In my first ever Ask Rach blog entry, I’ll be tackling my dear friend R’s tiny kitchen, because whenever we talk, he wails: “I want to renovate my kitchen!!”
I can totally relate with R, because we share the same condo developer, and yes, the kitchens are small. R lives in a studio unit, and though it is beautifully decorated and I totally love his style, he always complains about his tiny kitchen, which is just a sliver of a countertop less than a meter wide!
Now when R renovated his home, he added on dark-blue built-in cabinets and shelving to this tiny kitchen. This renovation increased countertop space and storage tenfold, but he still bemoans the clutter on his countertop, which he desperately wants to hide (see photo).
But lack of countertop space notwithstanding, I am still amazed at what he could do in his sliver of a kitchen: cook kaldereta, toss pasta salad, and even whip up gin-and-tonics for a small party! Anyway, I have two suggestions:
1. Hide the countertop clutter in an additional built-in cabinet.
The less overwhelming option is to have your contractor add on an extra, tiny cabinet in that area to hide the countertop clutter there. You can either have cabinet doors built flush with your bottom cabinet doors (see below), but I’d rather you have a bit of countertop peeking out so it doesn’t look too bulky.
Another option for this solution is to swap the existing hanging cabinets with new cabinets that are roomier to fit all of your kitchen clutter in and leave that countertop area free (see below). If you’re neat enough, hehe, you can go vintage apothecary style and use glass doors for your cabinets.
2. Hide the whole kitchen.
If you want to go the full length of renovating (and could afford to live away from your condo for a month or so), then take the plunge and renovate the whole thing by “hiding” your entire kitchen in a cabinet for an ultra-clean look. Albero PH in Pampanga did this incredible kitchen that practically disappears from sight by sliding the cabinet doors shut (see photos).
This is of course, the most expensive option, but it’s the only way you can “close the kitchen” for the night and forget about it!
3. Additional: Sleek but tiny kitchen sink
R also mentioned that he hated his kitchen sink that came with the unit (mine is rusting slightly at the moment). So, whether you’re doing the minor or the major renovation, I’d say, change the kitchen sink, too! (Itodo na, everything na, including the kitchen sink! LOL)
Homestore has a lot of tiny kitchen sink basin options that are less than 10,000 pesos. Try this sleek black number, which is only about 50cm wide. Now if you have a tiny kitchen like ours, single-basin is better, of course. A double basin will just eat up your entire countertop!
For more information about Albero, click here, and for Homestore bathroom and kitchen fixtures, visit them here. Main image by Viktor Forgacs for Unsplash. Other photos are my own.
Rachelle Medina 