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Here's how to balance functionality and personality in a small kitchen
Designing a small kitchen can feel like a series of compromises, but the right ideas can make even the most compact space feel practical, stylish and full of personality. From clever storage to layout tricks that improve flow, small kitchen design is all about making every inch work harder.
The most successful schemes rarely rely on one big fix. Instead, they combine smart decisions: colours that visually open up the room, reflective surfaces that bounce light around, and design details that guide the eye so the space feels calmer, brighter and more considered.
'A layout designed to your needs and lifestyle will make your space work harder. Clever storage solutions and thoughtful design will maximise the space efficiency,' says Al Bruce, founder of Olive & Barr. 'To start, ask yourself what items you really need and use on a daily basis. Having an organised kitchen brings a sense of calm and is especially important in a compact kitchen.'
We’ve asked leading kitchen designers and retailers for their best small kitchen ideas, from space-saving storage to simple updates that make a room feel bigger instantly.
If you want to use up wall space in your kitchen, wraparound shelving is a neat way to do it. The height of the shelf helps draw the eye upwards, creating the illusion of higher ceilings and a more open space.
Pictured: Hubert Zandberg Interiors Ltd, Main
The all-over yellow paint is a clever design trick here. Creating lots of breaks with different bands or blocks of colour can interrupt the line of vision, making a room seem smaller.
Take down those boring pots and pans from your shelves and store them out of sight. With a few pictures, you can turn your cooking space into beautifully styled gallery. This is an easy way to bring colour – and plenty of creativity – into a small kitchen.
Make the most of your kitchen’s natural features by adding tiles to your alcove. At Topps Tiles, they’ve gone for a chequerboard look with glossy pink tiles cut to fit the shape. This will instantly add visual interest to your kitchen and provide a colourful visual focus as soon as people enter the room.
Pictured: Matrix® Quartz Pink Gloss Tile and Red Gloss Tile, Topps Tiles
Every kitchen needs a hero piece – a statement item that just stands out above the rest. Why not let it be your cabinet? We love the way this bold shelving unit sticks out against the kitchen's neutral backdrop. It also allows the other yellow accents in the rest of the space to shine.
Pictured: The Kit in Mustard, Mustard Made
The colour brown has been having something of a moment in the interiors world. Slightly retro, gently warming, totally luxe – it’s a great way to elevate your kitchen set-up. The key is using an even balance of darker and lighter tones across the room.
Pictured: Noho Glass Funnel Swan Neck Wall Light & Noho Glass Ribbed Dome Pendant Light, Industville
Ever get the feeling you have too many mugs? Now is the time to turn that obsession into an aesthetic choice. Put those beautiful vessels on full display and embrace the ‘cluttercore’ look. Minimalism who?
Pictured: Kensington Cerulean Ettie handpiped tiles in Pluck Kitchen, Malborough Tiles
In a small space, you can afford to be bold with colour. There are few shades that can match the energy of a bright green, and the cream-coloured walls and antiqued splashback temper its vibrancy. The sweet arrangement of accessories makes a case for mixing decorative touches among the kitchenware.
The one-wall kitchen is truly an exercise in ingenuity, especially in a small kitchen. Often the only viable solution in a studio apartment or open-plan kitchen and living room, this diminutive layout is most successful with lots of internal storage solutions like a Le Mans corner unit or pull-out pantry.
Pictured: Marlborough Terracotta Tile at Ca'Pietra
Sometimes all you need are two colours to really make a kitchen sing. This green and pink combo from The London Kitchen Company work beautifully together. For a similar look, consider painting the walls and ceilings in one colour and the cabinets and storage in the other.
Pictured: The London Kitchen Company
If you're a fan of a feature wall or feature colour, but tentative about using too much eye-catching colour in a small space, go for a feature appliance instead. This will afford you a pop of colour without feeling overpowering.
Pictured: Limehouse Kitchen at Neptune
Galley kitchens do well with a run of wall cabinets, but all that bulkiness can overpower a small space. Glass fronts feel much lighter, diffusing the intensity of colour overhead and revealing an artful mix of kitchenware inside. The mismatch of uppers and lowers feels relaxed and a little less formal than the usual coordinating sets.
Improve the flow of a small kitchen by installing clever sliding doors on castors. 'Sliding doors are a great space-saving design feature, and offer a clever way to contain cooking smells as well as creating a broken-plan kitchen layout,' says Al.
Pictured: Bespoke kitchen by Olive & Barr
Never leave corners unaccounted for. An integrated bench and modest bistro table can create an informal dining nook that can be used for leisurely breakfasts as it can for home working. The wall lamps help to delineate it as its own little pocket, and some simple upholstery and cushions add some much-needed comfort.
Pictured: Suffolk Kitchen at Neptune, designed by Nigel Hunt, Head of Design at Studio Huntreay
This vintage kitchen renovation is a lesson in decorating to scale, with irresistibly tiny pendants, wall art, and dollhouse accessories. Unfussy Shaker cabinets are softened with a frothy cafe curtain, and the warm glow of a table lamp is sympathetic to dark and poky corners.
See the rest of this vintage kitchen renovation
Small spaces shouldn't necessarily mean paring back your design personality. Fewer pieces and minimal decoration will create a more open environment, but kitchens are often so functional that they require a bit of character to soften them. If you are really stretched for space, adding colour to your surfaces is the best way to achieve this.
Pictured: Bespoke kitchen by Olive & Barr
Leave it to an antiques dealer to master the mix of old and new. The neat uniformity of the fitted cupboards (these are by Pluck), is offset with an old kitchen island and a collection of well-worn things. The ruddy chalk wash on the walls adds further texture and warmth, and the pendant light is like a fabulous disco ball in the middle of it all.
Pictured: Bespoke kitchen at Pluck
Don't disregard your dream kitchen features just because space is tight, just scale everything down. This diminutive bar area takes up the tiniest footprint, but it could be made even smaller with a freestanding trolley that could be rolled in and out of a kitchen on a whim. See the rest of this vibrant Victorian terrace here.
Pictured: Kitchen designed by Oakley Moore
Dark and cramped corners are sometimes unavoidable, so layering lighting is key. 'Add task lighting through strategically placed wall lights and pendants over the most used areas such as the island and food preparation stations,' says Al.
Pictured: Original BTC Cobb Rise And Fall Pendant at John Lewis
'Open shelving encourages a tidy space because items are on show,' says Tom Howley, design director of the eponymous kitchen company. 'It’s a great opportunity to display treasured pottery or copperware instead of hiding them away behind closed doors.
'Arrange glass jars containing dried goods or exotic spices in size order on an open shelf for a practically stylish pinch of colour. Open shelving helps light flow through and can make a kitchen look bigger. It’s a great kitchen storage alternative if space is at a premium as shelves make smaller spaces feel less cramped.'
Pictured: Laura Jackson Café Flore paint at COAT
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