The first plus of a kitchen without upper cabinets is that the space is not cluttered, the room seems taller and slightly wider. The visual expansion of a usually small kitchen is an important point; for the sake of this effect, you can refuse hanging cabinets.
Without upper cabinets, there will be more light on the work surface, more space. It will be more comfortable to work, there is no danger of hitting the open cabinet door, no additional lighting is needed.
You can save money in a kitchen without top cabinets! Additional furniture means additional costs, so this option will be much cheaper and more affordable. And if you make such a kitchen to order, it will take less time, and the installation work will be significantly less..
The entire working area of the kitchen without the upper cabinets can be placed under the windows. It will be more pleasant to cook and wash dishes while admiring the view from the window, much more natural light. And the space of the room will be saved, it will be possible to place a full-fledged dining area.
Top cabinets, especially those located close to the stove or hob, get dirty very quickly. And the dust at the top constantly accumulates, and it’s difficult to get to it. Therefore, the absence of the upper row of cabinets makes the kitchen cleaner, the hostess has fewer surfaces that will have to be regularly wiped and washed.
If the storage space in the bottom row of drawers is still not enough, you can equip open shelves. They should be shorter than the work surface, so that it is convenient to use it and all the advantages of the absence of upper cabinets, which we have already written about, are preserved..
It is far from always convenient to use the upper cabinets, people of small stature simply do not reach the necessary items. Therefore, they are often simply littered with dishes that are rarely used, with various jars with something unclear like “may come in handy” and so on..
A kitchen without top cabinets looks more modern, even if it is designed in a classic style. Move away from the usual standards, create an original space, why not! Moreover, it is so easy to get rid of the top row of storage places.
Of course, rarely, but the top cabinets fall. Either they were poorly secured initially, or they were overloaded, or simply from time to time. And the doors can loosen and fall off. So without the top tier of cabinets, it will be just safer..
A free-standing sideboard can provide storage space, where it is convenient to display a ceremonial service or beautiful vases. And in this case, the upper cabinets are simply not needed. In addition, the buffet itself can look very elegant, it will fit perfectly into classic, Scandinavian cuisine or retro style.
The disadvantages of a kitchen without upper cabinets include the lack of storage space. In premises with an area of four to six square meters, it is impractical to abandon the upper cabinets, experts say. In such a kitchen, a separate sideboard and space for everything you need will not fit, even for dishes, most likely, it will not be enough.
Small open shelves, which, as we wrote above, are often used to replace upper cabinets, have a big drawback – everything that stands on them quickly gathers dust. That is, there is no need to talk about such an advantage as cleanliness and the absence of the need to constantly clean the upper row of storage places..
What are the main features, advantages, and disadvantages of kitchens without top cabinets? I’m considering remodeling my kitchen and wondering if getting rid of the upper cabinets would be a good option.