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The Small Kitchen

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Although the large kitchen can seem like the ideal, small kitchens can shine with efficiency and style. With disciplined use of space and a creative mix of essential kitchen tools, a small kitchen space can be comfortable and efficient. The key to designing a small kitchen is to recognize how you use the space and then maximize it for efficiency, convenience and style. Adequate surface area and the right layout of appliances in a space that is light, airy and free of clutter can make the kitchen feel much larger without major renovation or expansion.

The following ideas can help as you make your smaller kitchen work for you.

Define the space: Don't try and make one small kitchen serve too many functions. For instance, eliminate or move the junk drawer, and don't make the kitchen serve as a catchall for bills, junk mail, homework assignments and odds and ends. If your object is to make it a cooking center, concentrate on that goal. If possible, allow some seating, even if it's just a couple of tall stools pulled up to a counter for guests. Remember, a lonely cook is usually not a happy cook.

Open shelving: Use a combination of fitted, built-in storage pieces with unfitted, freestanding pieces and open shelving. While standard kitchen cabinets may make good use of space, top-to-bottom built-ins can often make a small kitchen feel boxy and claustrophobic. Use closed cabinets underneath counters and, just like the hip restaurants of today, utilize open shelving, storage bars, hooks and pot racks on top. I find open kitchen storage beautiful to look at and convenient for the cook who likes to make a quick grab for a needed pot or utensil. Open shelves also force the cook to be tidy and neat, and to eliminate nonessential items from view. And the great designer trick is creating the sense of more light and air.

Clear counter surfaces: Don't park the microwave, coffeemaker and toaster on the counter if surface area is limited. Keep them on a moveable industrial cart, on an open shelf or in a pantry cupboard. Edit. Do you really need all those appliances? If you only use your bread machine occasionally, store it between uses in a bottom cabinet, a countertop appliance garage or in a storage area outside the kitchen.

Think outside the box: If you're designing a kitchen to meet your cooking requirements, then think through all the steps and make the kitchen fit your needs. Julia Child had her countertops in California raised to 38 inches off the floor rather than the standard 36 inches to adjust for her height, as did my friend.

Alternative storage space: For rarely used dishes and cookware, think about storage in a basement or under the stairway, or, as I recently did, on shelves above the basement steps. Consider, too, storing extras on a rolling cart with shelves tucked underneath a skirted table. If you love the look of your serving pieces, incorporate them into your library or living-room bookcases, display them on tables or tops of cabinets, or use them to hold objects.

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