'Eclectic' kitchens

[TiddleTaddleTat]

Inspired by this article www.homebuilding.co.uk/eclectic-kitchens/

And as a big fan of the nutty architect Piers Taylor on the 100k house...

Any ideas for creating an unusual kitchen that isn't off the peg ... and costs under £2.5k excl applicances?

So I was thinking instead of a fitted kitchen island/peninsula, have something freestanding like this.

Problem is where to fit in appliances? Could do a back wall of solely storage, but an oven without worktop either side would be a bugger...

That article badly needs photos!
We have had variously (now and in previous houses):
plywood shelves on spur tracks, either cut oblong by the timber yard or with curves by a brilliant local handyman.
Very basic painted mdf boxes under a reclaimed sink
Vintage 50s units painted in different colours. Ours were inherited but eBay has plenty for 20-50 quid.
Bits of ikea stand-alone kitchen cupboards on legs
Really awful ply worktop tiled over (annoying for the grout but looked WAY better than the peeling ply and lasted years)
A vintage card index cabinet at below worktop height for all the little bits.
Bits of pine offcut jammed between fridge and cooker with legs at the front and a curtain across.
Dressers (again, inherited, and in one case a cut up very weird wardrobe/dresser thing which which my sister is still using!)
Just a shelf and curtain under the sink.
Curtain over really dodgy shelves in an alcove.
Wire baskets on wheels slotted into gaps
Hooks on walls, doors and sides of fridges (sticky ones for light things only here) for pans and colanders.
Curtain rail on whole window wall, with hooks for hanging everything you can possibly hang.
Lovely vintage old school wall cabinets with glazed doors (about 100-150 on eBay)
Bookcases- tall ones, and short ones stood on the counter.

Hmm. I think I've only lived in houses with actual "proper" fitted kitchens for about 6 out of 40 years of my life...

Dusty I love the idea of all that!
I suppose while I like the clean look of a fitted, minimalist kitchen, I don't like the idea of buying a brand new Mdf, laminate etc un-eco materials.
Love vintage solid wood furniture. Glazed dresser sounds great.
We have a lovely old dining table very marked and scratched and people always comment on how nice it is. I think I will start looking on eBay...
I wonder if I could get the bulk of the kitchen that way, then have a joiner build some built in storage to make the best use of the remaining space

A big walk in pantry with all your essentials and then monster island for prep and serving etc could work

Years ago the first student house that I lived in had a kitchen that was made out of second hand Ikea kitchen islands. This type of thing (but unpainted):
www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/kitchen-products/kitchen-islands-trolleys/tornviken-kitchen-island-off-white-oak-art-40391657/

They had cut a hole in one positioned under the window to accommodate a sink and hung fabric along the front of it to hide the pipe work. There were 3 islands along one wall which had granite chopping boards on top of them for food preparation and the shelves at the bottom were used for storing pots and pans. Large shelves (old scaffolding boards) ran along the wall above these 3 islands and were used for plates, etc. The cooker/oven was positioned at the end of those 3 islands so plenty of access to counter space. A bit like this: www.theusedkitchencompany.com/wp-content/uploads/86afff9e0bf628e316ede3359717b2231mmhfu.jpg

Old battered pine table from Habitat in the centre of the room and lots of odd, mismatched chairs. Sounds quirky but it was a great space and I have many fond memories of time spent in that kitchen.

@SolitudeIsHighlyOverrated that sounds like a great space... for me that's what a kitchen is about. The kitchen/diner in the house I grew up in was quite like that. My parents has no money so furniture was mostly from skips or oxfam, all chairs were mismatched. There was a big dresser for the crockery.
There was never enough storage though... but that might be because there was too much stuff and no one ever chucked anything away...

We are a family of 5 and when we moved into our own house a few months ago, we went down the „eclectic kitchen“ route. We make do with a large second-hand kitchen dresser (2.30m x 2.10m) that was custom made by a carpenter for a country kitchen, a retro fridge/freezer, an extendable island trolley that we move to a free wall or into the centre of the kitchen, a stainless steel sink on extendable bar legs with 2 free standing cabinet drawers underneath and a 30 yo old electric cooker oven. We did put down a new laminate floor and removed part of the old wall tiles, but we spend under 1.5k for the remodeled kitchen and appliances (including the electricians fee to move a few sockets). We have another small freezer in the Utility room and the old small fridge in the Workshop. I don‘t miss anything and used to store way too much food/ kitchen appliances that weren’t used in a big fitted kitchen. The cleaning is quite easy too, as I can move the cabinets around, to get behind the appliances. In another house (abroad) we had an older IKEA modul kitchen with a freestanding cabinet and sink cabinet and sold it on second-hand very easy, since it was so flexible and would have fitted anywhere.

In my house in UK, I have a length of built in floor cabinets tucked between the two massive fireplaces, and which houses the dishwasher and the sink.

For the rest, I have a freestanding fridge freezer; a massive cupboard for dry goods, the baking stuff and my Le Creuset (it's Victorian and made by an undertaker when business was slow); an old long school cupboard for big dishes and glasses, above that on the wall is a plate rack which takes my crockery. I have an island in the middle; my frying pans are hung from a rack on the ceiling; one of the fireplaces houses the wine, the other the range; and I am going to see if a white Gustavian style IKEA cupboard will fit in an alcove for the mugs.

The other freezer and the washing machine and dryer live in the futility room.

I also have a table made specifically for the kitchen that seats 10.

It’s pretty common to take kitchens with you in some countries. Ikea have a whole range of free standing kitchens. It’s cheap but chearful.

Have a look on eBay for old Ikea units called Varde.

Also, old Habitat units called Olive / Olivia.

Solid wood freestanding units. I really wish Ikea would bring back Varde. Cheap, solid, lots of different sections. I’ve had it in 3 houses. Painted it, added doors, added different worktops. It looked more expensive than it was.

Thanks , the habitat Olivia units look particularly fab. Found a great set on eBay, pics attached. They look really solid.
the beauty of this type of kitchen is that it evolves over time.

Ok so latest plan in my kitchen planning journey is:
a 2m-ish wall of fitted base units (prob DIY kitchens or Ikea units + Plykea doors if funds allow) housing deep drawers and also integrated dishwasher.
Wall shelves above fitted section for glasses/mugs/plates
Freestanding sink unit eg. Habitat olivia (attached)
Freestanding fridge / freezer at end of fitted run
Pantry cupboard for dry food storage
Freestanding range cooker (comes with house)
Freestanding island with shelves beneath
Utility cupboard (if space) with stacked washer and dryer, or washer/dryer)

Also need to redo flooring on whole ground floor
Paint (diy)
Tiling

Total budget £6,600 (includes all appliances except oven) is it doable ?

Oops meant to write £4,600 total budget...