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How To Make Your Tiny Kitchen Look Bigger

Where do you spend most of your time in your home? If you are like most families, it’s probably in the kitchen. It seems that no matter how large your kitchen is, it never feels big enough.

Several years ago, I finally remodeled my kitchen, completely redesigning the floor plan. First, we knocked down a wall (which was a lot of fun) and installed a garden window over the sink, even with the countertop.  Then we added both an island with an overhang, with room for three chairs or stools, and a food-prep peninsula at table height, also with an overhang with room for three or four stools.

Here are several ideas for you to consider that will make your kitchen feel and look larger. You don’t have to implement all of them, but even following one of these suggestions will make a big difference in your kitchen.

Create More Storage
Better storage saves space. Try installing a base cabinet where the door is attached to roll-out shelves rather than swinging open on hinges. With a cabinet like this, you have a convenient place to store your most used appliances. The nice thing about pull-out shelves is that items stored way in the back are easily reached.

Redo Your Cabinets
Add glass fronts to your wall cabinets.  Even better, replace those solid cabinet doors with glass fronts along one of your walls. This is a great way to give your kitchen a more open feel.

Add Light
Choose under-the-counter lighting—it will make your kitchen appear larger. It also helps to select light colors for your cabinets and countertops.

Create Height with Taller Wall Cabinets
Try removing those soffits. Install your cabinets to the ceiling. You might also try “stair-stepping” the cabinets. First start with a taller cabinet. Then line the others progressively shorter. Above the shorter cabinets, you now have a great space to display your collectibles, baskets and teapots. The hard-to-reach top shelves of the taller cabinets make a great place to store all those holiday dishes and serving pieces you seldom use.

Bring the Outdoors In
To get more light into your kitchen, try enlarging your windows. Another great idea is to replace one with a garden window installed at countertop height. Want an even brighter kitchen? Add a skylight or sky pipe.

Streamline Your Kitchen
Once or twice a year we all go through our closets, getting rid of those clothes we no longer use. The same should be done in the kitchen. Be sure to regularly reorganize your kitchen, getting rid of all those items you don’t use. This simple chore will make your kitchen feel much more roomy. When your kitchen is cluttered, it will always feel smaller.

Build a Useful Island
If you have an eat-in kitchen but there’s no room for an island, you might want to consider replacing the entire kitchen table with an island. In addition to an eating area, upgrading to an island will also give you added storage space for seldom-used items. You’ll be surprised at how easy of a do-it-yourself project this can be. Start with base cabinets. Choose ones that are either table height or traditional counter height. Then top them with countertop material. Extend the counter 12 to 16 inches beyond the cabinets to make room for chairs or stools.

Install Storage Trays
Specially made narrow trays are available at hardware stores and home centers, and can be easily installed on the back of false drawer fronts ant the sink and cooktop. By doing this, you can significantly reduce your clutter around your sink and stove, thereby creating a larger-looking space.

Free Up Counter Space
Tired of cluttered countertops? Free up your counter by installing an under-the-counter microwave, can opener, spice rack or toaster.

Open Up Those Walls
If a dining area adjoins your kitchen, consider knocking down the wall between them. Be sure the wall is not load-bearing before starting. If it isn’t, then this could be a simple do-it-yourself project.

Create Open Shelving
Add open shelves to your kitchen, especially if you have colorful plates, glasses, teapots or other collectibles to display. Open shelving always makes a small kitchen look larger. One way to do this is to simply take the doors off the cabinets and paint the inside a bright cheery color.  Otherwise, take down the cabinets altogether and add colorful shelves in their place to make the room feel more open.

For the past 25 years Avo Barsoumian has helped home owners with their home flooring and interior design needs. He owns and operates a carpet installation company in California. The offer the largest selection of elegant hardwood flooring, beautiful laminate flooring and plush carpeting under one roof. Searching for that perfect laminate flooring costs for your new home or floating wood flooring to redecorate your older house? Then give Carpet Wagon a call.

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