When I first moved into my second apartment during my senior year of college, I began setting up my kitchen without giving it much thought. Since I was just coming out of lockdown, I wasn’t used to having my own kitchen again, so I just put things away willy nilly. As the year went on, I got a better feel for how to set up the space in a way that was actually beneficial. Hereâs how you can do that in your own kitchen.
Space saving storage products are your best friend when it comes to fitting more supplies in this small space.
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General Tips
1. Use Light Colors To Make It Seem Bigger
If you want your small kitchen to feel less claustrophobic, then use light, airy colors. This will make the size of the room less noticeable. Itâll also reflect light more effectively than dark colors do, which is what makes a room feel larger. If you do want to use colors on the darker side of the spectrum, like red, blue, green, etc., use pastel tones.
2. Prioritize Natural Light
Another way to make your small apartment kitchen seem bigger is by allowing as much natural light to fill the room as possible. If you have a window in the space, donât cover it up with anything. If thereâs any room on the wall for a mirror, hang it in a place that reflects the window to increase the amount of light in the room.
3.Buy And Put Away The Necessities Before You Consider Shopping Again
Since this place is so small, itâll be easy to overcrowd it fast. That’s why you should make a list of everything that you absolutely need and buy that stuff first. After youâve gotten the bare bones of ingredients and cooking supplies, take a look at how much space is left in the room. After that, figure out how many additional supplies you can fit in the kitchen/pantry before shopping again.
4. Take Advantage Of Vertical Storage Space
In general, if there is empty space near the ceiling of your cupboard after you store your cooking supplies in there, you should try to find a way to fill it in. You could keep stuff inside the cabinets that take up the entire vertical length of the shelf. You could also buy organization products that let you stack your smaller items all the way up to the top. Taking advantage of vertical space is how you fit even more supplies in a small kitchen.
5. Buy Kitchen Supplies That Can Collapse, Nest, Fold, Etc.
When youâre buying measuring cups, drinking cups, mixing bowls, etc., get the kind that can fit neatly inside one another. By opting for these items, youâll be able to get more cooking supplies without taking up too much room. Speaking of cooking supplies, if you can find tools that collapse, like a silicone colander, or fold, like a silicone spatula, then get those instead of the traditional kind. If your apartmentâs kitchen is extra small, then here are 27 ways to maximize the space despite its limited size!
The Fridge
1. Use Space Saving Storage Products
When it comes to putting food in your fridge, you can fit more inside if you use space saving storage products. Undershelf-baskets:
Can organizers:
And door storage containers:
Are a few examples of products that could help expand your storage possibilities. There are plenty more to choose from on Amazon.
2. Transfer Produce And Ingredients To Stackable Containers/Drawers
When you initially buy food to put in your fridge, chances are, they donât come in space-saving containers that are easily stackable. This might leave unused vertical storage space in your fridge. To fit more produce and ingredients inside, transfer the stuff thatâs packed in non-stackable containers to rectangular and square shaped ones. If possible, opt for clear ones so that you can quickly spot whatâs inside. Additionally, you can choose clear, stackable drawers to store some of your food in if it makes your supplies easier to access.
3. Place The Food You Eat The Most In The Front
AFter youâre done grocery shopping, make sure that, when youâre organizing your fridge, you put your most used ingredients in the front. This keeps you from having to dig around and rearrange your organized produce to get to your snacks. Putting them on your fridge door will keep you from disrupting the rest of your set-up, which keeps everything compact and space-saving.
4. Label Your Containers
If you have a lot of containers in your fridge, and not all of them are clear, you should label each bin. This will help you identify whatâs inside faster. If you can read the label without even removing the container, thatâll keep you from having to disrupt your organized set-up. Youâll also save some time when cooking.
5. If Your Produce Is Big, Prep Them Before Storing Them
Some fruit and vegetables are just too bulky, tall, long, etc. to put in a nice, compact container. If you already have an idea of what recipe youâll be using the produce for, then nowâs a good time to prep it. Halving it, shredding it, dicing it or reducing its size in any way will make it possible to fit in a square container. Itâll also help you cook faster.
The Wall Cabinets
1. Use Space Saving Storage Products
There are plenty of products out there that can help you double the cabinet space youâre given. If you want to know 23 ways to fit more stuff in them, then check out my blog post for cabinet organization ideas!
2. Keep Things In Stackable Containers And Label Them
Just like with the stuff in your fridge, youâll want to keep your supplies in stackable containers. Again, I suggest clear ones so that you can easily spot whatâs inside. When you canât tell the contents of each bin just by looking, label them. There are a lot of different sized containers to choose from, so if youâre any good at the game Tetris, the different sizes will allow you to put those stacking skills to use.
3. Store Stuff Underneath The Cabinet
You can attach adhesive hooks to the bottom of your cabinets to hang mugs from. You could also use undershelf baskets; just make sure to buy the right size so that your doors can close all the way.
4. Categorize Your Stuff And Store Them Accordingly
Reserving different parts of your cabinets for specific supplies, like snacks, baking supplies, spices, etc. will make things easier to find. It will also make them easier to organize since youâll know how to group them up. Doing this will also keep you from having to dig through different sections of your cabinets to find something, which could turn your organized storage into clutter. Lastly, itâll be easier and faster to cook if you know where everything is.
5. Make Your Most Used Items The Most Accessible
This rule pretty much applies to any form of storage that you have in any room. In the kitchen, specifically, you can make your most used things accessible in multiple ways. One way is by sitting them on the counter, which is a good place for salt and pepper. Another is by placing them on the bottom shelf and in the very front. Another is by placing them on hooks at the bottom of the cabinets, which is a good place for your favorite mugs.
The Under-Sink Cabinet(s)
1. AgainâŠUse Space Saving Storage Products
I donât mean to beat a dead horse, but honestly, utilizing space-saving products in a small place can help you fit way more than you initially could. To do this in your under sink cabinets, you could get portable, L-shaped drawers:
Stackable clear drawers:
Or adhesive wall storage:
2. Keep Dishwashing And Kitchen Cleaning Supplies In Here
This is a common hub to keep all of the things that you use to keep your kitchen clean. This isnât a good place to keep your food anyways. It can get damp under there since thatâs where the plumbing is; cleaning products are resistant to the damp environment since theyâre in plastic or glass containers and bottles. Itâll also keep your dishwashing supplies in close proximity to the sink.
The Drawers
1. Use Space Saving Storage Products
Things like drawer dividers and utensil trays are your best friend when it comes to keeping this space organized. There are even adjustable dividers that let you choose the shape of the sections:
2. Roll Your Fabrics
If you keep fabrics in your drawers, like cooking cloths, oven mitts, etc., roll them up tightly together. This will save more space than folding them normally. On an unrelated note, this is also how you save space when packing for a trip.
3. Nest Your Things
Just like I mentioned beforehand, try to buy things that fit neatly within one another to prevent wasting storage space.
The Walls
1. Wall-Mounted Shelves
Before you start sweating over your security deposit, donât worry, Iâm talking about adhesive shelves. However, you still have to be careful about the type that you buy to avoid ripping off the wallâs paint. If you have a tile backsplash with enough room to fit a small shelf, then I suggest getting these types:
If you have wall space thatâs painted, then I suggest getting this kind with adhesive hooks to avoid damaging the paint:
Just make sure to check the amount of weight that the hooks can hold; the info should be available on the box.
2. Magnetic Knife Strip
If you have very limited counter and drawer space, then you could just attach your cooking knives to the wall as a solution! I suggest keeping these on your backsplash to avoid damaging any paint. Also, it makes sense to keep them here for cooking convenience.
3. Adhesive Hooks
You could attach adhesive hooks to different parts of your walls to hang oven mitts, cooking utensils, rags, etc. Theyâre simple but, if you just want a little more storage space thatâs quick and easy to add, hooks are a good tool to turn to. Like I mentioned before, there are different weight classes to choose from, so you have a wide range of cooking supplies that you could hang from these things.
4. Corkboard
This can function as both decor and storage. You could slap this on your wall and hang little spice packets from them that tend to get lost easily. Or you could store leftover sauce packets from your favorite takeout spot here. You could also put recipes that you want to cook later on there. Itâll also serve as a good place for reminders. Thereâs a lot of different ways to make good use of this board!
The Sink
1. Use An Over The Sink Drying Rack
You can turn your sink into an extra surface to store things when the faucet isnât in use. One way to do this is by placing a drying rack over it. There are a lot of different designs for this product, so check retail stores or online shops to find the one that fits your kitchen. Just make sure to check the reviews because they vary quite a bit. If youâre looking for more places to put your plates in your small apartment kitchen, you can get 20 different storage and organization ideas on my other blog post!
2. Place A Cutting Board Over The Sink
There are some long cutting boards out there that can briefly turn it into a flat work surface. This is great if you severely lack counter space, or you just want to create a little more. Measure the length of your sink to make sure that you buy the board thatâll fit perfectly on top.
3. Use Magnetic And Non-Magnetic Sink Accessories
Like space-saving products, there are a lot of different sink accessories to choose from. For example, you could put a little dish tray in the corner of it to create a little more storage room. Itâll also make grabbing for the soap more convenient if you hand-scrub you plates and utensils:
If you prefer to use a sponge when washing your dishes, then you could adhesively attach a sponge and rag holder to the inside of the sink:
You could also get an adhesive holder that holds a little more than a sponge and a rag:
And there are still more options to choose from!
The Countertop(s)
Use Space Saving Storage Products
When it comes to organization, thereâs basically no-end to the kind you can find for countertops. Iâm going to save you the earful and just tell you to look up âcountertop kitchen organizerâ on Amazon and let you scroll to your heartâs content. Use these when youâre running out of built-in kitchen storage space, or if you want to make your most used items even more accessible.
Group Your Items
Categorizing your supplies wonât just help you when it comes to cabinet storage. Putting things into groups that are similar to one another can help your day move faster. You can establish your coffee corner, prep station, fresh fruit/snack hub, etc. Doing this will save you time when putting stuff away or when youâre looking for food supplies.
