If you’re redesigning your kitchen, you’re likely obsessing over cabinetry. What color should you choose? What material? What style? And for good reason. Cabinetry is the kitchen’s main focal point. It takes up most of the room’s space and sets the overall look and feel of the space. But even more important than a cabinet’s style is its functionality.
Most home kitchens fall in an L shape, meaning that some of your cabinetry will have to wrap around a corner. Here are a few corner cabinet ideas that can help you maximize style and functionality in your new space.
What Is a Corner Kitchen Cabinet?
Often called a “blind corner cabinet,” the cabinetry situated in the corner of your kitchen often presents a challenge. Because of its deep and tricky shape, enhancing the functionality of this space can be difficult. Here are a few tips and designs to help you optimize corner cabinet storage.
Best Cabinets for Kitchen Corner Storage
Because corner cabinets can be nearly 50 percent deeper than standard cabinetry, the best kitchen corner cabinet designs optimize space by helping you access the kitchenware and pantry items located in the back of the space.
Corner Cabinet Lazy Susan
Lazy Susans are a common solution for corner cabinet design. This design consists of a turntable placed inside of the cabinet to maximize space and provide easy access to items in the back of the cabinet. These Lazy Susans can be built into the cabinet using the same materials or added in separately. To maximize the space even more, consider adding a two-tiered lazy Susan to your cabinet design.
Spin Out Shelves
A common corner cabinet Lazy Susan alternative is spin-out shelves. These shelves are attached to the cabinet door and rotate out when the door is opened.
Pull Out Shelves
Taking spin-out shelves a step further, pull-out shelves allow for a fuller extension of corner cabinetry shelving. In this design, shelving is built into the cabinet but not attached to the door. Upon opening the cabinet, you can pull out the shelves to access hard-to-reach items. This style also allows you to move one shelf at a time, preventing bottom-shelf items from being covered by the top shelf.
Advanced Pull-Out Shelving Systems
Elevate your corner cabinet storage space even more with an advanced pull-out system. What appears to be an ordinary corner cabinet on the outside is actually a system of multiple rectangular shelves connected by hinges and tracks that allows for easy access and maximum storage.
With these systems, the first shelf is attached to your cabinet door and pulls out with it. Following behind are other layered shelves, allowing you to view the entire contents of your corner cabinet with ease. While this can cost more than other cabinet systems, it’s an excellent option for smaller kitchens where storage space is crucial.
Diagonal Corner Wall Cabinet
Another way to maximize corner wall cabinet space is by placing cabinet drawers diagonally across the space. This creates a chic, intentional look to your “blind cabinet” space. You can use a lazy Susan inside the drawers to maximize interior storage. However, while they look stylish, it is worth noting that the doors on diagonal corner cabinets are often smaller than the interior space, making accessing certain kitchen items difficult.
Pentagon Angled-Front Cabinets
To prevent the lost storage space that diagonal corner cabinets can create, go for a pentagonal-shaped cabinet for your kitchen corner. This creates wider door space to help you more easily access kitchenware.
Staggered Wall Cabinets
If you’re going for a more modern kitchen look – consider skipping the corner cabinet altogether. Instead, stagger your wall cabinets in levels so that they stretch across each wall and do not meet to create a corner. This can limit overall kitchen storage space, maximize the storage you have, and look sleeker and more modern than other corner cabinet solutions.
Corner Pantries
Because smaller drawers or shelves in corners can create wasted space, the best solution may be to use your kitchen corner for a ground to top of cabinet pantry. While this takes away some of your counter space, it provides plenty of useful storage for dry goods and other pantry items. This is an excellent option for kitchens with islands, where giving up a little counter space for extra storage is practical and feasible.
Corner Gallery Cabinets
A decorative corner cabinet solution is the corner gallery cabinet. It removes the term “blind cabinet” altogether, as you will be able to see into the shelves, preventing you from losing items in the back. This is a great option for storing china, silver, or other decorative kitchenware.
Curved Cabinets
If none of the above corner cabinet solutions seem appealing, consider getting rid of the corner altogether. A curved corner cabinet eliminates a blind corner and looks sleek and modern.
Corner Sinks
If you can route your plumbing to your kitchen’s corner, the best and most functional option may be to use a sink as your “corner cabinet.” This is both an elegant and practical solution to maximizing your space. It provides extra room around your sink for dishwashing, and the plumbing can take up the hard-to-reach storage space underneath. Plus, it frees up counter space elsewhere in your kitchen.
Takeaway
The luxury kitchen design is as functional as they are stylish. While navigating design corner cabinet space can be tricky, the above ideas can help you find the sleek and stylish solution that is best for your kitchen space.