Spotlight On: Colour Inspiration and Storage Tips to Transform a Small Kitchen

We’d all love a little more wiggle room in our kitchen or kitchenette, whether it’s extra counter space for cooking and cleaning or floor space for entertaining company. So, in this article, we’re putting the spotlight on small kitchens.

To help you make the most of the area you already have, we’ve put together three of our favourite small kitchen ideas. From clever colour choices to smart storage solutions, discover how minor tweaks to your small kitchen design can make a big difference.

Small Kitchen Colour Ideas

If you want to open up your small kitchen and make it feel more spacious, a new splash of paint could be the answer. Here are some of the most popular colour choices for small kitchens:

Dark shades – small rooms can be painted light or dark depending on how much natural light they have. If your kitchen has lots of natural light, consider opting for dark paint shades like Bowler Hat and Rich Black to create the illusion of more space.
Pastel shades – pastel colours such as Willow Tree and Sorbet can bring interest to your kitchen space and help it feel bigger.
Blue shades – blues are associated with nature and can help evoke a sense of freedom and enlarge a small space. Consider shades such as First Dawn and Bright Skies for your kitchen.
Yellow shades – create a relaxing ambience and make your kitchen feel lighter and brighter with yellow shades such as Lemon Tropics and Pale Citrus.

Create a seamless look by painting the walls, ceilings and skirting boards the same colour. Discover our small spaces article for tips on how to paint a small kitchen to make it look bigger.

Can’t decide on a shade to enhance your small kitchen design? Download the Dulux Visualizer app and choose your colour with confidence. Our handy app is easy to use – simply upload a picture of your kitchen, select a couple of colours and watch them transform your space

Small Kitchen Ideas: Make Space with Colour

It’s true that paint colours have special powers, and creating the illusion of a larger space is one of them! Refresh your kitchen cabinets with pale tones to make the room feel light and airy.

Here we’ve chosen Willow Tree, a soft green that will open up any small kitchen design. Replacing your cabinet door handles is another clever idea. Go with a simple, toned-down colour palette. This will give the space a sleek, seamless look.

Dulux Quick Dry Satinwood is the ideal finish for kitchens. It’s water-based, meaning it dries dry and won’t smell during the painting process.

Small Kitchen Ideas: Get Smart with Storage

Looking for storage ideas for small kitchens? The key to making a small kitchen design look more spacious is smart storage. Try to keep everyday clutter tucked away behind cupboard doors. There are plenty of space-saving solutions for tidy cupboards, whether it’s easy-to-grab organisers or drawer dividers.

Open shelving is an excellent option as it can help make your kitchen feel more spacious. However, while open shelving provides flexibility in a small kitchen or kitchenette, it can also make clutter visible. So, the trick is to ensure anything on display adds to the overall style. We’ve painted the open shelving you see here in Overtly Olive, just like the walls, to help it subtly blend into the background.

Small Kitchen Ideas: Use Texture to Your Advantage

Other compact kitchen ideas include adding texture and pops of colour to the space. Colour can be a clever distraction technique. Bright kitchenware and wooden accents create focal points and draw focus away from the size of the room. Potted plants are great for breathing life into a busy kitchen without it feeling too cluttered.

Small Kitchen Ideas: The Minimalist Look

A small minimalist kitchen look is a great way to make your kitchen look and feel noticeably bigger. To achieve this, keep your décor neutral and fuss-free, and start by decluttering your kitchen. Stay away from intricate decorative details, keep all surfaces clear and ensure that every item in the room has its own storage space. Purge any items you don’t use or no longer need to make the kitchen seem roomier.

For the walls, stick to light pastel colours or choose neutral shades such as Cliff Walk or Ultra White to enhance the minimalist look.

Small Kitchen Ideas: Using the Right Lighting

Choosing the right lighting is very important when it comes to making a small kitchen feel bigger. If you have a high ceiling, consider using a statement lighting piece to draw the eye upwards. If you have a low ceiling, opt for integrated lighting to avoid creating a cluttered, claustrophobic feeling. Think about adding in some light-reflecting accessories that make the room feel brighter.

Did you find our narrow kitchen ideas handy? Find even more inspiration with four kitchen ideas that wow or long-lasting kitchen colour ideas. You can also find more space-saving ideas for small kitchens with our open-plan kitchen and living room article.