How to Make the Most of Tiny Solid Wood Kitchens
For those with limited space, our stylish storage solutions and design ideas are here to help you maximise potential – and minimise clutter. After all, even tiny kitchens can have the ‘wow’ factor if composed effectively!
1. Colour can have an enormous impact both visually and psychologically, and is an excellent starting point when redesigning solid wood kitchens of modest proportions.
White will always be a firm favourite for creating the illusion of space and reflecting light back into the room. For an enhancement of this effect, utilise high gloss paint – this finish will help banish shadows, too. Far from being a bland colour choice, the colour ‘white’ encompasses a massive variety of shades, and using different tones throughout your kitchen can prevent it from seeming sterile. To complete your look, we recommend opting for our painted wood cabinets in white: this will mean that your line of vision isn’t interrupted by a sudden change of scheme (or ‘visual barrier’), which adds to the feeling of space and creates a calmer atmosphere.
One of our favourite shades for solid oak cabinets is Farrow & Ball’s ‘Wimborne White’, nostalgically named after the historic Dorset town in which John Farrow and Richard Ball founded the British paint manufacturing company (where it continues to operate today).
If white is not for you, pale blue is another great choice for both walls and cabinets. A ‘cool’ colour, light blue visually recedes to make the room feel larger than it actually is. At the other end of the spectrum, fiery red is definitely a ‘warm’ colour. One to be avoided, this colour advances towards you and can feel very claustrophobic in a room that lacks the scale to pull it off, especially in a hot kitchen!
2. Switch on to lighting – another key factor to consider when trying to enhance a small space.
Light fittings come in a multitude of shapes, sizes and materials, and it’s really important to select the right ones to capitalise on your space. Ceiling spotlights and under-cabinet lights are brilliantly unobtrusive. By throwing plenty of light over your solid wood kitchen surfaces – whilst taking up as little room as possible – these features can brighten a room dramatically, creating the illusion of space.
Additionally (and though it might sound obvious), we recommend that you incorporate as much natural light as possible within your design. Always opt for a blind over curtains or, if suitable, no window dressing at all – this element can clutter up precious space.
3. This leads on nicely to our next recommendation: select shiny and reflective objects for your kitchen. With such a diverse array of light fittings on the market, it’s easy to feel baffled. We suggest simplicity: when it comes to your lighting, opt for either stainless steel or glass, and continue this throughout your kitchen (from small appliances to fruit bowls). Don’t forget our glass and stainless steel splashbacks either! These accessories are small contributions but can prove invaluable by helping as much light infiltrate your pint-sized kitchen as possible.
4. Choose glass frontals. As already mentioned above, glass is a handy helper when it comes to lightening up a small kitchen; so when it comes to your core units – by which we mean our fabulous solid oak kitchen cabinets – why not also opt for glass frontals? Our glazed doors are a great way to customise your kitchen and, whether you prefer a Shaker or Traditional style, using glass here gives the cabinets an added dimension for your eyeline to follow, contributing to the sense of space.
5. As well as looking stunning, kitchens should also be functional – no matter how small their stature – which is why we suggest that you integrate a breakfast bar. Doubling up as worktop space when you’re not dining, breakfast bars are a fantastic and modern space-saving solution. These days, kitchens provide a natural space to congregate, so having an extra work surface with the dual function of a desk makes this even more efficient as a multi-purpose area.
6. Discover our brilliant wirework solutions. Easily integrated into your solid oak kitchen cabinets, these fantastic constructions come in a wide range of sizes and include a 3-tier wire spice rack, a corner carousel, pull & swing pantry baskets, and pull-out wire baskets, helping you keep your wooden kitchen worktops wonderfully free of clutter whilst making the most of every inch of space.
7. Don’t be afraid to cross the line… or walk over it, as the case may be: because we’re talking about flooring. The final instance of visual trickery we have up our sleeves is using lines to visually ‘stretch’ the width of your kitchen. For example, by installing planked flooring or striped linoleum to run the width of the room from wall to wall, the floor space will appear to expand. Alternatively, positioning the stripes or planks so that they run the length of the room will give the illusion of endless space.
Navigating cluttered and chaotic rooms can cause all kinds of needless stress, so we thoroughly recommend considering our handy hints for tiny kitchens to create that ambience of calm in yours.
Looking for further inspiration? Then come and see how our solid wood kitchen cabinets and wirework can benefit your home by paying a visit to one of our five oak kitchen showrooms.
If you’ve got a small and perfectly-formed kitchen of your own, we would love you to share pictures of them with us via Twitter and Facebook!
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