Introduction: Small Kitchen Makeover

About: I love crafting and creating ... especially when it's simple, affordable, and useful.

I love my charming little apartment. But honestly, the tight spaces and lack of storage can really get on my nerves sometimes (and I'm on a girl on a budget without a lot of possessions).
My kitchen is so small a friend once coined it a "kitchen closet" (apparently she has a closet about that size).
Not wanting to dread my time in the kitchen cooking and cleaning, I decided to make the most out of the space and get organized (without breaking the bank, of course!).

Step 1: If You Don't Have Counter Space, Create It!

The weird empty space next to my kitchen and adjacent to the fridge needed to occupied. And I needed some real counter space to chop my veggies and dry my hand-washed plates.
Not wanting to spend much/any money, I created my own counter and storage space by stacking two black ikea lack side tables (I got 4 for free on Craig's List).
I keep one tabletop clear so I can move my cutting boards, foods, and drying racks around as needed.
Big and bulky cooking appliances--like my food processor, crockpots, and toaster--are stored on the lower shelves.

Step 2: Maximize Flat Surfaces by Creating Meta-storage

All of the shelving units and flat surfaces built in to the kitchen had to be used strategically and wisely.
All my knives, stirring spoons, and other small kitchen tools went into bins before being placed on the shelves.
Silverware was placed in cups for a more vertical storing scheme. See how much more silverware you can store in a space that would have been wasted with a flat utensil organizer.
Anything else that could be placed in bins or containers were!

Step 3: Use the Wall If Need Be

Those stick-on hooks from 3M (available at drugstores) sure can in handy for all those pots and pans that didn't fit in my cabinets. (My apartment was built when EVERYTHING was smaller.)

Step 4: Use Stackable Storage Containers for Recycling

I wasn't about to stop recycling because there was no room under the sink. These little buckets stack on top of one another, if I were to run out of space, and they fit nicely on that strange little "foot-sill" near the window.

Step 5: If Another Small Shelving Unit Can Fit, Put It In!

There's no such thing as too many shelving units in my opinion.
I found this white little number abandoned on the street and decided it was perfect for Snapware. It fit nicely between my makeshift "counters."

Small Spaces Contest

Participated in the
Small Spaces Contest