One of our favourite spaces to design is the kitchen. It’s the place in the house where everyone tends to gather, and a great deal of our lives happens within those walls. Which is why we dream of having that space made to measure – a big island, perhaps, and units adapted to our needs. But the reality is that many of us have small kitchens.
Increasingly compact building has led to layouts where kitchens get smaller and smaller in order to give more space to the living room. It can sometimes seem difficult to work out how to make our small spaces work and look genuinely beautiful as well.
Having designed a good number of kitchens in all shapes and sizes, we can assure you that style doesn’t have to be sacrificed for function!
White! This colour is the favourite in small kitchen designs because it helps reflect light around the space and makes it look larger.
The shade of white can, however, help you steer the design towards the style that suits you best. A pure white paint, for example, tends to create cooler or more contemporary spaces; conversely, you can go for creamier tones for a softer, warmer effect if that’s what you want.
That doesn’t mean you can’t add touches of colour to the room, especially if it has a high ceiling or even a large window. Darker tones won’t close the space in if there’s plenty of natural light. To add that touch of colour we’d recommend painting the units, the walls and the ceiling the same colour from top to bottom, creating the illusion of a larger area.
If that’s too much for you, introduce contrasting colours in a simple way: go for darker colours on the base units and a lighter tone on the wall units and walls so they blend into the ceiling. What matters is choosing a colour palette and sticking to it throughout. Introducing too many different colours into a small space will feel overwhelming, but keeping them consistent is a good way to succeed. Take the risk!
In a small kitchen, storage is very important. Having a lot of units can, however, give a closed-in, heavy look, which is why we like to add one or two elements that break up that dynamic.
We generally manage this by going for a freestanding extractor hood rather than one built into a cabinet, or by installing some open shelving. They not only give us a fun accent to decorate with, they break up the field of vision and make the kitchen worktop feel less heavy.
If open shelving isn’t your thing, though, a good compromise is to use glass doors on some units. These small changes will have a big impact on how spacious your kitchen feels.
A solid kitchen lighting scheme is fundamental, not only for how it looks but for safety while you work. We’d recommend going to a professional to make sure the lighting design is right, so that the room looks larger because there’ll be no areas lost in shadow.
You need to take three types of lighting into account: ambient light, to light the whole space; task light, for work areas; and accent light, to highlight specific features.
Pendant lights over a small island or peninsula are still a good idea in a small kitchen, adding to the overall look. The trick is to go for smaller versions than you’d choose for a larger space, and they’ll look in proportion to the dimensions of the room. We also love installing wall lights above open shelving or a window. Our advice is to use lamps with warmer colours and avoid cold white ones. Don’t forget to fit LED strips in wall units or niches, since they’ll give a welcoming, charming touch.
To make your small kitchen look larger, choose appliance models with a minimalist style to reduce visual distractions and keep a streamlined look.
Wherever possible, fully integrate appliances such as the dishwasher or the fridge, since it makes the kitchen look less cluttered and increases the illusion of extra space. A microwave built into the units even saves working space on the worktop.
Consider smaller appliances too, which are now made in response to the growing number of people living in smaller flats. They’re more compact and slimmer, but just as functional and attractive as their full-size counterparts.
Create the illusion of more space through your choice of kitchen floor. Wooden boards running from the living room and “into” the kitchen can make the kitchen look longer and wider, depending on how they’re laid.
This clever design trick is particularly useful when a small kitchen leads into a living room; laying the same flooring throughout will create a uniform feel and add a sense of depth. Pieces laid vertically, or wide and long ones, work particularly well in galley kitchens, since they increase the room’s sense of space.
We hope you find it useful.
!!Lets work!!