Disclosure: This post is sponsored by KitchenAid. All opinions are my own and always will be! Thanks for supporting the content that keeps Jojotastic going.
During the design process, I was really overwhelmed by the array of appliances out there. I definitely knew I wanted KitchenAid appliances in the black stainless finish for a polished, sleek look, but beyond that… I had no idea. I was also really concerned about what we could actually fit into our tiny kitchen. Now that I’m on the other side of the renovation, I’ve written up a few suggestions and tips for anyone in a similar situation. These 3 tips should help you choose appliances with ease and confidence!
My Best Tips to Help You Choose Appliances for a Small Space
I hope by now you’ve all seen our tuxedo kitchen reveal! If you haven’t, what have you been doing?! I’m kidding. I know not everyone is as excited about it as me, but for real, it’s truly a gem of a space. Cooking in it has been an absolute dream. And there’s no doubt our KitchenAid black stainless appliances are what set it apart. Also, don’t forget that I shared a post all about how to choose the right appliances for your space in general, so make sure to give that a read as well! Lots of good info.
Let’s dig into how to choose appliances for a small space:
Prioritize
Here’s the thing: when you live in a very small house, you really have to prioritize your must-haves (in the kitchen and everywhere else). For me, that meant getting a dishwasher. Not having one for so long was such a pain point for us and I now feel like my life is complete. Our KitchenAid 44 dBA Dishwasher with Dynamic Wash Arms is a game-changer. Not only does it provide crazy cleaning coverage with nine wash arms, but it’s so quiet we literally thought it didn’t work the first time we used it because we couldn’t hear it. OOPS.
In all seriousness though, you have to decide what’s important to you in your space. My suggestion is to think about the things that are going to make your life easier. In other words, a wine fridge would be cool, but a dishwasher saves time and piles of dirty dishes. Plus, we have fewer arguments about who’s turn it is to wash dishes now. It was a no brainer for us.
Another example is our fridge. It was really important to Sean that we have one with a pull-out freezer on the bottom, while I wanted French doors. How do you make that happen in a small space kitchen? You prioritize it and find the space (possibly by sacrificing it elsewhere). We got the 20 cu. ft. 36-Inch Width Counter-Depth French Door Refrigerator with Interior Dispense and it’s like it was made for our kitchen. There are all kinds of special compartments to keep produce fresher longer and let’s not forget about the cheese drawer!! What can I say, I’m not quite used to such luxuries after using our old, super outdated appliances for so long.
Find out if you need compact appliances
In super tiny homes (like ones that are only a couple hundred square feet in total) chances are you’ll need compact appliances. But if you’re like us and just live in a small home, you can more than likely use full-sized. Just pay very close attention to measurements. You’ll want to make sure your counters are deep enough and if you have upper cabinets above your fridge, pay close attention to the height of your new fridge as well.
We purposefully put our fridge in its own little nook area to avoid the upper cabinet situation. And, yes, both doors open and give us plenty of room to rummage around for snacks!
Find multipurpose opportunities
Just like every other room in a small home, you have to find ways to make the space in your kitchen pull double duty. This was our goal with our gas cooktop and Smart Oven+ Single Oven with Powered Attachments. I would have loved to have a combination oven situation, but we just didn’t have space for it. So instead, we made a single space function for the oven, stove and griddle. This really doesn’t feel like a sacrifice though because we LOVE the appliances so much! Get this, we can control our oven… from our phones! Yes, KitchenAid has an app that allows us to control the Smart Oven+ remotely. Also, the oven pulls like triple duty because of the interchangeable attachments. It includes an oven-powered grill, baking stone, and steamer! The Smart Oven+ has inspired me to step up my game when it comes to our dinner menus.
Legal Disclaimer: GRILL SHIPS WITH OVEN. CONNECT, CALL OR REGISTER TO GET BAKING STONE AND STEAMER BY MAIL AT NO ADDITIONAL COST. Allow 10-15 days for delivery. Visit kitchenaid.com/redeem for full details.
What do you think of these tips to help you pick appliances for a small space? If you’re part of the small space squad and have other suggestions, definitely chime in! I hope this is helpful for anyone going through a reno. I know it can be tricky to find what functions best for your space, but believe me… if we could make it work in our tiny kitchen, you can, too!
