How to equip a kitchen without windows?

A kitchen without a window is not the most familiar version of a room reserved for cooking and eating, but it does occur. A small and non-standard kitchen is better than without it at all. So, probably, those who cannot find another option for arranging a home argue. And they are right: in a large room, which can be called a kitchen-living room, there is a corner where there will be a stove, cabinets and a refrigerator. Even if there are no windows there, this is not a “sentence."

When drawing up a work plan, it is necessary to provide all the requirements for a kitchen room (regardless of whether there is a window in it). The main list looks like this.

• The flooring in a kitchen devoid of windows must be durable and moisture resistant. Material should not be afraid of water. Tile or linoleum is not so important, because both materials can be found today with outstanding performance characteristics. But the laminate in the kitchen is extremely undesirable.
• Even if the kitchen is very small, it should be designed so that the refrigerator and stove are not adjacent. Temperature differences will quickly disable refrigeration equipment, and condensate in such a neighborhood can not be avoided.
• Drying for dishes is located near the sink. Make it sufficient, but not more than what you really need. Save space.
• Lockers in a small kitchen without a window are not the most prerequisite. No matter how modern they are, it is often a bulky device that takes up usable area. If the main utensils and utensils are stored in floor cabinets, the interior will not lose from this. And an open top storage system can be the highlight of the kitchen.
• Free small and dark kitchens from excess furniture. If you decide to equip the kitchen in a large living room, then in this living room you can take out a beautiful buffet where all the dishes and other things that are usually stored in the upper cabinets of the kitchen set will be stored.

As a rule, a kitchen table of 4 square meters (+/- meter) does not fit a dining table. The bar can accommodate, and even the island that separates the kitchen area from the living room area will fit, but the table is always brought out to the dining area. In an ordinary 5-square-meter kitchenette m table is sometimes replaced by a tabletop from a transformed window sill, but if there is no window, there are almost no options.

It is pleasant to work, eat, communicate with households and friends if the apartment has good lighting. Good does not mean very bright. Rather, the matter is in a comfortable light that creates the right mood, does not interfere with the performance of household chores. If the kitchen is very small, sometimes you can do with ordinary ceiling lights. Usually this is a stretch ceiling with spotlights. But you can make a niche and mount lamps in it. If the kitchen is larger, you can not do without local lighting. Near the stove and above the working area they are necessary.

An interesting option would be a lamp in the form of a window, it is mounted on a wall (or even in the ceiling), and it serves as an imitation of a window missing in the room. It looks aesthetically pleasing and closes the issue of the lack of a window opening.

In small and dark rooms, dark colors are prohibited. They visually reduce the area even more, they do not reflect color, and the kitchen is darkened. But light shades on the hand of the owners. You can leave everything in a classic white color, but in the room for cooking it is not always practical. And some association with hospital walls may persist. To design surfaces, select the following colors:

• beige;

• blue;

• faded pink;

• muffled lime;

• creamy;

• milk with lemon;

• pastel shades.

Large patterns on the wall will also negatively affect the visual perception of space. But also too small, colorful print of the walls somewhat narrows the kitchen. Light colors are sometimes diluted with bright accents: for example, the kitchen wall can be blue or lilac. If you think that the wall is too bright, the rug, the upholstery of the chair (if there is a dining chair), the lampshade of the chandelier, etc. can be bright. Make the ceiling lighter than windows.

It is not necessary to make the floor light, it’s impractical, and the finish of the floor does not affect the perception of space as much as the color of the walls and ceiling. But if the kitchen is small and dark, it is advisable to do the floor is glossy. Sometimes tiles are laid in a checkerboard pattern, but this does not always correspond to a small room. If the kitchen has a door, it is better if it is an accordion or another type of sliding design. In a very small room, the door is not needed at all.

On sale today it is not so difficult to find designs that will simulate a window. The first and cheapest option is photo wallpaper (there are also 3D wallpapers). Some samples are made so naturally that at first glance you will not notice imitation. A fake window is a whole structure, voluminous and complex. It can be made to order, but it will cost dearly.

That is why many owners decide to create an imitation window with their own hands. Someone embeds a normal window frame into a niche, and some nice image is sent behind the glass. Many make lights in such windows, hang curtains or blinds, seeking full association with a real window.

If the kitchen is small and non-standard, turn this minus into a big and bold plus. You need to understand exactly what you want to see in the kitchen, what you really need, and what you can refuse. There are many examples when open shelves instead of hanging cabinets made the kitchen cozy and sweet, rather than austere and soulless.

Also think about what elements of the kitchen really move to another room. If the kitchen shares the territory with the living room, then the dining table quite rightly moves into the living room. The refrigerator can also be moved outside the kitchen area. And since now the fashion is on the retro-model of refrigerators, a red or green unit may well merge into the interior of the living room or hallway.

So that the kitchen does not look boring and corny, it is worth using the following design techniques.

• Decorate it with your favorite things that are important and dear to you personally. For example, put an old radio that hung in your grandmother’s house. This catches the eye and takes him away from the modest size of the room and the same lack of a window.
• If you have a bar, it can be finished with ceramic tiles. It is fashionable and solid and also attracts the eye.
• Instead of cabinets and a standard headset, put a buffet in the kitchen. A sink, stove and sideboard - this triple is enough for a mini-room. You just have to take a buffet with a countertop so that you can really cook in the kitchen.
• Soft knitted or patchwork rugs, authentic baskets for vegetables, beautiful tin boxes for cookies and bright jars for bulk products - all these little things become full owners of the kitchen. You notice and remember them, not the meager cooking space and standard finishes.

Original ideas, realized with love, cover all technical flaws. If you got a small and dark kitchenette, turn it into a corner of the family Provence restaurant. Appropriate colors, decor and maybe even a sign will turn a worthless kitchen into a very cozy and stylish room. This is if Provencal style is close to you. But it can be replaced by country, ethno or scandi.

By the way, determine the style - this is point number 1 in terms of repair and home improvement.

See the next video for an overview of the small kitchen in the hallway.