Small Kitchen: How to Make It Functional?

How to place everything you need on a small kitchen and make the space convenient? Developers of 3D interior design planner Planoplan answer these questions.

What can be the minimum size of a kitchen?

If we talk about a separate room, the kitchen area should not be less than eight square meters. If you combine the kitchen with a room, you can reduce the area to six square meters, and in case of a niche (e.g., in the hallway), it can be as small as five square meters.

To understand what size your kitchen can have in the apartment, try to go beyond thinking about square meters and focus on the specific space.

Render: Planoplan

For example, you might have a small kitchen of six square meters but with a deep windowsill and storage space underneath. Or an eight-square-meter kitchen, but with an inconvenient window that you can't use in any way.

To make the space functional, study new furniture and plan how and for what purpose you will use every square meter, in which direction cabinet doors will open, where you will store food products. Then you can design the perfect kitchen for your needs.

Can the kitchen be relocated during a reconfiguration?

Yes, but it's not easy. You can relocate the kitchen only to a non-residential area of the apartment — into the hallway, corridor, wardrobe, or storage room.

But there are exceptions: it's not possible in apartments on the first and last floors of a building, in apartments with gas stoves, in one-room and two-level apartments. Also, you always need to check whether neighbors below and above have made reconfigurations. You must plan all details in advance: where the water supply will come from, where you will install ventilation.

How to make the space convenient: 8 tips

Choose functional items

This applies to furniture and appliances. For example, if you have limited space, choose a microwave oven with a convection function — that way you can save space.

Even better — built-in

For example, a built-in refrigerator takes up less space than a regular one. Moreover, it can be divided into two chambers and built under the countertop separately for the freezer and regular food storage.

Render: Planoplan

Plan the placement of the kitchen unit

The best location for a kitchen unit is linear. The reason is that corner cabinets are usually less functional, so L-shaped and U-shaped units are less convenient.

Provide additional working surfaces

You can increase their number using special cutting boards that are placed on the sink. If you have a garbage disposal unit, you can wipe off the scraps directly into the sink and rinse them with water, without using a trash bin.

Render: Planoplan

And tall cabinets to the ceiling

High wall-mounted cabinets are a great solution for a small kitchen.
You will get additional storage space for rarely used dishes.
Plan lighting scenarios

Lighting affects the perception of space: with proper placement of light fixtures, you can visually expand the kitchen.

A single overhead light source can ruin even an ideal interior. Place local lighting and under-cabinet lights to visually expand the space. If you have a suspended ceiling, leave spots for general lighting and use the walls.

Render: Planoplan

Use unexpected storage spaces

For example, you can store pans in drawer units in the kitchen base cabinet, and pan lids on the inner wall of the lower cabinet doors. You can also add extra shelves or a rail system.

If you don't have space for a dining area, replace it with a bar table that is easy to place against the wall.

Render: Planoplan