It's common to struggle to find enough storage space in your kitchen. Home sizes have become smaller for the average North American, and tiny homes have grown in popularity. As the cost of living increases, our storage space decreases. So, it's time to find creative solutions to kitchen storage problems. You can do this by adding some fun and fresh furniture pieces to your kitchen and dining spaces.
A kitchen hutch is a beautiful way to store and display your dishware stylishly. With cabinets for unused plates and bowls, you can create extra space in your kitchen cabinets. There are plenty of benefits to finding the perfect style of kitchen hutch for your home. You can also use pantries and portable islands to increase your kitchen storage space. Here are some ideas to get you started.
1. Install Hooks to Hang Your Mugs
Mugs take up quite a bit of space in your kitchen cupboards. You can create a modern display of your favorite coffee mugs and save shelf space at the same time by installing hooks on your kitchen wall. If you have a kitchen hutch, you can also invest in an under the shelf mug hook that will attach to the shelf to hang mugs below.
Kitchen hutch with mug display
2. Put Bulk Items on Display
You can use the shelving on a kitchen buffet or hutch to house artisan glass jars or canisters with your loose bulk goods. Cereals, nuts, spices, and grains that would typically take up shelf space in your cabinets can come out of their bags or boxes to save you room.
Wooden antique kitchen hutch
3. Hang Stemware
Kitchens that are frequently used for entertaining require a wide array of glassware for different drinks. But tumblers, stemware, shot glasses, and beer mugs can quickly overwhelm your cupboards and take up too much space.
To create a more organized look, consider purchasing a stemware rack for your open shelving where you can hang your wine glasses or martini glasses. This also stops them from accumulating dust inside the glass, eliminating the need for rewashing.
Hanging wine glass rack
4. Magnetic Knife Bar
Clear up some valuable counter space by eliminating your clunky knife block. With a magnetic knife bar attached to your wall, you can securely fasten your stainless steel knife blades in a way that puts the set on display and doesn't take up any usable surface space in the kitchen.
Magnetic knife bar
5. Make Use of Levels
Storing fruit at room temperature allows it to ripen faster and enhances the flavor. But fruit bowls take up significant amounts of counter space. For an overflowing fruit bowl, consider a 3-tier fruit basket that expands your storage upward instead of out. Baskets also ensure that air circulates around your fruit, eliminating moisture and preventing mold.
A tiered hanging basket mounted to a hook in your ceiling frees up your counter completely and gives your kitchen a charming country-style aesthetic.
Hanging fruit basket
6. Revamp Your Pantry
It's easy to let a pantry get cluttered and overstuffed, so try reorganizing, and you'll discover you have more storage space.
Purchase rustic wooden crates or plastic baskets for each shelf and store like-items together compactly. Reduce wasted space by throwing out anything that has expired or donate any non-perishables you've kept for more than six months.
Metal wire basket
7. Choose an Island with Shelving
If your kitchen doesn't have a built-in island, you can purchase a portable one and maximize your space. Adding a kitchen island not only increases counter space, but it also provides an opportunity to store some cookbooks or pots and pans on the shelves.
Wooden kitchen island
8. Use Your Dishes as Decor
Turn stacks of dishes hiding in the cupboards into elegant decor for your dining room by displaying them on a hutch. Put your best china on display using the open shelves. With the creative design, you can stand the plates vertically, layer them according to size and pattern, and make a beautiful depiction of your best table settings.
9. Incorporate a Wine Rack into Your Kitchen Hutch
Combining your wine rack and kitchen hutch is guaranteed to save you space and make your hutch look classy. Invest in a traditional hutch with three utility drawers and two cupboards, with a nine bottle compartment for your wine in the middle.
Wine rack in kitchen hutch
10. Store Your Linens in the Buffet Hutch
Clear up some kitchen cabinet space by moving your dish towels and tablecloths to the dining room. The lower cabinets on a buffet and hutch are the perfect place to keep these linens conveniently close to the kitchen without sacrificing your cupboard space.
11. Use Wicker Baskets
If you're stuck for space, you can create some additional drawers by adding attractive wicker baskets to any open shelving in your kitchen or dining room hutch. The beautiful, rustic finish of the baskets appears elegant while allowing you to stock it full of miscellaneous items you don't have space for anywhere else. The baskets are also easy to pull down to counter level and search through whenever you need access to their content.
Wicker baskets
12. Build Your Garbage Can into Your Island
For people who have a kitchen island and want to maximize storage space while decluttering the kitchen, this is a great solution. A garbage bin can look bulky and get in the way when it sits next to your kitchen island or in the corner of the room.
Consider selecting a garbage bin that fits into one of the cabinets in your kitchen island so it can be stored out of sight. If you're customizing your island, you can create a pull out drawer for your garbage bin to make it sleek yet accessible.
13. Add Freestanding Kitchen Cabinets
If you have free wall space in your kitchen, consider adding freestanding kitchen cabinets or a pantry to your design. Many models don't have to be installed permanently as part of your kitchen, so you can simply set them in place. However, if you have pets or small children, anchor the unit to the wall to prevent accidents.
Wooden pantry cabinet
14. Choose the Right Dish Rack
Nothing clutters a kitchen sink more than dishes that are drying in the same space where you wash the dirty ones. Invest in a high-quality dish rack that either rests in the second sink basin or works with your counter space so that clean dishes can look organized while they dry.
Improving Kitchen Storage
Creating more storage space in your kitchen can be challenging, especially if you're limited on space. But with a few storage hacks and an organized filing system for your pantry, you can create a generous kitchen with improved flow.
Adding additional units to the home can increase storage, like putting a buffet or hutch in your dining room to display dishware or layout food for serving before a meal. Start small with baskets and bins to organize your cupboards, and add some hooks for mugs or pans to make the most of your vertical space.
