I’m back again with my [Home & Living] series (I hope I’m not the only one getting excited about it)! This time, I will be sharing with you what our kitchen looks like, changes we made to the originally fitted kitchen layout/ carpentry and how we organise some of our kitchen items 🙂

PLUS, a discount code and giveaway for Method and Full Circle cleaning products!!

For a start, our kitchen is in the very simple (and boring) gallery layout. The original layout plan had an empty space at the end of the kitchen to fit in the washer/ dryer because our place didn’t have a yard. The kitchen was extended out as a dry kitchen which had cabinets, oven, a space for the fridge and an island counter.

**apologies for the non-blog-worthy photos! they were meant for defect checking haha**

Before

Before

Before

This would mean that we have to place our dining table at one end of our living room and use it as a dining area, compromising on the actual living room space.

We wanted to have more space for Laurent to move around but at the same time we wanted more counter-top space for the kitchen. After discussing with Yenny, we decided to make the following changes to our kitchen layout:

• Hack away island counter and use that space as our dining area
• Remove bathroom fittings in the utility (3rd) toilet and use it as a laundry area
• Redo one side of the kitchen cabinets and shift the oven into the kitchen, extend counter-top space and reconfigure the storage solution in the kitchen cabinets to maximise storage
• Redo dry-kitchen cabinets after shifting of oven and to make space for a bigger fridge. For aesthetic purpose as well because we can’t stand the original laminate 😛
• Change ugly kitchen swing door to a sliding door

Floor Plan – Before

Floor Plan – After (decision to redo kitchen fitting at the stove side was made later and not reflected here)

Here’s what the kitchen and dining area look like after the renovation.

Dining Area – After (Photo by Qanvast)

Kitchen – After (Photo by Qanvast)

We love the new layout a lot more because it allows us to have more counter-top space for food preparation and more space in the living room to move around (which is a little bit of a luxury given how small houses are nowadays). We are also able to better arrange and store our kitchen stuff with the customised storage solutions.

I won’t discuss about things like counter-top material and designing layout for the kitchen specifically because ours came mostly fitted. I will share with you guys more about how we organise and keep our kitchen clean instead 🙂

 1. Make use of counter-top mainly for food preparation, not storage

We try to keep as few things on the counter-top as we can so that we have sufficient space for food preparation when cooking. It can get quite frustrating (for the person cooking) when he needs to keep shifting the things on the counter-top around just for some space to place and prepare his ingredients.

An uncluttered counter-top also makes cleaning and tidying a whole lot easier since you just need to do a quick wipe down every time, without having to wrestle with random things left on the counter-top.

2. Make use of vertical spaces for more storage

I’m not a fan of open shelving in the kitchen but if you have some odd pieces of blank walls around, you can consider hanging some of your kitchen items as alternative storage solution. It may also become a nice focal point or bring some character to the kitchen space!

3. Drawers are more convenient storage solution than cupboards

Part of the reasons we wanted to redo some of the cabinets is to convert cupboards into drawers. We already have a lot of overhead cupboards in the kitchen so we converted most of the bottom storage to drawers and left only 1 full-sized cupboard for storing bulky items like pots, rice cooker, rice-bucket, etc.

Even our bowls and plates are kept in drawers because trying to reach that elusive salad bowl which you think is tucked at the bottom left hand corner at the back of a cupboard would likely mean you have to empty out almost the entire cupboard first.

4. Keep big, essential and commonly used items in mind when designing your storage spaces

Things like your precious Kitchenaid Kenwood mixer, bread maker, air fryer, uncountable trays, dessert stands, and more commonly used spices and condiments deserve a mention when it comes to storage planning.

Make sure you have a storage space big enough for the bulky items you wish to keep off the counter-top, make use of slimmer cabinets (which could otherwise go to waste) for keeping trays, cling wraps, aluminium foil, and other slim items upright and to maximise storage, and keep your commonly used cooking condiments within reach.

5. Personalise your kitchen space

A kitchen space is still a personal space. Spruce it up with simple (DIY) art pieces to add a little flair and colour to the space.

If you hoard things like baking ware and dessert stands like me, make them multi-task by using them for display and/ or storage on the counter-top when they are not used for their primary purpose.

6. Keep cleaning tools accessible

I keep most of my cleaning tools under the kitchen sink and I try to keep them relatively tidy and accessible. I know I will be more likely and compelled to reach for my cleaning cloth and all-purpose cleaner when I know exactly where they are and don’t have to cross oceans and scale mountains rummage through the whole cupboard to find them.

By now, you can most likely tell how much I adore Method products 😀 I have been a fan of Method cleaning products since our previous place.

I love that the brand’s mantra is to put the hurt on dirt without doing harm to people, creatures or the planet because their products are formulated with naturally derived, biodegradable ingredients. And it definitely doesn’t hurt that they come in such lovely packaging! There is no need to fuss over pouring the cleaners into nicer dispenser because these lovely jewels sit beautifully on any kitchen sink.

Full Circle cleaning tools are something new to me, but similar to Method, Full Circle is an advocate for greener lifestyle and creates cleaning products that are of superior design and creativity, combined with eco-friendly materials and functional efficacy. They are convenient to use, work beautifully with Method products and looks equally beautiful on my kitchen sink. What’s not to love?!

I will be sharing more about my cleaning experience with some of the products which Method and Full Circle had kindly sent me in my following posts. But for those who are already fans of these amazing products, here’s a SITEWIDE 10% discount code for you!

Simply key in “DAPRAYER10OFF” when you check out at the respective websites.

And for those who would love to try some Method and Full Circle Products, there will be a giveaway in every post!

This week, we are giving away 2 sets of the following:

METHOD FOAMING HAND WASH

FULL CIRCLE SQUEEZE CELLULOSE CLOTHS

Click here to enter the giveaway!

AND WE HAVE OUR WINNERS!!

Thank you so much for everyone’s participation, watch this space for the next round of giveaway coming soon 😀