Today we are so excited to finally share with you a little more about the Frigidaire Professional appliances we chose for the kitchen. We couldn’t be more in love with how they transformed the way our kitchen looks, but more importantly, the way it functions and works for us. Along with a bunch of fresh photos and thorough explanation, I’m probably most excited to share with you the video we shot with Jordan Borrowman for Frigidaire Professional last week. We invited over a few friends for a dinner party so you could really see everything, the kitchen, the appliances, the flow, and all of us in action.
That was such a fun night! Not only did we officially break in the kitchen, but it was exactly the way we wanted to do it–with a whole bunch of people over. We designed this kitchen with the idea and hope that we’d be able to entertain and invite people into our home often for a big meal. The layout of the former kitchen put a lot (all?) the focus on that huge, oddly-shaped island. It could sure pack in the people but nothing else was very conducive to large gatherings. In fact, it was so large nothing could fit to the right of it leaving us with a whole wall of wasted space.
When we were planning our new kitchen layout, we thought a lot about how we cook, get around, use, and clean the kitchen and even about how we store the food we eat the most vs. food we like to have, but use sparingly (hi, ice cream!). You’ve seen the after photos here, but I wanted to dive a little deeper into our choices and placement, so as a reminder, here’s how the same angle looks today:
If you can believe it, the kitchen itself isn’t any wider, BUT we recessed a portion of the wall that previously had the mirror on it 25″ to house a Frigidaire Professional all-refrigerator and microwave. Not only did it give that wall function, but it freed up the area where the fridge was previously for a countertop, drawers for more storage and a window. We actually made it into a little chopping station with an over-the-counter cutting board we picked up from Ikea for $10. Our most-used small appliances (toaster, blender) are in the big bottom drawer there and I can’t believe how much we use that counter that was never there before. It’s an arm’s reach from the new all-refrigerator which makes chopping cheeses, fruit and veggies, or even giving a quick chop to a microwaved quesadilla (#reallife), a breeze.
Why an All-Refrigerator? It has everything to do with the foods we eat. We eat mostly fresh foods, so we wanted more space to store those. This all refrigerator has 19 cu ft of interior space and all the drawers we could have dreamed of for produce and deli meats and cheeses, which you caught a glimpse of in the video we made. All of the shelves and door caddy’s are easily adjustable and the stainless across the entire Frigidaire Professional collection is Smudge-Proof, which is so practical for our family with small children–it’s probably my favorite part!
On Separating the Fridge and Freezer: Wait, where’s your freezer? We opted to tuck the matching all freezer into the walk-in pantry we created during this renovation. Honestly, we just don’t go into our freezer as much as our fridge–maybe once a day for ice or the occasional late night snack–so having it still accessible (you can see in the video it really is right there when we need it) but not a part of the main kitchen area meant more functional use of space all around.
We plan on tackling the pantry next, which should be a nice, quick project (knock on wood) and we’ll trim out the freezer just like the fridge is. I truly love the flexibility with the Frigidaire Professional collection. Want to separate the fridge and freezer? You can do that! Want to put two gas ranges next to each other for the look of one 60″ range? Yes! You should do that!
Yes, we put two Frigidaire Professional 30″ gas ranges next to each other. These professional-grade ranges are a dream! As excited as we were about finally having a gas cooktop, we were equally apprehensive about baking with gas. New territory! I’m happy to report, we have had no issues with the adjustment and are pleasantly surprised with the results. The convection technology cooks everything so evenly and Chris has loved the built-in temperature probe that displays the internal temperature of meat (or any dish) right on the digital display on front of the range.
The grates on top are continuous, so not only does that add to the look of one huge oven, it makes sliding heavy pots and pans across burners possible and easy. The range(s) also come with a griddle/grill attachment that fits perfectly over the elongated center burners and we find ourselves using it for everything from asparagus, like you saw in the video, to Sunday morning pancakes.
Under The Hood: While we made the hood cover ourselves, underneath we had a 48″ hood insert installed with a 1600 CFM remote blower vented out the roof. We knew we wanted something very powerful for when we’re cooking up a storm in here (1600 CFM is way more than what is recommended for two 30″ ranges) but having the blower up in the attic, vented out of the roof keeps everything quiet in the kitchen.
The Frigidaire Professional dishwasher has probably been the biggest surprise to us in the best way– only because we had no expectations really. It matched the rest of the Frigidaire Professional collection, so it was a natural choice, but wow! Our dishes have never been so clean. It’s super quiet, has adjustable racks to fit dish and glassware of every size (I love the deeper top rack that fits dishes so easily!) and even has a 30 minute cycle. We love it! The blue light that comes on when the dishes are done (you saw that in the video, too) makes me happier than it should. There’s no guessing–they’re done!
We’re so grateful for all of your comments over the last week about our kitchen, and especially loved hearing from those that got ideas for their own kitchen remodels. If I could leave you with one word of advice as we wrap up this last post on our own remodel it would be, design for your needs and likes. Don’t be afraid to step out of the box and do something different if it’s something that would make sense in your life and make your kitchen more functional for you. We’ve never been happier cooking at home.
This post is in partnership with Frigidaire Professional, but all words, opinions and experiences are our own. Special thanks to Frigidaire Professional for providing all the appliances for our kitchen. You can read more about the pieces we used from the Frigidaire Professional collection in our kitchen, right here and check out the rest of the kitchen reveal, as well as all of the sources, right here.
Hello! Love your beautiful kitchen! Where did you get your refrigerator trim kit from? I see on Frigidaire’s website they have a large trim kit for using both the refrigerator and freezer, but I’m wondering where you found your single trim kit? Thank you in advance! Erin
Frigidaire also has it on their site. Or at least they did – if not a call into customer service should be able to get it for you!
Now that you are remodeling the cabin – what is the price difference for your new cabinet brand vs ikea? I love the all refrigerator idea – the only thing I freeze is veggies- mainly edamame!
Our cabinet line is from Semi-Handmade, which offers doors for IKEA cabinet boxes. So the price is very similar and dependent on which line you pick from Semi-Handmade. We should know more specifics on pricing in February.
The details you’ve shared about your Kitchen have been hugely helpful as we plan ours. Do you go into more detail on your blog about your range hood insert and cover. I love the look and would love to see how you build the covers. HUGE fan, first comment. :)
We actually didn’t document the range hood construction very well, and have been kicking ourselves ever since because of it. :/ We’ll take better notes the next time we make one – probably for the cabin.
Do you mind just telling me what your hood is made out of? Is it wood or drywall? I really love the look and would love to figure out how to do something similar….or if my cabinet builders can. I feel like all these sleek designs can’t be made of wood though. Is it drywall with trim Added??
It’s wood.
How in the heck did you design your kitchen using Ikea’s software on a MacBook. I recently got a MacBook Pro for my birthday in August and I had my kitchen almost ready to go. About 3 weeks ago, something happened and nothing is working. I even made a trip to the store to find out what was going on because customer service over the phone was not helpful. The guy at the store said that the software hasn’t worked on a Mac in 8 years. I had more luck using Chrome than Safari but even Chrome is not keeping my design in place now. Can you share your thoughts on using the software on a Mac?
It’s ridiculous! I did have more luck with Chrome but was amazed at how easy it was in store. We just did it, very frustrating, saving every 5 minutes. I don’t know why they haven’t done anything about that!
I’ve just recently discovered your blog and love your sense of style! I love the look of IKEA kitchen cabinets and appreciate the price point but am worried about their quality. Do you think these cabinets will stand the test of time? We just bought our forever home so we want our cabinets to last…well forever. Any thoughts you can give are appreciated.
They have a really great warranty on them and we’ve had ours for a couple years already and STILL love them. I would recommend them to anyone.