Getting rid of fitted kitchen to make a freestanding one

[IHS]

We have a small kitchen which is starting to look shabby. We were going to change the cupboard fronts - the cupboards themselves are okay - but I've always admired freestanding kitchens. I like how they can be flexible to a large extent and you can move things around.

Has anyone got rid of their fitted kitchen and gone freestanding? The only thing we're restricted by is the position of the sink, washing machine and an electric hob - we don't have an oven.

Where do you find the furniture? Can you do it gradually rather than completely rip the entire fitted kitchen out. Have you done it then regretted it?

We won't be moving anytime, this is our forever home.

What do you do a roast chicken or a pizza in with no oven?
<sorry, misses point of thread>

Yep. Came here to say the same thing!

Sorry to perhaps not really answer the question but we have a fitted kitchen but all appliances not integrated and I wouldn't have it any other way for convenience. . But I'm aware not answering your question!

Do you mean like a French farmhouse kitchen vibe? I van confirm that my mums kitchen in the 70s was not a fitted kitchen and looked terrible!

Do you have one of those microwaves that double as an oven. I had one of those but in addition to my normal double oven.
I think Im too old to think a free standing kitchen is a good thing it was the norm when I was younger.

We have an air fryer, slow cooker and dh just roasts any chickens outdoors on a covered barbeque thingy. We buy small pizzas that fit in the air fryer.

Why would you constantly want to rearrange your kitchen? Also there is more to clean as dust and stuff will get down the back and underneath the units.

Op I don't have one but if I had a cottage style house and kitchen room I would definitely have freestanding kitchen.

I would replace mine with a freestanding one if I was replacing it... I have been looking at ones on Ebay that are from Habitat and they look fab.

I get bored easily and I like to change stuff round 😂 I don't mind pulling things out to clean behind.

I’d love a non fitted kitchen. A nice random mishmash of cupboards and units, I’d find it so much fun. I’m tired of grey, black and white gloss flat units and integrated everything. I’m not sure how it would work practically and I have no advice to share but I like your idea!

Ikea do lovely freestanding units with lots of options. I had one years ago in my first home and I loved it.

I came to mention IKEA.

The thing is dirt still gathers behind stuff- you just can’t see it.

I think free standing is great, and am thinking about it for mum. It’s totally different though. I’d do a full wall of shelves for storage. A work surface with shelves above for appliances, with wheeled trolley underneath. A table for working and eating at. I don’t want a built in hob if I can avoid it- the air fryer and instant pot get most use. A small hob would be enough.

We have a freestanding kitchen and it’s a nightmare, I hate it. So many random gaps and spaces underneath which are awkward to clean. Ours is from IKEA and is so heavy so really isn’t easy to move to clean properly. I can’t wait to move house just to have a built in kitchen

If done well, it could be nice. If the pieces didn’t work together, then it could look quite messy. Each piece would have to be hard-working, to make sure you have space for everything. Machines might look out of place, as well…

I used to have one - some freestanding units from IKEA, a rayburn and a dresser. It worked OK but the storage was insufficient. That room is now a snug and we have a new kitchen in the old living room

We have a small kitchen and redid all as free standing. We have a massive old French farmhouse style cupboard that we got second-hand (probably about seventh or eighth hand) for a very small sum of money, an ancient French butcher's block that was about 300 pounds (our big spend) then some Ikea pieces, a freestanding dishwasher that we got some work surface to put on the top of, a free-standing oven with hob and fridge freezer. So stainless steel fitting and a mix of colours and woods for the rest.

I think the Cotswold company, the White Kitchen Company and Unfitted have a lot of stuff.

What's hardest is making sure you get things that are exactly the right size to fit in so you don't have gaps everywhere! Took me ages to work it all out.

I think some freestanding elements in a kitchen look good but not the whole thing. In my dream kitchen I'd have an L shape of units for storage and to house the plumbing - sink, dishwasher etc. I'd have a freestanding range cooker, ideally nestled in the old chimney breast. I'd have a freestanding island unit on wheels and a freestanding pantry/dresser type unit. Freestanding fridge freezer too. Having some fixed elements gives you a baseline to work with, you can still move stuff around.

If you're not sure why not try a cheaper temporary fix. We painted our old fixed units and swapped the handles and it made a world of difference.

I would like to see a kitchen done with a work surface over those pull out trolleys. DM finds the drawer trolleys in her under counter fridge space work brilliantly for her- easy to pull out and search. Much better storage than traditional deep cupboards.

How can dirt drop behind and down the side of sealed fitted units?

It’s generated by appliances that vent out the back, among other things.

Have you removed the plinth to clean underneath? My oven housing has crumbs I can’t get at that must have migrated elsewhere too. And when I removed my fitted fridge freezer, the cavity behind it was not clean.

I like them! It’s very French country kitchen. Makes the kitchen look more spacious I think. I had one in a rented flat. A few cupboards but also lots of wooden shelves :-)

You can have a combination of fitted and unfitted. There are some aspects that you cannot really move due to plumbing connections - might as well make that run fitted.

we inherited an unfitted kitchen, and will echo others that it was a nightmare to clean. But if you are think of person that likes to move furniture around for fun, maybe less of an issue for you?

I like a combination of both, I like a kitchen to have character and not look too “kitcheny” I have this set up and I love my kitchen, I don’t mind the extra cleaning as the aesthetic and ambiance is worth it.

I currently have a small U shaped kitchen and I prefer an L shape. We changed to an L in our last home and it looked and felt so much better. A small U just feels restricted and uncomfortable.

What we're now considering is keeping the units and benches on two sides, scrapping all units on one side, moving fridge freezer and getting a cupboard/larder for storage. There'd be no extra cleaning and it would feel more spacious with no wall cupboards. We have some storage opportunities in the dining area, so I'm not worried about storage. Losing a bench won't matter either because it's currently covered in stuff - mainly teabags, coffee and bread bin.

Kitchen as it is - sorry for really bad drawing. Upper cupboards on right hand side and either side of cooker - plus cooker extractor which has to stay. Fridge freezer is tall.