you rarely use your dishwasher, consider storing trays and other service items there. Some busy homeowners actually have been known to turn a dishwasher into a file cabinet.

6. USE UPPERS INSTEAD.
While most base cabinets are designed with enough depth to flank major appliances, standard upper cabinets are more shallow to provide comfortable countertop work area for you. To save space and make your kitchen feel larger, consider installing the upper
cabinets as base cabinets wherever your floor plan allows.

7. THROW YOUR LITTLE KITCHEN A CURVE.
Especially when aisles are narrow, moving through and around the space will be more comfortable if the corners of the counters are gently rounded. Besides, nobody wants to be reminded that their kitchen is too small by an annoying little bruise on the hip!

8. INVENT NEW SPACES.
Narrow, one-can-deep pantries can be built between the studs in your kitchen walls; tiny wedges of space can be converted into slim cabinets for keys and dog leashes; and an empty window sill can be easily transformed into an herb garden.

9. FOLLOW JOAN'S ONE OF EACH RULE.
Don't buy two when one will do. Whenever possible, make choices that double-function. A water pitcher looks beautiful when filled with flowers, and a set of glass dishes can adapt to casual or formal meals. If you choose a salad-spinner with a bowl that also can be used for mixing, serving, and storage, you're actually getting four in one. Less stuff requires less storage space.

10. MAKE IT FIT.
Manufacturers are building appliances that are bigger and better, and smaller and better too. You can now find multi-functional kitchen machinery that will fit your cooking style and your available space. Modular units such as two-burner cooktops, grills, or wok-burners
provide great design flexibility. Even grand professional-style ranges are now offered in sizes tailored to fit, with no loss of style or performance.

— ADAPTED FROM JOAN KOHN'S IT'S YOUR KITCHEN: OVER 100 INSPIRATIONAL KITCHENS

Do you have any ideas for me? Please share on the Joan Asks You page.