If you’ve got a big kitchen you should have plenty of units (both base and wall-mounted) left over for storage space, but smaller kitchens require you to be more cunning with your storage solutions. Tricks include the obvious ones like fixing racks to the backs of your cupboard doors, but it’s worth looking at companies that have come up with really clever ideas.
Blum does an ingeniously space-efficient corner drawer, called Space Corner, while Ikea has tall, slim larder units that can hold a family’s dry goods. If you’re really lacking space, break the rules – floor-to-ceiling cupboards usually make a room feel smaller, but light-coloured units and uncluttered work surfaces make a small kitchen look all the bigger.
Different cabinet widths are available, but mix and match them with caution. It generally looks better to stick to one width, with a differently sized unit at the end to fill the gap. The same with high-line (i.e. without a drawer at the top) and drawer-line units – mixing them up can look untidy.
Use all drawer-line or all high-line units with a specific drawer unit. Double-width units are very contemporary. Look out for flip-up doors that come with double-width wall cabinets.
Handles provide the finishing touches. The latest looks tend to be long and tubular, or completely concealed so nothing at all is visible from the outside (the doors open using a push mechanism).
Drawers that fully extend are great, as you can see every last thing lurking in the back of them. Maximise drawer storage with some hidden in the kickplate plinth – Poggenpohl offers this smart storage solution.
Interior fittings transform cupboards and drawers. There are pull-out storage solutions to stop things getting lost at the back. Drawers are becoming deeper and longer, with subdivided inserts to take packets, jars, knives and tin foil, and often feature a smaller drawer inside. Blum has devised a U-shaped drawer to utilise the space lost around the sink. Pan drawer with anti-slip rubber base, Smallbone of Devizes (left).
Soft and self-closing mechanisms make drawers glide smoothly and effortlessly shut, meaning less wear and tear in the long run.
Worktop heights can be designed to be perfectly comfortable for your height, but going for something too extreme may affect resale. According to Miele, if you are 125cm tall, the ideal worktop height is 65cm, whereas if you are 200cm tall, you’d be most comfortable with a 120cm height. The rest of us, starting at the 65cm worktop height, should add around 3cm to the worktop for every 5cm of height over 125cm, rounding up or down to a standard height as necessary.
Tall units are practical - remember to include storage for brooms and mops. Tall and narrow pull-out pantry units with access from both sides are excellent for dry and canned food storage.
Bi-fold or sliding doors are useful in narrow rooms, as you don’t need as much space to open them. Roller shutters also save space and are ideal for narrow units on top of the worktop.
Find a trusted kitchen fitter in your area using MyBuilder.
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