2014 Smart Storage Solutions for Small Kitchen Design

Smart planning and innovative kitchen design solutions transform these kitchens into storage packed spaces.

You'll love these ideas to try in 2014! I hope you find these ideas useful and inspiring to you .... Enjoy it !!!!

A new desk and banquette bench were added adjacent to the kitchen to provide more storage and a dedicated home office.

An extra row of drawers flanking the refrigerator adds the perfect amount of storage near the door. Cabinetry runs all the way to the countertop to make use of every inch of space.

Pullout racks and utensil organizers were added after installation creating smart storage without the custom-cabinetry price tag.

The island offers prep space, close to the range storage for pots and pans, and proximity to a pullout trash and recycling center. This drawer within a drawer in the island makes it easy to keep pots and lids separate and organized.

The homeowner was determined to infuse the kitchen with rich elements to give it distinction. The Calacatta marble tile backsplash, for example, runs up the wall to meet horizontally oriented beaded-board paneling, which also appears in the adjacent family room. Turning beaded board sideways creates strong horizontal lines that make walls appear longer.

A sink made of the same material as the countertops presents a sleek, clean look. A window ledge provides bonus display and storage space behind the integrated sink and traditional bridge faucet.

A firm believer in open storage, this homeowner uses shelves to keep everyday items easy to see and reach. Shelves next to the refrigerator hold the microwave and wine cooler; the latter frees up space in the fridge.

More open storage opposite the refrigerator wall is supported by shapely brackets. The dark metal complements similar tones in the floor, counters, doors, and window frames, and it adds pizzazz to simple open shelves that provide both display and storage space. The shelves keep items used every day in an easily accessible place, and a top shelf, which might be hard to reach, is used to showcase art and decorative objects rather than kitchen essentials.

The space around the range was smartly outfitted for cooking. A knife drawer on one side of the range features an integrated cutting board for quick chopping.

To the right of the range, a drawer stores spices neatly and out of the light, keeping them fresh and easy to grab when cooking at the range or doing prep work on the counter above.

The small peninsula serves as a bar area, complete with undercounter beverage chillers and a pullout liquor cabinet. A deep, cased archway provides a gracious transition from the dining room to the colorful kitchen.

Store Up High : There wasn't enough space for a walk-in pantry, so the custom-designed cabinetry extends to the ceiling to maximize storage. A library ladder that rolls along a rail provides access to the top row of cabinets. Cleverly concealed pullouts store spices, bottles, platters, and trays. The slim pullout shelf below the pantry cabinet serves as a temporary landing space for items without permanently intruding on the walkway.

A corner pullout unit stores large cookware and avoids wasting space in a corner cabinet. The pullout unit brings the cabinet contents into clear view, eliminating the likelihood of losing items in the recesses of a deep cabinet.

Appliances were also chosen with capacity in mind. Paired refrigerators with stacked freezer drawers blend in with the cabinetry and give the couple plenty of space to stock up on food for a house full of guests. A pullout cabinet beside the refrigerators makes use of an awkward space. The slender dimensions of the unit make it ideal for storing small containers and bottles.

The couple also opted for a trash compactor and two sink areas: one for preparing food and one for rallying dirty dishes. Two sets of dishwasher drawers between the sinks ease cleanup.

The rail above the pantry continues around the rest of the kitchen. Transom cabinets take the place of soffits and are within reach, thanks to the library ladder.

While they were going for a contemporary feel, the homeowners also wanted the kitchen to be a warm, comfortable place, so they opted for wood-look cabinetry. Zebrawood (named for its dark stripes on a light background) was their first choice, but it was also a budget buster, so they went with custom cabinetry finished with a faux-zebrawood laminate. To keep the look of the cabinetry simple, the couple used few door pulls, opting instead for push mechanisms, which make it easy to open the sleek cabinets and access their contents.

Read More »

Home Decorating

Most home decorating design is assorted in style, with a blend of traditional and contemporary furnishings, mixing new with the old. The furnishing choices in a successful home decorating scheme are almost always a well thought-out mixture of styles. Before you begin to decorate, keep in mine that hardly ever is a room, outside of one found in a museum, decorated in one style. You should choose furniture that suits your family and arranging it in a way that works gracefully with the home decorating scheme.

When faced with a room in need of a new look, the question most often asked is which color should be use? How do I combine them? Choosing home decorating colors your selves can be a somewhat scary proposition. You have to develop the skill and confidence to create a room that is quiet but not dull, vibrant but not tasteless, it's helpful to learn some basic home decorating color vocabulary. You should become familiar with the color ring, which is a basic version of the color wheel usually used by fine artists, and to understand the principles of combining colors.

A successful mixture of home decorating patterns, colors, and textures will result in a balanced and beautiful room; the kind of room that makes you feels comfortable the moment you enter it. You must first look at the home decorating pattern and texture that are imbedded in the architecture of the room; the pattern in the grain of a wood floor, for example, or the texture of plaster walls, and the sheen of a marble countertop.

It's always best to plan ahead, before you actually begin a home decorating project, whether large or small, it's a good idea to understand what is involved and to think about how it will be accomplished. Home decorating can start anywhere, with the given advice to spruce up a room; you can fall in love with a new color, or by adding a piece of furniture. But remember to think through the process of your home decorating project before you paint a wall or buy any furniture.

Walls are the largest surface area in any room, and the wall treatment you choose can enhance your home decorating choices in a way that no other single home decorating element will. Before you begin, think about the basic of the room; the quality of the light, the size of the room, and any architectural features you may want to highlight or downplay, and, of course, the furniture and fabrics you plan to use in the home decorating scheme.

You may or may not choose a particular home decorating style when you decorate your rooms, but you will certainly strive to create a stylish décor. When it's time to rearrange the furniture, you must decide whether to refresh the look with new upholstery, or do you want to put together an entirely new home decorating scheme for a room.

Read More »

Storage Solutions for Closets 2014 Ideas

Closets are great for stashing stuff, but when that stuff gets disorderly, chaos gets the upper hand. Conquer your closets with these tips. 
Get your closets in order using our favorite closet organization ideas. Learn how to adapt strategies and plans to work for your home's closets and see what savvy tricks can help keep closets clutter free.

Plan a closet makeover by measuring your current closet to determine hanging requirements and storage needs. Next, you'll need to clear everything out of the closet so the new system can be installed. This is a good time to go through items you can no longer use and donate them to charity.

Closet systems can help you make the most of the space you have. Here, the hanging bars, cubby storage, and drawers help organize clothing and ensure that everything has a place. A curved dressing bench takes up less space than a rectangular one.

You might think the more shelves, the better but this is not always true. The shelves themselves take up inches of precious storage space, and too many of them can make it difficult to stack or remove items. It's best to design shelves that will fit the various items you have to store.

Don't have a lot of closet space? Freestanding armoires are perfect for customizable storage space to take the place of a closet. Wire shelving in ready to assemble cabinets maximizes storage and allows for easy organization of foldable garments. A tiered shelf stores shoes at the bottom of the cabinet, while sweaters and seasonal accessories are placed in baskets on the top shelf.

Fabric storage bins help keep an open closet neat, organized, and presentable. Double rods on both sides of the storage tower provide extra space for shirt and pants storage. Apply adhesive picture labels to the outside of the fabric bins to make it easier for kids to stick with your organization system.

If you love shoes and deciding how to store them is your main closet woe, try these tips from John Trosko, a professional organizer and co author of The Experts’ Guide to Doing Things Faster.

Slim shoes, such as flats and flip-flops, can be stored two to a cubby. Use spare slots for belts, scarves, and clutches.

Drawers give the closet a polished, built-in look, plus handy closet door storage for folded clothes. Bulky items like sweaters and purses can go on the open shelves.

Eke out another sliver of storage by putting a shallow basket on the shelf below the top row of hanging clothes. Use it for things that fold up small, such as tights, T’s, or socks.

Whether your closet is big or small, good lighting will make it even more functional. Look for ceiling-mount lighting that doesn’t need to be hardwired as a quick update for a reach-in closet. Lamps can be used in a walk in closet for extra illumination, which is beneficial for dressing areas. If your walk-in closet has a window, install a light-blocking window covering. That way, you can keep out the natural light when you’re not using the closet. Constant sunlight might cause some clothing to fade.

For a narrow and short space, stair-step rods for kids’ clothing storage. Since their clothing is short and slender, you can hang one rod higher and further back in the closet and another bar lower and more toward the front to get a double layer of storage. Consider tension shower rods, which can be installed without making holes in the wall and are easier to change as the child gets older.

Using double closet rods one over the other is the best way to squeeze more storage space out of a closet. Be sure to measure the length of each item you'll be hanging there and allow another 6 inches of clearance above and below each rod. Blouses, shirts, skirts, jackets, and kids' clothes will all fit on double rods.

Cut down on your ironing time with an ironing board that’s always ready to go. Hang a wall mount ironing board near an outlet and store the iron nearby. Simply fold down the board when you’re ready to iron. There are also ironing board cabinets that can be recessed into a wall. Learn how to install one with the video below.

See through wire drawers make finding clothes or other items in your closet quick and easy. This metal pull-out storage system has drawers with various depths to fit into different sized spaces, and provides a more organized form of storage than simple cubbies would provide.

Label bins and boxes with luggage tags. Loop the tag around handles and insert a label into the tag’s pocket. Putting labels on boxes and bins that are stored up high is especially helpful. That way, you won’t have to guess what’s in the box, and you can pull down the right one on your first try.

Read More »