Fitted furniture: dos and don’ts

Posted on 29th January 2024

Are you looking to renovate your kitchen, update your bedroom storage or upgrade your bathroom set-up? Fitted furniture offers you a bespoke look that can add value to your home. It is also completely customisable, so everything will finally have a place – yes, please!

Whatever your room dimensions, fitted furniture offers maximum storage without taking up too much floor area. It also allows you to work around any architectural features or awkward spaces to create a high-end designer look that will tie in perfectly with the interiors of your home.

KBB journo Sally Smith has the lowdown on fitted furniture for every room…

How long will it take to get my fitted furniture?

When going to a carpenter or a fitter it’s always a good idea to put together as detailed a brief as possible. Create a moodboard or get pictures from magazines, plus samples of materials you like and details of the room’s dimensions. Keep an open mind as the design progresses – new ideas often make better use of the space.

Design: Take time to approve the plans of any fitted furniture, double-checking both external measurements and internal details of wardrobes, vanity units, and cabinets.
Timings: Fitted furniture will take time to design and build, so factor this in when planning any project.
Payment: Expect to pay between 30 and 50% of the total price upfront as a deposit, and the remaining balance when it has been completed.

Fitted bar area in a green tone with brass handles — Tom Howley’s Kavanagh collection, shown here in Avocado, includes a bar area, spacious cabinets, mirrored panel, and Caesarstone Arabetto countertop. Prices start from £25,000.

Fitted kitchen furniture

Kitchen companies offer a range of options for fitted cabinetry. If your budget allows, consider a completely tailor-made look with doors and carcasses created to your specific design and measurements. This is ideal for larger spaces where standard units may not be big enough.

Black and gold kitchen with a modern finish — This bespoke fitted kitchen by Designspace London features tall units from the MH6 kitchen collection with a bronze finish on the units and island. Prices start from £25,000.

However, if you are looking for a more cost-effective option, consider fitted kitchen units using pre-fabricated ranges of cabinets and doors, typically made in a variety of sizes and designs. These units can then be mixed and matched to fit your space, using plinths and fill-in panels to streamline the design and painted in a range of colours and finishes to personalise your look.

Blue kitchen with lot of storage in the island — Cascada 778 cottage-style fitted kitchen, shown in Fjord Blue, Kutchenhaus. Prices for this bespoke island start from £400.

Bathroom storage and vanities

Fitted bathroom furniture companies offer a similar option with modular ranges to extend vanities, providing tall units and drawers which will maximise your storage. Bedroom specialist companies provide pre-made doors and internal fixtures to build wardrobes that will fit around chimney breasts, alcoves, and sloping ceilings and make the best use of any space.

Green vanity unit in a black and white bathroom — The Burford range from Roper Rhodes is a modular collection with shaker-style doors. Available in six hand-painted finishes, it is shown here in Slate Grey. Priced around £1,500.

Blue vanity and bath in a white bathroom — A high-end vanity designed by Emma Merry Styling is made from moisture-resistant MDF painted in Farrow & Ball’s Hague Blue. Similar cabinetry would cost around £985.

Fitted bedroom and office furniture

If you are looking for a complete fitted bedroom furniture solution, there are numerous options to add dressing and bedside table units as part of the fitted wardrobe design. This is ideal if you are struggling to find freestanding furniture to fit your dimensions. If you are tight on the floor area, consider extending the fitted wall units over the bed for extra storage.

Grey fitted furniture in a bedroom — These wardrobes, complemented by extra storage and a bedside table, are from Sharps’ Manhattan bedroom range in Dove, from £2,000.

For a completely bespoke solution, it’s sometimes best to work with an interior designer who will design specific fitted furniture to meet your needs. They will often work with specialist joiners to create your dream kitchen, bedroom or bathroom. Lastly, when working with a joiner, visit their workshops to check the quality of their furniture and request pictures of other installations they have completed and to get an accurate price.

Green fitted furniture in bedroom — Made-to-measure fitted wardrobe with a multi-functional desk and drawers from Daval’s Mayfair furniture collection, from £12,000.

Finally, a work-from-home space is a must-have nowadays, especially if you don’t have room for dedicated fitted office furniture. Luckily, almost any corner of the home can be transformed. Fitted kitchen and bedroom suppliers offer options to incorporate a custom desk into the design that provides an efficient and streamlined space to work in, with stylish shelves and drawers to store away files at the end of the day.