Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Need more prep space for your kitchen?

Anne figures out a smart solution for more prep space in her tiny kitchen. It may look small but it packs quite a few compartments - for recycling and even a kitty litter.

She says, "The kitchen in my rental is tiny. The space that was left after refinishing the kitchen required that I keep into account a wall ledge, baseboard heating, weak wall paneling on top of old plaster walls, and a one-inch sloping of the floor. My most important focus was to find additional space to hide away my cats litter box, and place recycling bins. Additional counter tops and storage would come in handy, of course.

I opted for Pronomen butcher block counter top, mounted on a single Vika Furusund table leg, held in place by the traditional Capita cabinet legs. This constellation allowed me to mount the opposite side of the countertop onto the wall ledge without adding additional height, which would have been the case with a traditional kitchen cabinet. The Capita legs are easily adjusted too - again, pretty helpful in the unevenly sloped floor.

The Vika Furusund cabinet or table leg offers the necessary space for my two Rationell recycling bins, as well as convenient access from the side for additional storage. I rounded it all off by hanging a left-over Ikea curtain (sorry forgot the name) on a tension rod between the wall and the table leg to provide access for my cat to her litter box. Overall, this prep space has worked out well, though one day I will have to take the time and paint it to match the rest of the kitchen."

17 comments:

  1. I really like this addition to your kitchen! The butcher block counter space is great, and I only wish my even tinier kitchen could fit such a thing. However, I must caution you about letting the cat's curtain contact the electric baseboard heater - this is a serious fire hazard!

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  2. You're ahead of the trend with your curtained front.
    I recently heard a trends presentation and it sounds like country is coming back, and your look was one of the examples.
    Good use of space.

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  3. I TOTALLY SECOND THE FIRE HAZARD ALERT!

    DANGER, DANGER!

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  4. hey check out my blog:

    http://www.youknowster.com/jokes/view/351-you-know-youre-a-cary-grant-fan-when

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  5. This looks great, I wish I could see a "before" picture so I could better understand what kind of space you were working with!

    -allie

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  6. That's the perfect solution for my tiny (and chaotic) kitchen! Thanks a lot for sharing :-)

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  7. I doubt the heat coming out of that baseboard heater is any risk - cotton won't ignite below 400 degrees F, and I've never seen that kind of temperature come out of a baseboard heater. The note of caution is good, but leave it to the OP to know how hot their heater gets.

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  8. Is your cats litter box really in/underneath your kitchen cabinet? Kinda yucky to think your cat goes to the bathroom around the same place you store, prepare or eat food.

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  9. i was going to say the same thing about the cat's litter box and the bread container or the scale, and the things hidden under the table, behind the recycling bins. does everything smells or taste good?

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  10. It looks really good. Nice job!

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  11. does your cat actually go to the bathroom in the same flat you live in? LOL :)

    ....kind of funny that some people are so over cautious - what do you think where a cat can go to the bathroom if it lives in flat - let me see, for years i could have chosen between where i sleep, where i eat and meet friends, where i store my food and where i store my toothbrush.
    how i survived?

    easy! i cleaned the litter box every day and didn't mix it up with my bread box or my bathroom cabinet! so neither did it smell, nor come into any contact with food etc.
    and as i have to breath outside even if there are dogs around going to the bathroom, air is a dangerous thing anyway....

    sorry if i am so sarcastic, but sometimes i can just wonder......
    to me it seems to be a great solution to not SEE the litter box.

    apart from that, i really love that bread box on the counter.

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    Replies
    1. where did you find that bread box?

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  12. this hack is not really in my tastes, but i can tell it functional and practical, if you have something that you need/want to hide. the only thing i can object is the cat's box, remembering my cat's box, when i had one. my cats where living on the balcony and the box was there too, it was maybe 20years ago and cat's sands were maybe different (a bit smelly). moreover, i live in some kind of countryside, so when i have pets i don't need to have them all day long in my flat. different concept of pets, if you live in a town or in the country. sorry to have you upset. ps the bread box comment was only in relation with the litter proximity, as to say "kitchen's tools". it looks good ;))

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  13. I did it :-)
    Easy work, great result. And for everyone without a wall ledge: Two Vika Kaj legs do a good job and you can adjust the height.
    Thanks again for that great idea.

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  14. I too have to store my litterbox in my tiny kitchen. It really has not been an issue. In NY most people dont have a whole lot of space and most of my friends keep their cats boxes in their bathrooms- which is just as nasty if you think about it. The key is to keep it clean and scoop every day like the above poster mentioned. Great hack. I have been looking into trying something similar, but my kitchen is too narrow.. grrrr

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  15. exactly what we need to create more counterspace over our washing maschine (which unfotunately HAS to stand in our tiny kitchen aswell...) Thank you!

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  16. I-LOVE-IT! :) Might consider it for an idle corner on my own kitchen...

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