Eliminating Kitchen Clutter Has Never Looked More Stylish

One of the joys of undertaking a home renovation is getting to build the kitchen of your dreams. Once that kitchen is in use, though, clutter often finds a way of spoiling the look of prized counters. Some of the biggest offenders tend to be small appliances — coffee makers, toasters, microwaves.

“Years ago, the kitchen was a place that was tucked away, closed off and not for guests,” said Elizabeth Bennett, who with Mallory Robins runs Kobel & Co, an interior design firm in Kansas City, Mo. “But now that the kitchen is usually a showpiece that expresses the personality of the owners, you don’t want all the appliances on the counter, looking messy.”

Blenders can even be the source of marital strife, added Ms. Robins: “There’s typically one spouse who’s a heavy small-appliance user and the other says, ‘I can’t stand to see it on the counter.’ But somebody still needs their smoothie maker.”

Fortunately, with a little planning it’s possible to conceal small appliances while keeping them easy to use. Here’s how Ms. Bennett, Ms. Robins and other designers do it.

Take Stock

It’s easy to accidentally amass an arsenal of plug-in kitchen tools dedicated to different tasks: immersion blender, food processor, juicer, rice cooker, pressure cooker, mixer, waffle maker, toaster oven, ice cream maker, coffee grinder, and so on.