How To a Design Small Kitchen for Maximum Function

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Ай бұрын

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I'll walk you through my thought process as I design a small kitchen for a client. I'll explore different options and ideas to make this kitchen very functional, even though we have a small space.
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@sarahfigoten342 Ай бұрын

Hey all! This is my (future) kitchen! Very surreal to see it posted here. Just for a little context the space is a 740 sq ft ADU being built on the back half of a property. The long wall faces a back fence. The window seems to be quite polarizing but I think it will let in light, a bit of scenery and I think gives a cool architectural detail to a small space. I'm likely going to end up with a version of the design he shows around the 7 minute mark. Thank you, Mark! I could not be more grateful for your help on the project.

@jeannig7565 Ай бұрын

WooHoo! That was my favorite version. It just seems so logical and more open to me. I hope you enjoy whatever you end up with.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Thank you!

@trinaroe5132 Ай бұрын

Another tip for organizing a small kitchen is to take utensils commonly stored in drawers that are not used very often, but are needed for the few times a year you use them and put them in a bin or basket on a high shelf to free up the most used real estate in the kitchen. Some items (such as measuring cups and spoons) can also be removed from drawers and hung with command strips or a pegboard mounted to the inside of a cabinet door.

@bobbert1945 Ай бұрын

I love my counter depth refrigerator, which I think helps a lot with visual flow as well as ease moving around the kitchen. My dad, when he was building his house, added extra depth into a portion of the kitchen wall, so his standard refrigerator could back up into it, and look counter depth. The room he stole space from was modified so it looked normal. His solution was better than mine, in that regular refrigerators are a lot less expensive than counter depth, at least that I've seen, but altering the wall is not always an option. I wish I'd followed you on youtube when I did my kitchen remodel 9 years ago. This was another great video.

@pollyg4160 Ай бұрын

My kitchen space is even smaller. I love to bake, have no dishwasher, no pantry, etc. Planning a redo is so difficult. I need someone like you.

@teri-joscott8279 Ай бұрын

Ahh... yet another example of why Mark Tobin is one of the Masters of the Universe in kitchen design! Thoughtful options, lots of ideas generated. Thanks so much for doing what you do!

@pecanthecat Ай бұрын

I totally agree! 😊

@edwardcasper5231 Ай бұрын

My 50 year old kitchen is a 72 sq. ft. galley style kitchen, but I must say the builder, Del Webb, designed it rather well. They must have consulted Mark Tobin! LOL!! I live in a retirement community, Sun City, AZ, and many people my age make reservations, not food, for their main meals. I cook a fair amount, and the kitchen has functioned quite well for the 11+ years I've lived here. Railroad dining car galleys were miniscule, yet the chefs in those kitchens cooked hundreds of meals from scratch daily, so size doesn't always mean much in terms of the number of meals that can be prepared. My kitchen has all lower drawers (except under the sink) and there's enough landing space in all of the important places. One thing your last rendering didn't do was take the door swing next to the stove into account - a detail that's been discussed on the live stream.

@kristinnelson-patel442 Ай бұрын

Great video- I’d love to see more of these problem solving workshops on actual designs.

@darlene19668 Ай бұрын

🤣🤣🤣🤣keeping it relevant is just your gift, Thanks for making something as mundane as kitchen info and reno so entertaining… 👌🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻thumbs up all day everyday Mr Mark Great blessings to the Tobin crew 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻& Gammy too🌺🌸❤️

@BohemianGarnet Ай бұрын

I lived in a VERY high end house built in the 1950's. There were windows like that over the sink and under the cabinets. Unless you enjoy spending your life bending over and trying to see outside DON'T put in windows like that! They just take away all of your privacy yet give you no view.

@Mikey__R Ай бұрын

And using a window as a backsplash behind the hob, you'd spend your life keeping it clean. This is a weird fashion I don't understand.

@vondapommills2195 Ай бұрын

Great transformation. Yes we Americans love our big appliances but as you have shown us in this kitchen, bigger may not be better. Great idea about downing sizing the fridge and relocating it as well for more landing space.😊

@laundrygoddess4 Ай бұрын

I can't imagine a kitchen that small but you've packed a kitchen with a lot of storage. Good job!

@pattysayssew3609 Ай бұрын

This is my kitchen situation...small small small! I love that Mark focuses on small kitchens cuz no one really cares like he does about how to make them functional.

@laundrygoddess4 Ай бұрын

@@pattysayssew3609 it's a great thing. My kitchen is far from big so it's great to get useful ideas for it

@pecanthecat Ай бұрын

yes!! I have a small kitchen too that is being redone and this video is super helpful. I'm installing a 24 inch wide x 80 inch tall counter depth fridge to open up the space and allow for more counter space. let's see how it turns out.

@winstonelston5743 Ай бұрын

My galley is 129 inches long, 93 inches wide with a barely appliance-wide door on one end and an asymetrically-placed 26-inch-wide door on the other. That's less than 84 square feet.

@laundrygoddess4 Ай бұрын

@@winstonelston5743 I have 100 sq feet so I get the struggle

@halfheartdead7149 Ай бұрын

really great video, loved hearing your thought process!

@seetharameshbabu 15 күн бұрын

We are designing a small kitchen for our get away home in a suburb. The dead corner space is the issue. I like the ideas presented in this video. Thank you so much!

@trinaroe5132 Ай бұрын

I LOVE my shallow tall pantry! It’s my favorite cabinet in my kitchen. Not only have I adjusted the heights of the shelves in it, I’ve ADDED shelves to it, nearly doubling its capacity! Besides being shallow like a wall cabinet, instead of being 36” wide it’s made of two 18” wide cabinets and though I didn’t choose it (it was here when I bought the home) I’m so very glad they went this route. My wider wall cabinets are a pain to adjust the shelves and I have to adjust for the tallest item stored in the entire width. The 18” wide units seemed to be the perfect size, no matter what I tried to store there. It came with 3 shelves in the lower portion and 1 in the upper on both sides, so 8 shelves total. Instead of buying wire shelf racks I bought plywood cut to size and added 7 more shelves. The taller portion has metal shelf standards instead of peg holes every inch or so. This means I can adjust shelves to within the nearest 1/4” or so that I need for the items stored, leaving lots of space to add more shelves by just getting more clips and plywood.

@julieschrag2805 Ай бұрын

I'd love a photo of your pantry!

@trinaroe5132 Ай бұрын

I don’t know how to add photos here. But the shelves are adjusted so there’s about 1/2” to 1” space above the things stored there before the next shelf. The two 18” units means each side is adjusted independently so the shelves don’t have to be at the same height on each side and no sagging shelves from the weight of heavy items.

@julieschrag2805 Ай бұрын

Ok, no worries! So, each of the two cabinets is 18 wide, correct? And I get the adjustability of the shelves! What is the overall depth of the 18 in cabinets? I am working on a wide but not deep pantry along one wall, to keep passing the island at a good measurement. And finally have you also changed the depth of some of your shelves? Hope that makes sense. Thank you!!

@trinaroe5132 Ай бұрын

The depth is just 12” so it’s easy to see and reach inside without pull outs. I did add some clear bins to lower shelves to hold things like small cans of tuna or lunch size containers of canned fruit or microwave popcorn. I take things that are packaged out of their outer boxes and put them in open top bins so I can just grab and go.

@TheDriftwoodlover Ай бұрын

Great points and transformation. I don’t understand why such a limited window since there’s room to make it taller. 🤔

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

That's just what they wanted. I agree that the window should be much larger.

@twothirdsanexplosive Ай бұрын

Is that short window a common thing? I always thought it was preferred to have nice big windows at the sink for natural lighting and something to look at while doing dishes. Honest question, it just seemed oddly short with all that space available

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

it is not a common request.

@lauraokelly2644 Ай бұрын

@@MTKDofficial I would hope not. If I were house hunting that window would be a huge negative for me. Why would anyone want a window that you have to crouch down to see out of it?

@barbaraeaton9266 Ай бұрын

Mark, These are great ideas. My biggest change would be removing a wall. If I did I could move the fridge like this. Then I'd move my sink under the window beside the dishwasher. I could even have an island without that wall. Dreams are one thing finding the money to do it is another. Thanks for a great video

@Beachweave2 Ай бұрын

I hope the home owner watches this. Great ideas to consider.

@mollysmith6055 Ай бұрын

My kitchen is from '59 that we added 8' to but because of mechanicals, a stairwell and two existing windows can't be changed to make it more functional. (it comes in around 200 sq feet total) I love to torture myself by watching kitchen videos and wish for magical changes to happen in my own kitchen, haha. Love this shorter format video instead of the lives, thank you!

@Subhasree_p Ай бұрын

Very nice explanation. Thank you. Have anybody tried a kitchen layout for elders(who is not in the wheelchair). Have anybody tried sitting and cooking layout with main necessities at a hand's reach. Assuming that the elder wants to sit, but not move frequently like any wheelchair user.

@MonicaMiller-fk8dn Ай бұрын

Great video. Designing our new kitchen now.

@billvojtech5686 Ай бұрын

I have not finished watching yet, but I have a suggestion about the corner/counter/fridge situation. Don't put the base cabinets next to the fridge against the wall. Move them out so a normal depth fridge can look like a counter depth fridge. The countertop will be deeper. You can put an appliance garage across the whole width of the counter and because the countertop is deeper, you'll still have a useful counter.

@Cathy-xi8cb Ай бұрын

One of my neighbors did that "move the counters out so the fridge doesn't stick out" thing. Her tiny kitchen feels ridiculously cramped. She is short and can't easily reach the back of the sink either. She clearly had one of the worst kitchen designers ever.

@billvojtech5686 Ай бұрын

@@Cathy-xi8cb That's why I suggested putting the appliance garage across the back. That would leave you with a normal amount of counter exposed. Also, if you are building a new house, you can recess the fridge into the wall and leave the cabinets against the wall if you don't want a wider counter.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

A better solution is to just pull the pantry and fridge panel. This is what we will end up doing. If all the bases are pulled it will create other issues. but good suggestion.

@robinq5511 Ай бұрын

In my small U shaped kitchen I have doorways on 3 walls so 2 corner cabinets with lazy susans were a must for storing appliances and pots & pans. I wish I had done the same on the upper cabinets! Blind corners are a waste of usable space when storage space is at a premium.

@kimcurnutt5104 Ай бұрын

I have a bungalow with a kitchen thats its own 120sq ft room. We used 24in counter depth fridge. Went vertical with cabinets. Used mirrors to help with light reflection.

@JackieofAllTrades Ай бұрын

Great video Mark!

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Thanks Jackie!!

@2chipped Ай бұрын

Lots of options getting better with each one. To me the pantry was the biggest blockade. If there was any way to move it ,even to another room it could help. An angled corner cabinet counterdepth upper, with an appliance garage would also work. A fantastic mental exercise!

@Coromi1 Ай бұрын

You also can use dead corner space for garbage bins.

@luzy Ай бұрын

I have 132 sq ft of tiny space!! Maybe a few opportunities: for now moving the layout around… and later (🤞🏼) to claim an additional 33 sq ft. You presented a few ideas that I didn’t think of:thanks! As I move forward- I’ll be reaching out to make sure it’s right!

@mariannerichard1321 Ай бұрын

Very inspiring ideas. I'm currently working on redesigning my galley kitchen, I need inspiration. ^__^ About cabinet to the ceiling, I did that in my main bathroom, both above the toilet and beside the sink unit. I really needed the extra storage. I'll probably do the same when I'll redo the laundry room.

@ruthgl2650 Ай бұрын

I woud put a small cupboard on either side of the kitchen and wrap the cupboards around the far corner and more storage plus counter space on either side of the stove

@ryansoo4000 Ай бұрын

I prefer your option at minute 7:00. When I think of a kitchen layout, I think of the order in which I'll be retrieving the food, preparing it and then cooking it., So it comes out of the pantry and fridge, gets washed at the sink, then cut up and cooked so it should be pantry, fridge, landing zone, sink, prep area, stove, and stove landing zone.

@Gringo7213 Ай бұрын

What about a galley style using essentially an island? Essentially shorten the wall to the left along the long wall so that it is a little longer than fridge depth, that leaves room for people to walk around it and have an island with no cabinets above. Also lets you leave the window and have no corner cabinet. Not sure if there would be enough storage, but I think that would add some. Another thing I have seen is to have cabinets above the long window, just make them white and have no hardware so that they disappear into the wall. That gives it a modern aesthetic while also adding more storage. Since htey do not mind hiding the hood (at least the images showed the hood inside cabinets) there would be no break in the cabinet.

@pman2916 Ай бұрын

That kitchen is way bigger than mine, even with a small fridge. 😅

@Sentient_Goose Ай бұрын

Oh man, love your accent, WOOF!

@RobinP556 Ай бұрын

Everyone always talks about maximizing space by going vertical, and normally I’d say that is a good idea, but as a paraplegic who is self sufficient and lives alone, anything above 4’ I can’t see into and anything above 5’ I can’t reach.

@CrisTina-tp2jg Ай бұрын

But I want a big fridge!

@pecanthecat Ай бұрын

@mark for the blind corner cabinet access, what should the cabinet size be? sounds like 11 3/4 inches is too small. also, what are your thoughts of having a drawer above a magic corner? i know it can be done with or without the drawer above it. thanks in advance!

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Hey!! 18" to 21" is a reasonable size for the opening. I'm on the fence with the drawer. It could be useful depending on what's being stored on the magic corner.

@valeriegould1769 Ай бұрын

Reducing the fridge's size may be fine if it's just for one person. But if it is for two or more, it may not work as well. I don't. use much canned food, I do use a lot of fresh food with prep done on the weekend. Smaller fridges always make it a bit more difficult especially since I try to limit my shopping to once every week or two.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Exactly. All these decisions have to make sense for the end user. In this case it is a single user.

@Coromi1 Ай бұрын

Those slimmer fridges are also available with more height then shown in the video.

@winstonelston5743 Ай бұрын

9:02 Standard depth fridge? I would flip the hinge on the fridge to the left side so there is better access to the fridge landing counter instead of having to navigate around the door.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Yeah didn't realize that until it was uploaded.

@ivancho5854 Ай бұрын

Are there any devices, apart from a ladder, which make accessing those really high cabinets any easier? Thanks.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

The only other option is a pulldown system. But they only come in a few sizes. Maybe hide-a-way step stools, but hey are installed in fixed locations.

@ivancho5854 Ай бұрын

@@MTKDofficial Ok, thank you. I just saw your older video on the pull down system which I was unaware of. 👍

@hungly9776 Ай бұрын

Hi Mark, can you point me to the link to schedule a 60 min consultation with you? Thank you!

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Yeah, the link is in the description of my videos. or go to www.mtkd.ca

@coni-ne5km Ай бұрын

I haven't had any luck finding smaller appliances. Where/how can they be found? My fridge widthwise is about 30" but it sticks out like a sore thumb. The same goes for the over the-stove microwave. The dishwasher is average size but I would prefer small and have more storage.

@Beachweave2 Ай бұрын

i bought a smaller, counter depth fridge at Lowes in US.

@dahut3614 Ай бұрын

Maybe watch the two part series from Yale Appliance on KZbin titled "Why You Should Almost NEVER Buy a Counter-Depth Refrigerator" before you decide.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Smaller appliances can be a little tricky to source out, but most furniture stores and even big box stores should have access to them.

@amigos4erin Ай бұрын

Where do the broom and mop go? It’s entirely possible that this house has a utility room that they go in, but since mine doesn’t, it’s on my mind. My current house (moving soon!) has no place for broom, dustpan, mop, and pail , so they are always in the way. I feel that it’s something that is often overlooked as I’ve had other houses that lacked a place to put them. Edit: if this was my house, I’d see if I could put a broom closet to the left of the pantry, unless there’s space for it already somewhere else. If that isn’t possible, then maybe to the right of the stove, but that closes the room off.

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Interesting question. Do people still keep a broom and mop in a kitchen?

@reallythere Ай бұрын

Why not put a counter depth fridge against the wall and the pantry on the right of it. I question that par cause Who wants to go across the fridge to get to the pantry?

@LauraBailey-oe6hk Ай бұрын

We have a double oven to install and are in a dilemma where to put can you help

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

certainly. reach out anytime. www.mtkd.ca

@susanhenley8240 Ай бұрын

Us empty-nesters could consider a smaller dishwasher.

@Cathy-xi8cb Ай бұрын

Anyone with a small kitchen needs to think about ...how they actually cook. Not how they wish they cooked, or should cook. Be honest with yourself. Your designer isn't your shrink or your priest. Second thing is to consider which appliances can do more than one job or are used 2x/year at most. Got rid of my stand mixer because of that. Bought an Instant Pot because of that. Finally, weed out the old utensils, pots, and baking pans. Own as few as possible. You can always buy more if you got rid of too much. But that won't happen, I promise you. And be realistic: if you really need a bigger kitchen, then you are gonna have to build it by adding an addition or carving space from another room.

@tabithadente7139 Ай бұрын

Why is there that extra wall space that's not used?

@MTKDofficial Ай бұрын

Less wall cabinets is a current and popular trend. As long as there is enough storage for your needs. In this case, there is and putting wall cabinet there, just for the sake of it would be a waste.

@tabithadente7139 Ай бұрын

Fair enough!! @@MTKDofficial