How to organise kitchen worktop: space-saving ideas and new design styles

The first step towards organising your kitchen efficiently is to make an inventory of all the items that normally live on your worktop. The space often gets smaller and smaller as items used on a daily basis get mixed up with those only used occasionally, cluttering up the space and making it less functional.

It can be useful to consider frequency of use as a selection criterion, leaving only items you use on a daily basis on the worktop. This means that everyday appliances such as toasters, coffee machines and the most commonly used spices can stay, while a kitchen robot that is used less frequently can be stored in a cupboard.

It is also worth noticing how you use the space along the walls and in the corners. Often these areas can become cluttered up with small kitchen appliances, jars and containers, effectively making parts of the worktop unusable. Giving each item a home can make all the difference. Oil and frequently used condiments near the hob, knives in a knife block, and small appliances in a specific cupboard when they are not being used.

One habit that can help keep your kitchen worktop tidy is having an evening refresh. Restoring your worktop to pristine condition every evening means finding a ready-to-use, functional space in the morning.

One of the most effective strategies for optimised space in the kitchen is to look beyond the horizontal worktop and think of walls as additional storage space. Vertical space offers plenty of opportunities for organising tools, containers and accessories without taking up any of the precious worktop space.

Metal frames are a particularly versatile solution for this type of storage, and we make frequent use of it in Ar-Tre kitchens. These modular systems enable you to create personalised configurations that match your specific requirements in the kitchen. You can hang ladles, whisks and tools you use frequently within reach, or organise jars and containers for herbs and spices in a tidy and instantly recognisable manner.

The advantage of metal frames is that they are not only functional, but also attractive - they make tidiness into a decorative feature that enhances the kitchen. In addition, being modular, you can change and adapt the configuration over time, adding and moving elements to meet changing needs.

When you design vertical storage, think about the main work space - the tools you use most often should be positioned at the ideal height, whereas those you use less frequently can be placed higher up. This strategy helps maximise space in the kitchen without compromising on practicality or style.

The walls adjacent to the hob or the sink are particularly suitable for this type of solution, because they ensure everything is within reach when cooking and preparing food.

So you have followed all the recommendations for optimising storage, using every available inch of space and making the most of the accessories, but your worktop still does not seem big enough? In this case, the problem is not one of organisation, but of the actual amount of available space. The most effective solution is to increase the size of the worktop in a practical and definitive way.

How to increase the size of your worktop by extending the depth

The depth of standard worktops often fail to take into account the actual needs of people who cook on a daily basis. When you are preparing several dishes at the same time or working with lots of ingredients, you will need to use every available surface, from the dining room table to the chairs, which creates a messy, inefficient workflow.

Ar-Tre Space modularity was created precisely for this reason. With a deeper than standard worktop, this solution offers that additional space needed to radically transform your kitchen experience.

A deeper worktop allows you to create separate work zones within the same surface. The Space worktop goes from standard depth to 64 cm, providing more space to prepare and cook food and organise utensils. You can use the back for preparing ingredients and the front for cooking, or keep an area free for serving dishes even while cooking.

But there is more to Space than deeper worktops. Modularity also includes higher base units — 81.5 cm with groove openings or 78 cm with handles rather than the standard 72 cm — a feature that significantly improves ergonomics when using the kitchen. For a person of average height, this means working in a natural, standing position, reducing strain on the back and neck when preparing food.

The increased height and depth of the base units provides up to 20% more storage space than standard solutions. This means better storage for dishes, pans and food, freeing the worktop from items that would normally be displayed due to a lack of space in the cupboards.

This configuration is particularly useful when you are cooking for guests or preparing complicated meals involving various steps. Rather than having to constantly clear and reorganise your space, you can streamline your work, keeping everything conveniently to hand and efficiently laid out.

A deeper worktop is even more precious in a small kitchen. When you cannot extend your kitchen lengthwise for architectural or budget-related reasons, increasing depth allows you to increase the usable work space without altering the linear layout of the kitchen.

Space by Ar-Tre has been designed specifically to adapt also to smaller kitchens, offering the flexibility that can deliver the performance of a large kitchen in a smaller space. The result is a more functional kitchen that still has balanced proportions and does not add visual weight to the space.