If, when you hear the phrase “rented apartment,” you imagine cracked wooden kitchen cabinets, a battered stove in which pots your age are stored, and lighting that would be the envy of cameramen filming horror films, then yes, something needs to be done about it.
Question to whom? Of course, the owner. Or can you do something on your own?
Why do we so diligently arrange housing for ourselves, but try to keep costs to a minimum if we make a kitchen for tenants?
But it is they who, in someone else’s home, want coziness and convenience. Practicality and functionality! Beauty, after all))) I want to pay not just for bare walls, old floors and cheap furniture.
Rented kitchen - how to update it
Are you renting an apartment? Do you want to update your kitchen interior at minimal cost? Then it’s worth using the recommendations of professionals who will help transform the kitchen in a rental home with a minimum of time and money.
Think about what irritates you most and try to do it your way. If this is a drastic measure - ceiling, floor or kitchen facades, ask the landlord for permission.
New trend: a kitchen that doesn't look like a kitchen
It is important to think through the design of a kitchen set at the stage of working on a design project. Together with Giulia Novars experts, we will tell you what furniture configuration to choose so that the space does not look cluttered, what to replace solid facades with and harmoniously fit the workspace into the interior.
Build work cabinets into a niche
A great way to make the kitchen part of the living area is to install cabinets in niches in the wall so that the furniture blends into the surrounding space and is not noticeable. This technique is used by many successful designers today. The main task here is to perfectly match the shades of the kitchen and walls.
The Giulia Novars kitchen designed by Alexey Aladashvili has a laconic design and is almost invisible. A row of upper cabinets is installed in a niche between two columns. In the apron area there are additionally two storage cabinets, the panels of which slide down when opened. Smooth ceramic facades are not read as kitchen facades and look like a monolithic wall.
The Giulia Novars kitchen designed by Alexey Aladashvili has a laconic design and is almost invisible. A row of upper cabinets is installed in a niche between two columns. In the apron area there are additionally two storage cabinets, the panels of which slide down when opened. Smooth ceramic facades are not read as kitchen facades and look like a monolithic wall.
Hide kitchen utensils in a pull-out rack
Numerous kitchen utensils, appliances and spice collections emphasize the utilitarian function of the kitchen. Do you want to get rid of this feeling and make your headset lighter? A retractable rack will come in handy: it is located in an island or peninsula and can be pulled out with the press of just one button. Everything you need for cooking is at your fingertips. At the end of the work, you can also press the button to remove the rack into the tabletop.
Use an active cabinet in the splashback area
You don’t have an island in your kitchen, but want to hide small kitchen items? Think about the most convenient place to place them: of course, a kitchen apron, which is at arm's length while cooking.
Designers suggest abandoning open storage systems in favor of an active cabinet: a retractable panel with an electric drive or with manual opening allows you to close or open the shelves when necessary. The panel is made of stainless steel, stone, glass or ceramics and will fit perfectly into your interior.
Replace solid facades with glass ones
Column display cases with smoky transparent doors are an excellent alternative to the usual kitchen modules with solid facades. Showcases built into the top or bottom row of cabinets without visible fasteners look light and elegant, do not visually clutter up the space and make the interior more interesting.
Designer Elena Chabrova combined several zones in one spacious room: kitchen, dining room and living room. In order not to hide the kitchen, but to make it a harmonious continuation of the interior, the Giulia Novars set was placed in a specially built niche, and display cases with Giulia Novars transparent glass were hung as upper cabinets.
Designer Elena Chabrova combined several zones in one spacious room: kitchen, dining room and living room. In order not to hide the kitchen, but to make it a harmonious continuation of the interior, the Giulia Novars set was placed in a specially built niche, and display cases with Giulia Novars transparent glass were hung as upper cabinets.
Hide everything essential in columns with sliding facades
The main function of such facades is to hide the contents inside the column and, if necessary, quickly provide access to it.
Behind such doors you can hide not only a cabinet with drawers, built-in appliances, even a dishwasher, but also the entire work area, which is especially important if the kitchen also serves as a dining room. This is exactly the solution for the kitchen that designer Alexandra Melnikova chose in her new project. The work surface, all cabinets and household appliances are hidden behind facade systems that easily slide inside - when closed, the Giulia Novars kitchen looks like a built-in wardrobe.
This is exactly the solution for the kitchen that designer Alexandra Melnikova chose in her new project. The work surface, all cabinets and household appliances are hidden behind facade systems that easily slide inside - when closed, the Giulia Novars kitchen looks like a built-in wardrobe.
Focus on brevity
To make your kitchen look less like a workspace, choose sleek, modern fronts without handles.
These could be invisible handles, original notches on the edges, or a hidden Push-to-open mechanism that responds to a light touch. They definitely won’t impair the functionality of the kitchen, and the set will look more stylish and modern. Designer Ksenia Ivanova designed a modern, discreet interior of the kitchen-living room with access to a view terrace. The Giulia Novars set fits perfectly into the decor, thanks to the smooth handleless fronts in the color of the walls and the mirrored kitchen apron.
Designer Ksenia Ivanova designed a modern, discreet interior of the kitchen-living room with access to a view terrace. The Giulia Novars set fits perfectly into the decor, thanks to the smooth handleless fronts in the color of the walls and the mirrored kitchen apron.
Repaint or replace furniture façade
This way you can not only change the interior, but also hide scratches, abrasions and other defects that are visible to the eye. To paint an old facade, first remove the film, sand the MDF, wipe the surface with a dry cloth and degrease it.
If the facade is plastic, you won’t have to remove anything. The surface just needs to be thoroughly washed, prepared for painting and treated.
Setting up a kitchen without hanging cabinets
There are many different headsets. The special purpose of such furniture is to hide kitchen products, dishes, and cutlery from view.
Using cabinets, you can build in household appliances and make cooking more comfortable.
But sometimes it is necessary to install a set without wall cabinets, which will visually expand the space.
To do this, you should think through the design, minimizing the need for additional drawers.
Make your windows beautiful with curtains
Do you want your kitchen to look cozy? Find some nice new curtains. Roller blinds made of bamboo and other natural fabrics - washed linen, cotton - look good. The kitchen will become much more comfortable!
Kitchen features: installation of a single-tier set
To prevent a kitchen without upper cabinets from looking deserted, pay special attention to wall decor
There are several options:
- large and spacious, thereby expanding the scope of design experiments (kitchen modules around the perimeter or a setting with an “island” in the middle);
- narrow and long, where there is a fear of compressing the space even more;
- combined with the front living room, which requires an organic fusion of interiors, following the subordination of the kitchen design.
In all cases, the issue of storing kitchen utensils and products is not completely resolved, so it makes sense to make the most of the built-in equipment and everything that increases the working surface: pull-out shelves and shelves with a lift, curtain doors, special inserts for storing pots or plates, systems holders and hangers for necessary accessories.
Advantages and disadvantages of furniture without top drawers
In Scandinavian styles, where wall cabinets are most often avoided, wall-mounted adjustable lamps or ceiling track lamps are used.
The positive aspects of this method of organizing the interior are:
- Expanding the light-air space of the room, creating a modern design filled with decorative elements that create stylistic harmony with optimal functionality.
- The safety of the food preparation process, without regard to the loading volume of hanging modules and the reliability of their fastening to the wall, in addition, you can choose the option of an economy kitchen with modules.
- Availability of storage space for all family members without the use of stools and ladders.
The disadvantages include:
- greater depth of floor modules, which increases the working surface, but makes it difficult to remove kitchen utensils from the depths of the cabinet;
- bending over when accessing the contents of the cabinet can cause increased fatigue for the housewife;
- floor furniture will still not be enough to store utensils that are not often in demand. You will need a pantry or built-in closet in another room, which creates objective inconvenience;
- High-quality finishing of open surfaces (walls, ceilings) is necessary for ease of maintenance and design integrity.
Furniture for a single-tier kitchen layout is more expensive than standard sets that include multi-level elements.
Update your countertop
Even if you're on a budget, consider upgrading your countertops. For this, you can use tiles or mosaics, which you can buy at a special offer with a good discount. Chipboard countertops are inexpensive. More expensive - made of steel, glass, ceramics. The most budget-friendly option for updating the tabletop is a tablecloth or plastic rugs.
Ready-made layouts and sizes
IKEA offers ready-made kits, which can be viewed in the catalog on the official website - https://www.ikea.com/ru/ru/catalog/categories/departments/kitchen/?ic >
The downside is that the selection of cabinets in this series is quite limited. Here you will not find tall pencil cases or modules for built-in appliances. There are no ready-made corner sections either. Therefore, IKEA does not have Knoxhult corner kitchens in finished form. But if you wish, you can connect a couple of modules using different fastening options, beautifully masking the joints.
It is possible to create your own version from existing modules by purchasing additional cabinets. You can also change the tabletop so as not to make joints.
Despite the limited selection of the series, even island kitchens are made with Knoxhult.
You can find a layout without upper cabinets.
Beautiful wooden shelves can replace the top row.
The series offers 2 options for countertops made of laminated chipboard - black and wood-look.
The height of wall cabinets has two options: 75 and 60 cm.
For a detailed review directly from the store, watch the video:
This is one of the most budget-friendly kitchen options at IKEA. For example, the cheapest one in white will cost only 12,989 rubles per 1.2 linear meters.
Gray. Price - 23,789 rubles for 1.2 linear meters.
Attention! The price for all models will be indicated excluding equipment and contents. The price includes plumbing (siphon, pipes, gaskets, etc.), sink, faucet. Handles need to be purchased separately.
A set of 2.2 linear meters will cost about 20-30 thousand rubles (depending on color).
The price for this configuration is 22 thousand rubles.
Wall shelves - pay attention to detail
Such things as vases on the windowsill, flowerpots, figurines, paintings can bring a new style to the kitchen. Use “trinkets” dear to your heart for your kitchen interior, but don’t overdo it!
Related discussions
Looking for custom fronts for Ikea kitchen cabinets
Kitchen. Which is better, with or without a crow? Need upper cabinets?
Kitchen cabinet arrangement
ev_dm
nastasya_vitebskaya212 by 6.8 sq m - without upper cabinets, the useful storage area will be greatly reduced. think about where to store what and how. What linear footage of the kitchen are planned?
And also in the photo there are drawers (not hinged), due to the sliding mechanisms, the internal usable area is significantly reduced.
It is not necessary to completely abandon the upper cabinets. place them away from the hood symmetrically on the sides and make glass doors + lighting in them (let your porcelain dishes and wine glasses stand there beautifully). where there is a stove and hood, they really are not needed, since steam and fat settle on them when cooking.
there will be even less of a cluttering effect - if the vertical lines of the upper cabinets are straight to the ceiling, there will be no void (dust collector) between the ceiling and the cabinets.
In the absence of upper cabinets, tiles are usually placed under the ceiling. take into account additional expenses. Gluing a high-quality beveled hog, for example, will definitely cost more than the cost of the upper cabinets.
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Ceiling tiles are absolutely optional. I looked through hundreds of photos of such kitchens and there are very few places like this. I myself have been living with a similar kitchen for 4 years, in my next apartment there will be the same one (only bigger, otherwise I have 4 square meters, and I cook every day, everything has stopped fitting) - I can’t stand the upper cabinets. And I don’t have tiles at all - Mirrors and paint underneath. (not my decision, but both are washable).
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NEO-center
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In my previous apartment, the kitchen was less than 6 sq.m. and the wall for cabinets was only 1.8 m long; along this wall there were placed: a 50 cm stove, an 80 cm cabinet with three drawers and a cabinet for a 50 cm hinged sink. A neat small open drying rack for daily dishes hung above the sink , there was nothing else attached. This 80 cm cabinet was enough for my husband and I for two; we almost always eat at home. If you wisely reconsider the need for kitchen appliances and utensils, then everything fits in this vkaf. Retractable mechanisms may eat up a little bit of internal space, but it more than pays for itself in the fact that products in the drawers can be placed very tightly and can be easily reached, unlike hinged drawers, where in order to get something from the depths you need to pull out or move the objects in front , and even sit on uncomfortable squats. In my new kitchen, I also abandoned the top drawers, but added “soldiers” into which I built all the appliances. The project is currently under implementation, so only visualization.
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Vera K.
Upper cabinets are terrible. The first kitchen is 10 sq.m. and everything fits perfectly, the second one in my old bachelor apartment is very compact, but thanks to the drawers it’s incredibly spacious.
Far from new, but a hotly discussed idea to this day is a kitchen without upper cabinets. She captivated some with her unconventionality, while others consider her impractical. While heated debates are ongoing, professional designers are actively implementing such a layout, further fueling interest in it.
Are wall cabinets really necessary? And where then to store the plates and tea set in their absence? We will try to give comprehensive answers to these and other questions.
Use live plants
Be sure to decorate your kitchen with fresh flowers. This is a very inexpensive and at the same time effective way to make a room beautiful and cozy. Moreover, this method will not require significant expenses from you. You can hang pots with flowers on the walls or arrange a “vegetable garden” on the windowsill by planting fresh herbs.
When will such an interior be justified?
With proper planning and drawing up a good project for the future kitchen, a set without upper cabinets will be an excellent solution and will meet all the expectations of the hostess. First of all, space will be saved. In standard apartments of our time, the so-called “Khrushchev” apartments, the smallest room in size is allocated for the kitchen, which, if the kitchen is not properly planned, affects, first of all, large families.
This can be seen in their habit of eating in two sittings. Summing up, I would like to say that whether to abandon the upper part of the kitchen set or not is still up to each housewife to decide on her own. However, it is important to understand that such a refusal, with a competent project, will only have a positive impact on the family’s lifestyle. It will bring comfort and the most important, much-needed space for fresh air.
Kitchen in rented housing. Photo ideas
What ideas do you have for transforming a removable kitchen? Write to us!
How to organize storage?
If you think in advance about where you will store dishes, spices and everything that most housewives are used to storing in upper cabinets, then you will not have to sacrifice convenience and functionality for the sake of fashionable design. We'll tell you how you can replace the usual storage.
Fit everything in the lower cabinets
Think about it, maybe you don't really need upper cabinets. How to determine this? Here are some signs:
- Most of the shelves at the top are empty, because... A lot of storage space is not required for your small family. And in the lower cabinets, not all corners are filled to the top.
- you don’t see any problem in bending down more often to pick up the necessary kitchen utensils.
- If you are open to new ideas in design, you will be happy to change your usual dish drainer to a non-standard one - built into the lower cabinet.
If you gave a positive answer to at least one of the statements listed above, then it’s time to think about which compartment you will allocate for plates, mugs, where you will place pots, where there will be a new place for storing cereals. Here are a few options for how to fit it all into the lower cabinets.
Ideas for storing pots
Drying in the bottom drawer
Store in pencil cases, cupboards, on racks
One such tall cabinet can replace the entire top row of a medium-sized set.
Even in a small kitchen you can allocate space for one such high pencil case, and in some cases it is possible to accommodate even two such modules.
Use the space under the sink wisely
Even with a deep sink, you can put the space under the sink to good use. Use hooks to hang gloves and brushes, baskets for bags, and boxes. The photo below shows some ideas on how to use this area.
Where to buy kitchen furniture?
To begin with, I will express my opinion on where it is better to buy kitchen furniture. From my practice, I realized that the fewest problems with the texture, color, and configuration of kitchen furniture purchased online are from its manufacturers, that is, on the websites of furniture factories. For example, on the website of the furniture manufacturer Fabrika-Stil.ru.
On these sites, photographs and descriptions of the furniture being purchased most closely match the actual color and texture. Options for errors and, especially, intentional deception are practically excluded.
Kitchen cabinet materials
In practice, kitchen cabinet bodies are made of sanded chipboard or wood.
Chipboard. This is a particle board. A classic material for furniture production. The material is durable and easy to use. However, it has an unsightly appearance and is afraid of water.
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To eliminate these two disadvantages, chipboard for furniture is covered with various finishing materials. In the production of kitchen cabinets, sanded chipboard coated with protective materials is used. These boards are called laminated chipboard (laminated chipboard). As a standard laminate (protection) for kitchen cabinets, melamine is often used.
Melamine is a multi-layer paper impregnated with layers of melamine-formaldehyde resin. Melamine is often called laminate. In the cheapest version, melamine cases have a characteristic white color. The material is resistant to moisture, scratches, and easy to care for.
Due to savings, kitchen cabinets are almost never made from solid wood, MDF and chipboard covered with natural veneer. However, these materials are used for a variety of kitchen facades.
laminated chipboard body
Kitchen front materials
Kitchen facades can be:
- Smooth;
- Volumetric;
- Framework;
- Special.
For the manufacture of smooth facades they use: laminated chipboard, solid wood covered with finishing thin panels of chipboard or MDF, chipboard coated with acrylic (plastic).
Volumetric facades are made from MDF, chipboard and solid wood covered with MDF panels, milled solid wood.
Frame facades are made from solid wood, veneer, or a combination of wood and glass.
For special facades, artificial stone, special concrete, leather, glass, and ceramics are used. They can be brushed (artificial highlighting of wood texture), aged (the effect of old furniture or the effect of rust), radius (rounded corners).
For smooth kitchen facades, laminated chipboard is used, lined not only with laminated paper, but also with real plastic (acrylic).
In addition, MDF material is actively used for kitchen facades. MDF is sawdust pressed with resins. The doors are made entirely from MDF boards or from chipboard lined with thin MDF panels. In expensive options, chipboard is replaced with solid wood (photo below).
If the surface of laminated chipboards can only be smooth, then the features of MDF make it possible to make three-dimensional facades with multi-level patterns. At the same time, MDF is more expensive than laminated chipboard.
Related article: Buy luxury kitchen in Moscow
I would also like to highlight the framed facades of kitchens. In appearance, it is a visible frame made of natural wood. The frame space is filled with glass, MDF panel or wood.
Options for painting both smooth and framed facades are not uncommon. Facades of laminated chipboard, MDF, wood, plastic, even glass can be painted (colored).
Solid wood is used for the facades of expensive kitchens. More often, such facades are milled to create a three-dimensional pattern.
Solid wood can be present in combined facades combining a frame made of wood and glass or a frame made of solid wood and MDF.
kitchen array
MDF facade
Another option is chipboard facades lined with real plastic (acrylic). They are durable, have a variety of textures, but are expensive.
kitchen acrylic
As an option for a high-quality kitchen, you can call kitchens made of solid wood (1), lined with finishing panels of chipboard (2) or MDF.
The choice of tabletop material, as a rule, takes place separately from the choice of furniture, but with a design combination with it.
