Making Room: A Hallway and Kitchen That Grow With You

Entryways in Maltese homes are often long, narrow and easy to overlook, yet with the right shelving and hooks they can work harder than you think. Here is how one home organised its hallway, bedroom and kitchen corner to suit a growing family.

Giving the Entrance Its Due

A long, narrow hallway can still be made properly useful. Fitting shallow shoe storage such as IKEA's TRONES shoe cabinet/storage against the wall keeps footwear off the floor without eating into the walkway, which matters in the slim entrances typical of flats and townhouses here.

Above, IKEA's HULTARP rail and HULTARP hook, held up with an RAMSHULT bracket, give adults somewhere to hang coats, scarves and bags. A second, lower rail puts hooks within easy reach of smaller hands, so children can hang up their own things without needing a lift up.

HULTARP rail, polished/brass-colour, 60 cmHULTARP hook, polished/brass-colour, 7 cm, 5 packTRONES shoe cabinet/storage, white, 52x18x39 cm, 2 packRAMSHULT bracket, white, 18x22 cmBISSA shoe cabinet with 3 compartments, white, 49x28x135 cmTRONES shoe cabinet/storage, black, 52x18x39 cm, 2 pack

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Small Habits, Smoother Mornings

Getting out of the door with a small child in tow goes more smoothly when everything has its place. A chest of drawers near the entrance is useful for the last-minute items, keys, gloves, sunglasses, so nobody is searching for them at the door.

IKEA's EKET cabinet with 2 drawers works well for this, mounted at a convenient height or set on a low shelf. Pair it with a full-length mirror for a final check before heading out, and a flexible light such as IKEA's TERTIAL work lamp nearby makes it easier to see properly, even on darker winter mornings.

EKET cabinet with 2 drawers, dark grey, 35x35x35 cmTERTIAL work lamp, white, 17 cmNÄVLINGE LED clamp spotlight, white, 34 cmNÄVLINGE LED work lamp, white, 66 cmTERTIAL work lamp, dark grey, 17 cmSVALLET work lamp, dark grey/white, 11 cm

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Storage That Works at Every Age

Baby clothes folded and sorted in a proper chest of drawers make nappy changes and dressing far less fiddly, and IKEA's IDANÄS chest of 4 drawers gives enough separate space to keep sizes and types apart. For the rest of the family, a space-saving wardrobe with folding doors, such as IKEA's IDANÄS wardrobe, fits internal shelves and rails for hanging clothes without demanding a large footprint, which suits more compact bedrooms well.

A smaller wall-mounted unit can hold documents and personal items so they stay orderly rather than piling up. Baskets like IKEA's TRUMMIS basket and FLÅDIS basket are handy for smaller items, and IKEA's FÖRNUFTIG air purifier is worth considering in a child's room given Malta's humid stretches of weather.

IDANÄS chest of 4 drawers, white, 104x118 cmFÖRNUFTIG air purifier, white, 31x45 cmIDANÄS wardrobe, white, 121x211 cmTRUMMIS basket, handmade rattan, 25x35x20 cmFLÅDIS basket, seagrass, 25 cmBRANÄS basket, rattan, 32x34x32 cm

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A Corner for Cooking and Catching Up

Even a modest kitchen can pull its weight once the space around the worktop is properly used. Swapping plain cabinet fronts for IKEA's ENKÖPING drawer front, finished with IKEA's SKRUVSHULT knob or SKRUVSHULT handle, gives a kitchen a fresh look without altering the layout, a practical option in the smaller kitchens common to Maltese apartments.

Add a bar stool such as IKEA's DALFRED bar stool and a shelf of cookbooks, and that corner becomes somewhere to perch for a coffee or flick through recipes. Keep dry goods tidy with IKEA's VARDAGEN jar with lid and the IKEA 365+ scoop set of 2 close at hand for easy measuring.

VARDAGEN jar with lid, clear glass, 1.9 lIKEA 365+ scoop set of 2, metalENKÖPING drawer front, white wood effect, 60x40 cmSKRUVSHULT knob, anthracite, 26 mm, 2 packSKRUVSHULT handle, anthracite, 152 mm, 2 packDALFRED bar stool, black, 63-74 cm

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From the front door to the kitchen worktop, small, well-chosen pieces make daily life easier. Browse these and more on maltashopper.com, with orders delivered to homes across the islands.

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