How To Organize A Small Kitchen

tidy-closetSo it seems that you are the proud owner of a small kitchen. You’ve tried so many things to put a comfortable feel into your petite cooking zone: the curtains played their part (see our kitchen curtain selection tips) and you applied all the tricks for making your small kitchen look bigger. And, yet you still feel that you are missing something out.

Well, organization means a lot when it comes to a small kitchen and this is what you need to start doing.

For instance, installing sink drawers that tip out is a great win space-wise if your kitchen is small. Install a over-the-sink cutting board- you use the cutting board all the time but you also need some extra space on your counter, right? Take a peek at our cutting boards post also, as you might find the one that fits your small kitchen best.

If you have sewing machine skills then stop wasting your time and make your own custom-sized pocket organizer to create under-the-sink storage space. If not, there are low cost over-the-door shoe organizers on the market – buy one and simply cut it to fit. And, while we are in the sink area, you can install an over-the-sink shelf as well.

A small kitchen gives you the opportunity to get creative, for sure. Two Command hooks and a small basket help you make the under-cabinet vertical space functional.

Give a new purpose to the old magazine holders by transforming them into Ziploc bag and aluminum foil holders.

A rolling shelf system (pre-made or built by a carpenter) can only create so much utility space, while small shelves can do better, once installed. Perhaps you could use a rolling serving cart for storing purposes most of the time, and use it to serve guests when you have them over.

Use every space that your kitchen is giving you- take a look at the side of your cabinets and give them a purpose. They can be a place for your mugs or you can cover them with magnetic foil and hang your knives on it, for instance. On the inside of your cabinets doors you can hang the cork boards to win a little bit of more space. You can go even farther with the inside of your cabinets by hanging a sheet of tin to create a magnetic spice rack. If the inside of your cabinets is not enough, use the side of your fridge as a magnetic space rack also.

In a small kitchen you never find a place for your pots and pans. If your sink allows it, hang above it a simple rail from the ceiling and give your pans and pots a new place to live.

Try to give chalk a big role in your kitchen. Keep handy measuring equivalents, measuring cups with chalkboard paint, a chalk marker and some hooks. The chalk marker won’t stain if you brush it by accident with your hand either.

If you also have a strange corner cabinet in your kitchen, use some screw-hooks to turn it into a pot rack.

Ever tried Sugru before? It’s a moldable glue that can help you make customized pot lid holders on the inside of your cabinets. Use as many hooks as the inside of your cabinets can hold to hang gloves, rags or pot holders.

Do you have enough shelves? Well, think twice and put some more shelves over your current ones. Unless they were up to the ceiling already. If so, take a look at the floor. Do the shelves go to the floor? If not…you can build more under those shelves :).

Even though you think it doesn’t mean much, stacking your pans using pan dividers actually help you find them faster in a small kitchen. A dividing file rack to organize baking sheets and cooling racks means also a lot when struggling with organizing things in a petite kitchen.

Not having a pantry in the house, along with the problem of a small kitchen, might be a challenge. You can turn that around by creating shelves in your cabinets.

Getting a table that folds into the wall (like a Murphy bed) is also a fun and space winning solution, while a kitchen cart (even a small, narrow rolling one can work) can serve various purposes.

A cooking stove is a must in any kitchen. You may go with one as small as a countertop stove, or a standing one that’s not too wide. If you need extra functions such as grilling, you’ll need to consider an outside grill, such as a George Foreman grill, Coleman, Weber, and others.

You might be having a small kitchen, but that doesn’t mean big things can not happen in it! You can have as many as you want, and you can use a pegboard wall organizer- you don’t want to miss anything from your very long „To DO” list, that is, if you want to properly organize your home.

About Amanda

I love to buy a lot of products for the home, and dissect them out. I split them into duds and winners, and share the findings here on my site. As a reader of my site, I'm aiming for your next purchase to be an informed and inspired one.

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