As you’ll know from my DIY-dodger’s Guide to Kitchen Decor, my kitchen is not much bigger than something you’d find in Polly Pocket’s humble abode. We live in a cosy two-bed flat so we haven’t quite achieved the farmhouse kitchen with big beautiful floating island just yet which means we have to down a bottle of shrinking potion before heading to the fridge or cooker. Okay, that was hideously sarcastic and melodramatic but seriously, my cooking zone is minimal to say the least – and not in that uber cool, squeaky clean, Pinterest kind of way either.
I mean, it’s perfectly fine and delivers all (or most) of the goods when I need them – it doesn’t prevent me from cooking and it certainly doesn’t curtail my eating or drinking – it would just be nice if it looked a little bigger. Moan, moan, moan, #FirstWorldProbs… I know, I know, I know… but if you too fancy making your small kitchen look bigger here are some handy hints for you to dive right into.
Shrink your furniture
I’m not saying let’s give Joe Johnston a run for his cinematic genius but honey, shrinking the furniture will go a long way to freeing up space and creating the illusion of a bigger kitchen. When you’ve got a limited space the last thing you want to do is take up all of that room with big, bulky bits of furniture. Put some clever space saving storage techniques to good use and you’ll be whizzing around your kitchen with a soggy mop as the Ginger Rogers to your Fred Astaire in no time. Use wall space for things like spice racks, shelves and hanging pegs to avoid cluttering precious floor space with unnecessary storage units.
Go for glass instead
I am that walking cliche of a person who goes into the supermarket with a list of three essential items and ends up leaving like a human Jenga tower, juggling pretty much everything but the shopping trolley all the way home. Subsequently, the insides of my kitchen cupboards look like something off an episode of Hoarders which is why I’m eternally grateful that their doors are wooden and very much opaque. However, it might be time for a tidy up because I know just how much glassy cabinets can contribute to making even the most modest of kitchen interiors look bigger. Simply put glass doors on the front of them and Bob’s your uncle. Let’s hope my landlord agrees…
To the window, to the wall
Glass cabinets might make Bob your uncle but installing some windows is a sure fire way to make Fanny your aunt. This might not actually be possible in all properties (especially if you rent like us) but if you can, whack in some windows and watch that glorious, glorious daylight pour in. Darkness immediately shrinks any space so when you’re trying to trick the eye into believing your kitchen could be on an episode MTV Cribs, natural light is your best friend. I’ve heard Residence 9 windows are on the mark if you’re in the market for some brand new Tommy Trinders.
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