Those dream kitchens you see on home improvement shows are always eye-catching and spacious.  Somehow these large kitchens always seem to have the space for everything from a toaster to a spice jar to be neatly tucked away but not cramped inside of a cabinet.  If your own small kitchen doesn’t offer the same space, you aren’t alone.  Here are some tips for maximizing the space in your kitchen for when you are moving into your new home or just reorganizing.

Skip the Hardware

In a small kitchen, every inch counts.  Having cabinets without any knobs or pulls can help maximize the space and allow anyone in the room to move around easily.  There are cabinets with a built in edge to make opening them easy while push to open door hardware makes it easy to open the cabinet. 

Utilize Corners

Take advantage of any space you have at corners by adding some open shelving.  Rather than a spot for decorations that gather dust, place items that you reach for everyday on the shelves. Install some pull out shelves into a corner cabinet to help you not only store items, but also be able to reach them.

Make a spice drawer

Rather than giving up a cabinet to collect spices in, switch to a drawer in a small kitchen.  Inserts like this help to keep the bottles from rolling everywhere, make it easier to see everything,  and open up valuable storage space in a cupboard for larger items. Even using some bins like the ones below would work in a drawer.

Go Vertical

Make the most of the space inside of cabinets by adding some shelves like these that can add more places to stack dishes cups.   You can also consider making the addition more permanent by installing some slide out drawers.

Tile

When you think of tile in the kitchen, your mind probably goes right to a backsplash.  You can make a small kitchen feel taller by using tile from floor to ceiling on the walls of your kitchen.

Cabinets

To maximize the storage space in a small kitchen, consider taking the cabinets to the ceiling or adding another row on top of what you’ve already got.  While these cabinets aren’t practical for everyday items that you reach for, they can store seasonal things and small appliances that you need on occasion.

Add shelves

While you may not want to replace your upper cabinets for open shelving, look around your space for other areas that some shelves may add more storage.  Perhaps at the end of a cabinet or above an island would be spots to add shelving.

Use the walls

To keep your countertops from feeling cluttered, think about adding a magnetic knife bar to the wall to keep the knives out of the way but still easily accessible.  A row of hooks on a wall is perfect for hanging dish towels, coffee cups, or your go to pans.