Kitchen Larders Could Be The Ultimate Hack To Banish Your Countertop Clutter

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It’s the plight of modern life: you buy more things to make your life easier, only to make it harder by giving yourself something else to clutter your space.

Over the last few years, there have been several new ‘must-have’ appliances to add to your collection.

And while we’re all for levelling up your space with an air fryer, or even a water purifier, your kitchen counter can end up taken over pretty quickly.

If you’re tight on cooking space already, the last thing you want is a big black slow cooker taking up half of it.

Should your countertop clutter bring you utter misery though, we’ve found it: an appliance garage.

“Appliance garages help people keep everyday essentials within easy reach while maintaining the streamlined, peaceful aesthetic many are now striving for in modern kitchens,” explains the kitchen expert at B&Q, Jodie Spray.

Okay, we know what you’re thinking – isn’t adding something else into your kitchen kind of missing the point? Don’t worry, though, an appliance garage is designed to hide the mess, rather than add to it.

“An appliance garage is a dedicated storage space built into your kitchen,
usually a pantry-style cabinet,” says Spray.

“It’s designed to keep everyday appliances such as kettles, toasters and coffee machines tucked away but still easy to access when you need them.

“The goal isn’t to make your kitchen look empty, it’s to make it feel calmer and more intentional without sacrificing practicality.”

“The way you install an appliance garage will depend on your kitchen layout,
but there are options for both new kitchens and existing spaces,” explains Spray.

“Some are built into cabinetry as part of a renovation, while others can be created by repurposing a section of worktop.”

Just as there’s not one kitchen table for every space, you’ll need to think about what your space needs before buying or building an appliance garage.

“Before installing one, it’s worth thinking about which appliances you use most
often,” Spray adds.

“Good appliance garages prioritise convenience as much as appearance, so the aim should be to make appliances easier to put away and retrieve, not create an extra obstacle in your daily routine.”

Depending on what you already have in your kitchen (and your DIY abilities) you can either buy a cabinet to hide your appliances away in, or build your own using a cabinet, door, handles, and hinges.

To eliminate kitchen eyesores, we’ve rounded up the best of both types to shop now, from as little as £30.