Today, homes are built with plenty of room in mind. Total square footage in most houses is two to three times what it was 50 years ago. Most homes built after the 80's have large, eat-in kitchens with room to spare - some have islands, breakfast nooks, two dishwashers, and walk-in pantries.
But many older homes, condos, and townhouses are stuck with very small kitchen areas. High budgets, neighborhood association constraints, and lack of a ground-level location prevent the homeowner from adding on to their kitchens.
What can you do if your kitchen is
too small?
A small kitchen can still be renovated to allow for more space, without knocking down exterior walls and doing a complete kitchen addition job. Even if more space cannot be added to the room, there are tricks to add to the illusion and feel to make the kitchen seem larger than it really is.
Open It Up. Most older homes have a kitchen that is more or less enclosed. Kitchens were never a place for friends and family to gather. The kitchen was utilitarian in nature. 4 walls were necessary to close it off. If your small kitchen has one or two doors leading out of it, you should check with a
structural engineer to determine if the walls around those doors are "load bearing." If the walls are not load bearing walls, you should consider knocking out the drywall/plaster and opening up your kitchen. If you have cabinets on those walls, and you're afraid of losing the storage space, you can still have cabinets installed that will hang down from the ceiling. Countertop bars can be installed in place of the wall to give eating and visiting space to give the illusion of a larger kitchen space.
More Modern Appliances. New appliances are now available that will do the same amount of work in smaller spaces. Dishwashers and refrigerators are available that have more cubic interior space than older and larger appliances that may currently be in your kitchen.
Take Over Other Rooms. Is the dining room next to the kitchen? Many are abandoning their formal dining rooms and expanding the kitchen out into that space. Since larger kitchens are more desirable it might be an option. At this time, a larger and more improved kitchen but without a dining room will not reduce the value of your home. In fact, it may even probably increase your overall home value.
Increase Light Levels. Can you add a window? Can you enlarge a window? You might even consider a skylight in the room. By adding total light levels to the kitchen, you can open up the space and create the feel of a larger room. Another way to help with this is dimmable recessed lighting overhead and under cabinets. Extra light and accent lighting can increase the rooms feel, too. Finally, consider lighter colors in paint and cabinet doors. By lightening up darker colors, you'll add to the illusion of a more open space.
Expand Up. Can you alter your kitchen ceiling? By pushing up the ceiling in a kitchen, you can allow for more headroom and raise the total cabinet height (and storage space.) A cathedral ceiling or exposing your rafters and beams will also allow for skylight additions.
Shiny Countertops. Upgrade to a high gloss surface on your small kitchen counters. Added lighting and sunlight will reflect off the shiny surface and add light all over the area.
Vary Your Cabinets. Opening up cabinets with transparent or semi-transparent cabinet doors will add an airy feel. Also, vary the height of the new cabinets you add to the room. A row of cabinets that are all the same height can make a more uniformed and closed-in feel. With some cabinets dropping down lower than others and some cabinets not dropping down quite as far, you can keep your kitchen feeling like it has more square footage.
If you need to
find a kitchen designer to come in and give you a consultation on your small kitchen, consider using
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