What do those #s represent/mean? Are they inches? A term to indicate a ratio? Something else?

If they're inches b/w the edge of the cabinet & the drawer face or door, then 1-1/4" is too much, IMHO.

These are my full overlay...definitely nowhere near 1-1/4"....

I just measured a couple of mine...there's 1/4" b/w the edge of the cabinet & the drawer face/door and 1/2" b/w the edges of adjacent drawer faces/doors (1/4" on each cabinet). So, while your vendor is correct there must be some space, 1-1/4" is excessive, IMO!

So first, we (or at least I!) need to know what "1-1/4" & "1-3/8" mean?

[BTW...1-1/4 = 1-2/8]

Buehl, when I was shopping cabinets, it refered to how many inches the cabinet overlayed the opening. Partial overlay would be, oh 3/4" I think, full overlay was bigger. Therefore 1 3/8" is a "closer" overlay than 1 1/4".

c-mom, can you view samples and see the difference?

I wish I had pics, but cabinetauthority's website doesn't show them; another Conesotga vendor had an illustration, but now I can't find it. buehl is correct. I should've included this info; I was told that there would be a 1/4" from edge of frame to door and 1/2" total between adjacent drawers and doors. I guess 1/2" sounded like a lot to me, but I don't know. How does that work if you have butt doors? Center stile required? Buehl if thats what you have (and your pic looks good to me), then I guess I'm getting what's considered full ovelay??

Carolinesmom - are you going through Cabinet Authority? How do you like them so far? Any reason you went with them over Cabinetmaker's Choice? Did you order a sample door? (Can you tell that I am working on my Conestoga order right now?)

junicb,
You know, I didn't even contact cabinemakers choice; for no other reason than I came upon Cabinet Authority first and Rick said he would give me a discount based on quantity (it's big; whole house) and I have bugged the absolute you know what out of him, nickel and diming my order; I would feel guilty putting him through all of this! We had a foundation overrun in our construction and it's put a major cramp in my kitchen budget, so I'm having to scrutinize every single detail. That said, being a free marketplace and all, I might share my final final FINAL order with the other folks and see how they come in, if I don't like the final quote I get from Cabinet Authority, just to see how they differ. I would love to hear more about this process; are you having trouble sleeping and getting a major crash course in cabinetry components, as I am? My husband thinks I'm a nutcase. Thank God for Gardenweb and its kitchenistas!

1 1/4" overlay is considered a full overlay. Stiles/ rails (I forget what they're called) are 1 1/2" so the door overlays the stile by 1 1/4" leaving a 1/4". Traditional overlays are 3/8" -1/2" overlaying the stile leaving 1" or more. look at Buehl's cabinets, you can tell they are full overlay & don't really notice the seam or gap, there's only 1 " line" between the doors/drawers.
As far as I know there isn't any closer overlay, I can't remember a 1 3/8" overlay.
Good Luck

Here is a link that might be useful: granite countertops

Casey,
Thanks so much for posting and explanation; a pic is worth a 1,000 words!

Carolinesmom - We are still in the relative beginning stages of planning our kitchen. While we are rehabbing other parts of the house, we are living with a microwave and a mini-fridge until we are ready to begin the kitchen. I am so thankful I discovered GardenWeb - it is like a secret trove of wonderful kitchen information.

As far as cabinetry ordering, I got a rough quote from Cabinetmaker's Choice after I saw Casey's kitchen (pictured above). We are designing our own kitchen, and the hardest part is figuring out all of the little extras to order (moldings, filler strips, etc.). It is quite a daunting task from someone as inexperienced as me. I'm sure I will be calling upon the collective wisdom of GardenWeb often...

I just got a quote and they specified that there would be no more than 1/8" gap.

Carolinesmom - did u end up ordering conestoga via cabinet authority?
Can you share your feelings on them and your conestoga cabinets?

We r also working on a large possible order thru them for conestoga