How to Add Toe Kick Drawers for More Storage

Think you’re out of storage space in your kitchen? Think again. Toe kicks, the baseboards of your cabinets, conceal unused space big enough to hold slim drawers. Of course, the narrow space doesn’t fit everything, but I have four toe kick drawers in my own kitchen that hold less frequently used kitchen tools, such as a cherry pitter and a candy thermometer; emergency supplies, such as candles, batteries and flashlights; appliance manuals; service receipts; and pet bowls. Think of all that storage you may be missing out on!

Here’s how to get toe kick storage in your own kitchen.

Project: Adding toe kick storage drawers.

Why: A toe kick drawer is nothing more than a regular cabinet drawer, mounted in the open, unfinished base of a cabinet with trim attached to the front. Measure the linear feet of your toe kicks and you can see how much storage space you could have. Use these drawers to store cookie sheets, baking pans, serving platters and utensils that you use only once in a while.


Who to hire: By far the easiest and best way to install toe kick storage is to order it with new cabinets. According to Dennis Palazzolo, vice president of EW Kitchens, a toe kick drawer ordered with cabinets retails for about $175 to $225 per drawer.

If you have existing kitchen cabinets, you may be able to get a carpenter to retrofit some drawers. There are online tutorials that explain how to build essentially a freestanding drawer that will slip underneath your cabinet. It can then be finished with base molding to match. (The drawer itself, however, will be several inches narrower than the cabinet it fits under because of the required drawer support.)


If your cabinets were stick-built onsite, you may or may not be able to accomplish this, depending on how they were built. The cost to retrofit drawers will vary depending upon size, location and labor costs, but plan to spend about $150 per drawer. In a small kitchen especially, however, where every inch counts, it may be a small price to pay for so much additional storage.


Cost: As mentioned, expect to spend about $175 to $225 per drawer when ordering them with new cabinets. Adding a drawer to your existing cabinet bases will run about $150 per drawer for installation.

Hardware and pulls: This drawer, by Seva Kitchens, has a particularly nice hidden, integrated pull, as well as a touch-latch mechanism that opens with a slight kick of the foot.

Make sure you don’t exceed the weight limits of your drawer hardware.


Consider whether or not you want the drawer pulls to match your cabinet hardware or be different. Considering they will be somewhat hidden, you can get away with less expensive versions.

Also, plan where the seams will fall. You may not want seams on your baseboards that don’t line up with your cabinets. In this case the drawer fronts can be extended to help visually balance the seams.


What to Store

Here is a very wide drawer used to store silver platters in a butler’s pantry. Drawers like this could even be lined with antitarnish cloth.

Linens, dish towels and placemats can also fit neatly in a toe kick drawer.


Toe Kick Step Stool Storage Some cabinet companies offer a toe kick drawer specifically for storing a step stool, like this one from Fieldstone. If you are retrofitting, you can purchase the Stepfix from Hafele. This item, along with the bracket for mounting the matching toe kick, retails for approximately $210.


You can keep books, craft supplies, small hand tools, office supplies or emergency items in the drawer too.


I love this idea for storing pet bowls. When your animals are done eating, just push the drawer back in. Just make sure that the location of your pet drawer won’t block a main aisle, especially during busy times.


Pet Center Here’s a drawer with built-in pet bowls.


Or how about you don’t store anything at all, but include a built-in pull-out step? The ones shown here are higher than the average toe kick, but even the typical 4-incher could give you just enough height to get to higher shelves, or could help kids brush their teeth and wash their hands.


Here’s another clever toe kick step.

Tell us: What would you store in the toe kick?

More: The 15 Most Popular Kitchen Storage Ideas on Houzz

URL: How to Add Toe Kick Drawers for More Storage http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-22875.html