The kitchen is one of the most beloved places of all family members. This space in the house is associated with family comfort, hearth, relatives. A traditional cup of fragrant morning coffee, a Sunday family dinner, noisy gatherings with friends are the most real and warm moments in life that take place just in the kitchen. That is why it is very important to make this part of the house as comfortable, convenient and cozy as possible.
The harsh realities of the Soviet layout of apartments are often put in a tight framework, especially for the area of non-residential rooms. Often, in most old high-rise buildings, the kitchen quadrature hardly exceeds 6 m². Unfortunately, this layout is one of the most common. This article contains a number of recommendations for creating a comfortable, stylish and functional design of a small corner kitchen.
Ergonomics
Organization of space taking into account the basics of ergonomics will help to make the kitchen as functional as possible. Properly combined headset modules, correctly derived communications, technology, placed wisely - all this will significantly reduce the time for home chores.
Owners of small areas are mainly concerned with the question of how to place a small corner kitchen, without neglecting its functionality. Functional can be considered such a kitchen, each module of which will be maximally used for its intended purpose. In practice, the point is not to spend a lot of time and effort in the process of cooking, washing dishes, and cleaning. All the most popular and frequently used products and utensils should be as accessible as possible.
The basis of ergonomics is the so-called working triangle. In fact, this is the zone of greatest activity in the process of working in the kitchen. The working triangle is formed by three points: sink, stove, refrigerator.
Corner kitchens in small rooms are set so that the vertices of the working triangle are located as close to each other as possible. The peculiarity is the presence of the upper and lower corner cabinet, these modules are usually very spacious. The installation of special mechanisms will maximize the use of this space. In order to make the interior of a small corner kitchen as functional as possible, it is better to develop headsets for individual orders. Accurate measurements and calculation of details will allow more efficient use of the area of the room.
The correct layout
Corner small kitchens (6 meters) look very similar because of the identity of the output of communications (water and gas). As a rule, communications under water are located in the very corner of the room. As a result, a section for washing and a bin is installed in the corner. Gas is discharged in the center of the transverse wall, which determines the installation of the stove and hob in this place. Unfortunately, the manipulation of communications is complicated and sometimes simply prohibited, so when designing a kitchen you have to consider these points.
At the stage of facing work, it is important to make a competent layout for an electrician (sockets and wires for fixtures). Outlets for the refrigerator and oven are best done at the base level of the future headset (10 cm from the floor). Several outlets will be needed above the work surface for small kitchen appliances, a height of about 110 cm from the floor. Above the upper cabinets of the headset, it is necessary to make sockets for hoods and top lights, if it is planned to be installed. To illuminate the working surface, it would be advisable to mount the lamp under the upper cabinets, a wire outlet is needed for them. The photo below shows the standard heights for kitchen furniture.
Gas kitchen
A more complex object is a small corner kitchen with a column. But even this device can be advantageously beaten. If the column interferes with any design decision, but for technical reasons it cannot be moved to another room, the unit can simply be shifted. Feature - moving the column within a meter and a half from the place on the plan does not carry any complications. If a greater distance is required, such manipulations will be considered the laying of new gas pipelines. This operation requires legalization.
The geyser can also be built into the section, but such a solution must be agreed with the gas services. A prerequisite will be the absence of the upper and lower parts of the cabinet frame, and the distance from the device to the side parts of the cabinet should be at least 15 cm. Compliance with these conditions will ensure proper ventilation and traction. It is worth remembering that the presence of a gas column in a small room requires a well-functioning ventilation system and regular intake of fresh air. This will ensure the normal operation of the device and the safety of others.
Color palette
Choosing a color for a small corner kitchen is one of the key points. Forming the interior of small rooms, designers recommend giving preference to light colors. When playing with details, you should avoid very bright or colorful colors. Their presence in a small space can cause irritation. Small corner kitchens of white color will harmoniously look in a poorly lit room. If the room has a lot of natural light, you can play on the contrast of the upper and lower modules. In this case, it is better to avoid too saturated dark shades. A combination of light hanging sections with lower cabinets in turquoise, burgundy, metallic, coffee with milk will be successful.
When choosing a color scheme for a small kitchen set, it is better to stop at two tones, no more. Staying in a bright pastel kitchen, do not worry about the simplicity of the ensemble. There are a number of tricks that will help add interesting accents to the interior. White facades can be diluted with rich details, for example, to install a dark textured countertop or to design a kitchen apron with interesting extraordinary tiles.
Material selection: glossy kitchens
The question of choosing the material of the facades for the future kitchen set is associated with several factors. The first and main, as a rule, concerns design. In addition, the choice of material directly affects the practicality and durability of furniture. Today there are a large number of modern materials reliable in operation.
One of these is MDF board. This is a fairly durable material that is easy to work with. MDF lends itself to milling, does not crumble, does not crack, and radius facades can be made from it. The strength of MDF allows you to perform fine detail on the surface of the future facade. The master can make a curly frame or decorative milling on the stove, the final result will not be any different from expensive solid facades. This feature will be valuable for those who want to install an inexpensive small corner kitchen of economy class in a classic style. The final coating of such plates can be different: plastic, PVC film, veneer, enamel.
When choosing material for a small corner kitchen, designers advise staying on glossy facades. The mirror surface will visually expand the space and change its perception. A great option for a glossy finish is enamelled MDF. The first advantage is a rich color palette. The surface is smooth and mirrored. Painted MDF can be bent, creating radius facades. The curved doors of the upper and lower modules will make the design of even a small kitchen original and ultramodern. When choosing a headset covered with enamel, it is better to give preference to light colors - this solution is considered more practical.
Solid wood kitchen
Nothing forms a feeling of coziness and warmth like the presence of parts made of natural wood in the house. Wooden furniture creates a special mood. It has a unique appearance, adopted to the touch, durable.
The design feature of small corner kitchens is that the headset should be minimally loaded with unnecessary details and impractical solutions. At the same time, a really worthy ensemble from an array requires attention to characteristic details. If the size of the room does not allow you to install elements that are traditional for kitchens in a classic style (open sections with columns and balustrades, a wide dome hood, a cupboard for dishes, etc.), do not refuse wooden furniture. The necessary atmosphere can create facades with stained-glass windows and gratings, fittings, well-chosen tiles, appliances, plumbing.
A good solution for lovers of natural wood - veneer facades. It is a more modern style, while the veneer is not inferior to wood in its aesthetic qualities. For small kitchens, it is better to choose light varieties of wood: bleached oak, ash.
Functional Details
A small corner kitchen should be as functional as possible. Each section, shelf, drawer must be used for its intended purpose. Fortunately, today there are many solutions for the effective organization of the interior space of kitchen modules. Leading domestic and foreign manufacturers of accessories and household goods offer various special mechanisms and organizers for any type of cabinets and drawers.
The corner section of the kitchen set is usually very large and roomy. It is customary to install a trash can in it, communications under water are displayed here, a filter for cleaning water is mounted. It would seem that space is used to the maximum. But for such modules, special mechanisms have been developed that are mounted on the facade from the inside or on the side of the frame. They are intended for storage of household chemicals and various trifles for cleaning. If the corner cabinet is not planned to be used for washing, the so-called carousel system can be built into it. Such a mechanism increases the useful area and allows you to accommodate absolutely all the large kitchen utensils (pots, pans, salad bowls, etc.). A photo of the mechanism is presented above.
There are also a number of storage systems for drawers and headset top sections. For different types of headsets of a small corner kitchen, you can choose your best option. The use of such techniques will make even a small cabinet as efficient and useful as possible.
Equipment
When planning the design of a small kitchen room, special attention should be paid to technology. It is with the help of modern multifunctional appliances that it is possible to save time and minimize the number of processes in the kitchen. When it comes to arranging a small corner kitchen, the best option is built-in appliances. Compared to stand-alone appliances, built-in appliances take up much less space. The hob, oven, microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator are integrated into the headset modules and practically dissolve in space.
Modern manufacturers offer a number of compact solutions. Cooktops for 2-3 burners, a compact oven (45 cm wide), forty-five centimeter dishwasher for 8 appliances. The choice of such a technique will significantly save the usable space and work surface, while facilitating the everyday worries of the hostess.
Useful Details
In addition to the right color scheme, material and design for a small kitchen, you should pay attention to useful details in interior design. Mirror surfaces in the wall cladding will help to visually expand the space. They, for example, can be used in the design of a kitchen apron. For a young family, instead of a dining group or kitchenette, a bar counter is perfect. This piece of furniture will save the maximum area in the room. Window opening can and should be used to the maximum. Having driven the tabletop canvas onto the windowsill, you can get an additional work surface. Any housewife will appreciate the ability to cut products, depending on what is happening outside the window. Ideally, if the communication allows you to bring the sink into the window area. This technique in the design of the kitchen always looks advantageous, saves space and brings pleasure in the process of cooking or washing dishes.
Reasonable savings
Economy small corner kitchens do not have to be completely replaced. If the task is to develop a budget project, you can only replace the old facades of the kitchen. This operation is simple and does not take much time. It will be enough to take measurements of the old frame and order new facades. The kitchen set will be transformed beyond recognition, and the usual placement of shelves and cabinets will remain untouched. This technique will avoid a lot of dust and mounting debris. The money saved on furniture can be used to purchase new modern equipment.