Small kitchens may seem like a design challenge, but with beautiful functional designs you can compact your kitchen in such a perfect way that it will surely envy others! Here are some tips compiled by SURFACES REPORTER
Keep it Simple – First Things first, keep the design simple and minimalistic to lend a feeling of space and avoid a cluttered look. Hide all the unnecessary items and focus only on the stand out items. Clean lines and sleek design is the way to go.
Go for built-in integrated compact appliances and Introduce space saving elements – They will open up free space for a clean look. Some companies also offer stackable built-in appliances.
Utilise the Kitchen corners – A corner shelf, a corner range or even floating corner open shelves are great options to choose from, to utilize the kitchen corners effectively. Another option is to go for a beautiful corner pantry. At the same time, these are great options for additional storage cabinets. You can also opt for Open Floating shelves which reduce visual weight and lend illusion of more space.
A corner shelf, a corner range or even floating corner open shelves are great options to choose from, to utilize the kitchen corners effectively.
Use lighting effectively – Proper lighting in the kitchen is another way of creating a feeling of spaciousness by highlighting certain areas. A well lit space with abundant natural light if available will also make the room look larger. Under-cabinet lighting is a must and great way to eliminate dark corners and make the countertop space more useful and look spacious.
Storage matters – We love to store and generally Indian families need more storage areas for keeping different grains, pickles, spices and at many homes, different set of cookwares for vegetarian and non-vegetarian foods. Go for deeper storage counters to fit all appliances and create more work space. A pull out cabinet can be designed to serve as a dual-purpose storage and chopping block that can be moved to the centre of the kitchen and moved out when not in use. It is very important to ascertain size and depth of storages beforehand as per current family needs and future needs in view.
A pull out cabinet can be designed to serve as a dual-purpose storage and chopping block that can be moved to the centre of the kitchen and moved out when not in use.
SURFCAES REPORTER spoke to Anish K Motwani – Principal Designer, Anish Motwani Associates, Mumbai who gave expert views on designing a compact kitchen
- Platform depth - Our main advice is to keep platform depth of 24 inches where you have the hob, and the other platform can be of 20 or 21 inches. No need to have 24 inches depth for both. If one has hob and sink on the same platform than the other parallel platform can be 18 inches also. Do not try to make the area more compact.
- Colours - Try using light colour or laminates such as silver mix with white and red or orange mix with off white and silver. Kitchen combinations can be plenty. Try to have the overhead shutter with glass (framing of wood or aluminum on sides). Glass makes the space look good.
- Tiles - Try to put tiles in all the walls in the kitchen. Go for lighter shades on tiles like white or off white so that you can play with some colours on the laminates.
- Ceiling - should be kept as high as possible. Even if one wants to give indirect light effect in the ceiling, the ceiling height should not be reduced more than six inches. Try and keep the ceiling simple and in straight lines. Round ceiling or curves does not look that great unless you have the theme in that manner.
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