Kitchen Guides
8 Clever Storage Ideas For L-Shaped Kitchens
Have an L-shaped layout and want to get more out of the available space? These ideas will help
L-shaped kitchens span two walls in the kitchen, with the third side being either an open space or a blank wall. The two sides plus the empty third side, along with the centre of the kitchen, all offer opportunities for storage. Here are a few clever ideas to make the most of this type of kitchen.
1. One of the pros of an L-shaped kitchen is that it offers much more capacity for storage than, say, a galley kitchen. Along the two walls of an L-shaped layout, you can install shelves and cupboards both above and below the countertop, without taking up additional floor space. In this kitchen by H.A. Kanitkar & Co, the entire length of both walls is utilised for storage.

2. The third side of the L-shaped kitchen is usually an empty space, which can be used to store appliances – the refrigerator, oven, microwave – as in this space by Yellow Door Architects. You could opt for built-in cabinets or wall niches for the gadgets and hide them with frosted or dark glass doors.
Wondering how to hide the fridge?
Wondering how to hide the fridge?
3. Another way to use the free third wall of an L-shaped kitchen is by installing a pull-out pantry fixed inside a niche that doesn’t take up any extra floor area. See how the contraption here can be pulled out and used whenever needed. At all other times, it is away from plain sight.
Here’s how to bring a pantry into your kitchen
Here’s how to bring a pantry into your kitchen
4. Aim to maximise on corner storage in an L-shaped layout. You could install carousels that can store plenty of items. If you want to go one step ahead, get advanced pull-out shelves, where the first set of shelves is fixed to the door and comes out with it as it opens, and pulls out a second set of shelves that is attached to the first. This costs more but utilises corner space more efficiently.
5. Even if you have cabinets and shelves above and below the counter, you might need still more storage. This is where islands can come in handy. These act as extra, third counters in the kitchen and can be designed with plenty of storage.
See some of the best island storage ideas
See some of the best island storage ideas
7. Sometimes, getting more cabinets and cupboards installed along all the walls might not be within everyone’s budget. These could also make the kitchen seem too boxy and small. Inside an L-shaped kitchen, often there is an unused patch of wall either next to the stove or sink, or where the two adjacent walls meet. Install pegs, wire racks, wooden palettes or hanging baskets here.
Rows of hooks or pegs have less of a visual impact than wooden shelves or closed cabinets, and can help organise utensils neatly.
8. All right, this seems like too far-out a possibility for most of us, but it’s a good example of how much storage can be packed into an L-shaped kitchen, if you were to utilise the floor space, too, for storage. I, for one, would love to have a wine cellar underground. What about you?
Read more:
Kitchen Storage: How to Pack a Punch
Tell us:
What type of a kitchen layout do you have? How have you maximised the storage in it? Tell us in Comments below.
Read more:
Kitchen Storage: How to Pack a Punch
Tell us:
What type of a kitchen layout do you have? How have you maximised the storage in it? Tell us in Comments below.