I got 4 quotes. We did take pricing & cabinet quality into account but ended up choosing the KD we felt most confident & comfortable with versus the cabinet company/manufacturer.

We got 5, and were waiting on a 6th. Evidently, some KD didn't think we were important enough and took their sweet time getting back to us. And in those 5, there were several quotes for x cabinet line or z cabinet line.
I figured out around what I thought we might spend - then I looked at several of the "what will I spend on a kitchen" budget breakdowns and broke my total amount into those slots - it will tell you "you should spend 6% of your budget on windows, 39% on cabinets" (I'm making those numbers up...and worked up numbers from there.
Once I met my cabinet maker, even though he was several thousand outside of my budget, the quality, etc, was so superior than the others...plus I really liked and clicked with the guy...I knew it was OK for us to spend a little more on cabinets.

I was a kitchen designer for over 20 years. Getting several quotes may be very misleading. Most consumers are not knowledgeable enough to be aware of every detail in a design. Often, the small details can be changed or eliminated without a customer knowing - thus lowering the price. My favorite recollection is when a customer came back to me after purchasing cabinetry elsewhere. She said she was expecting all of the "bells and whistles" that she saw in my showroom. She was very upset and wished she had gone with my design. When I priced out what she had in her kitchen, my price was actually a little less than what she paid! The moral of the story... Shop for a designer - one you feel you can trust and one that is experienced. I put together a free website that gives my opinion on how you might go about selecting a kitchen designer. http://www.kitchensoftheworld.com/

Rachiele - that's a really good point. So, do you think, if I have a KD who I trust, who represents a particular line, I should just trust her & her line?

Absolutely. If you like what you see as far as cabinetry, and her design skills - look no further. Everyone works on similar margins if they have been in business for a while. Price is dictated by the price range of the cabinetry and the design.

Thank you, Rachiele. That is reassuring. I was sort of leaning that way, but didn't want to be a stupid consumer by not getting multiple estimates... good to know that I probably don't need to!

I got 4-5 quotes but like Rachielle said it is very difficult to compare apples to apples in cabinetry. I ended up choosing my cabinets because of the KD. He was no nonsense & upfront and the most helpful of anyone I had talked to thus far. My situation is a bit different as I am buying the cabinets from him but they do not install, so I have a contractor doing the installation of the cabinets, flooring etc.

The person is far more important than the product when you reach the mid level of quality on cabinetry. On the lower level, both are equally important. But, when you get to mid level quality, one line will be as long lasting as another, and priced competitively as well. The bigger differences are in the finishes. Any good KD can guide you to the best value for your particular project. If you let them.

A key point as a consumer -- as noted, a good KD will design something among their lines that will meet your needs and priorities. However, you do need to shop different KDs. Not only are their capabilities and services different, their margin structure and product line range may be entirely different. But, as pointed out above, make sure you are comparing apples to apples, in finish level, feature and construction details.

I think it's always a good idea to get multiple quotes when doing a large project. It gives you a nice baseline. I liked the First Lady I met with & they sold nice cabs but they never came out to my house to see the kitchen and that bugged me. After getting a few prices I also realized their price was a bit high. So I was glad I took the time to meet with several different people. I ended up using the last person I met with & I ended up in his store kinda by accident.

We chose our KD first and we will be getting two quotes from him. We like him and trust him. He works for a company that has been around for many years so we feel their prices will be competitive. He worked very hard to come up with a great layout for us, so we don't want to use anyone else.

We did meet with 4 different KDs before choosing him, though.

I got 10 quotes on 12 different cabinet lines. I ended up choosing the very first one who I met with. I chose them because the KD seemed the most knowledgable and she carried the cabinets that were the highest quality at a comfortable price point. She is also part of a design/build firm with a great reputation, so they can handle the full scope of our project. I don't think I would have felt as confident without shopping around.

I tried to get 3 quotes, but only one cabinetmaker was capable of building what we wanted (I was also the KD and all labor). I did verify their skills though by checking out some of their work in person. It all worked out in the end.

I hate the fact that supposed "pros" can post their websites on this forum. Very tacky. On Gardenweb that was called spam and it was removed.

First come up with a good layout/plan and then shop it around. Back on gardenweb you could post your layout and you would get great advice from pros and other very talented people. Not sure what you will get on this combined forum. On gardenweb the advice I got was much better than any KD I spoke to.

Debrqk - I've got a layout, which folks at this forum helped me a lot with! I also have a KD. Between the two, I think I'll be quite happy with the layout.

Glad you have your layout as that may be the hardest part. I ended up getting 8 quotes but that may be extreme. For us the important factor was the value of the cabinets. Since the design was already finalized there was not much the KD could do. I will say that the KD at Lowes (where we purchased) actually made some good suggestions, not about layout but ways to save money. How many KDs will make suggestions to lower your cost? If he was working on commission he lowered his with us but I really appreciated the advice.

On this site (Houzz) I was able to get the layout from crazy to sane, but GW is where I was able to really fine tune everything and make it functional without modifying the way it looked. The fact that it was a DIY rebuild scared a lot of the "pro" types on the Houzz side away though whereas on GW it was not an issue. I've thought about switching my account to the other kind so I can organize projects that I've done even though I have no clients besides our pets and my other half, though the tag would probably not be received well when I post on the board or ask the advice of others.

schicksal - totally agree! I have a hard time with all these "pro" types scaring people into thinking certain things about their projects. with the warnings!!! I get this to some extent, but no one would be doing a remodel if they did not have an idea of what they wanted or liked already.....you don't really need a pro for that.

We are DIY'ers also and one of the reasons I really liked GW. YOURS are the type of projects I want to see....a KD with a contractor and a custom (fill in the blank) can make a kitchen (or any space) look great...I would expect nothing less.

Its the DIY'ers....trying to fit things...figure it out...come up with a plan (while saving money all at the same time) that I am most impressed with. I hope you do find a way to post your projects because that is what I want to see.

Thanks, the next one will be a bedroom/bathroom but it will come after our springtime tasks (aka, things outdoors that you do NOT want to do in summertime in South Carolina). We have a layout but it's controversial. People either love it or hate it due to the placement of the washer and dryer but due to limitations with the existing structure we had to settle for a location that's less than ideal, but still a huge improvement from the way things are now.

We also still need to choose our materials for the bedroom and bathroom. There's a bit of disagreement there because neither of us have been able to find the perfect shower that really expresses our individual ideas that we can show each other a picture of. I think we'll probably get out the circular saw and start tearing things up in April. Things should be settled by then.

If nothing else, the merger should make it easier to follow individuals who we are interested in keeping up with future projects for.

LOL! I love controversial layouts!!! HA! We have an older house....... trying to make modern convenience fit it to old style construction is not always easy!

I'm sorry if I jumped to conclusions as I did not go to the site. I will admit that I am skeptical of any advice not coming from a regular GW poster. I'm afraid here you may get advice such as you have too many drawers or other nonsense, LOL!

I believe Rachiele is the man who makes beautiful custom copper sinks and who also made Deedle's sink. I've seen his posts off and on on GW.

You're correct, may_flowers. He's the guy who makes amazing sinks and he did post on the old GW site. Since some of the old GW regulars are professionals and may post with that username, I'd really hate to see us gang up on all pros just because they're pros. If they advise against lower drawers, someone can just correct them. :)

True

It should be pretty easy to tell between someone offering good advice vs. "I'll tell you more if you pay me to create drawings" or something like that. at least. Good advice is great regardless of the source, but open solicitation would probably not be received as well.

"I hate the fact that supposed "pros" can post their websites on this forum. Very tacky. On Gardenweb that was called spam and it was removed."

debrak_2008:

When the switch was made from Gardenweb to Houzz, I used Facebook and my company name appeared here instead of "Trebruchet" as on Gardenweb. I had nothing to do with it, but my real name on this forum is the only payment I'll apparently ever receive for all my "pro" advice.

As a few will attest, I respond personally to repeated email requests from posters with particular problems. Again, a nice "thank you" is all the renumeration I receive and for those I am grateful.Considering what the pros contribute here, and the expressions of gratitude to them by readers, let's not be too hard on "spammers", please.

I am so, so grateful for all the advice I've gotten here, both from the pros & from knowledgeable amateurs. It's such a privilege to get free professional advice - advice that I'd normally be paying $75-$100/per hour for!

Been on GW for about six years under a different name. Since I've been building high-end custom cabinets for thirty years or so I think I have a bit more experienced than someone who's maybe hired a contractor to do one kitchen remodel. Not that their experience doesn't mean something or isn't of value to some but a large percentage of what I read mostly concerning technical issues is incorrect information. Just people parroting something they might of read somewhere.

There are some pretty savvy and knowledgeable posters here, too, that don't have the word "Pro" following their username. What makes this forum work is the mix of information from a variety of sources, professionals, DIY'ers, and consumers alike. Even the pros aren't always in agreement regarding technical issues.

Sorry to contribute to the hijacking of the thread, but I'd thought I share an observation. The power of the former Gardenweb was actually in the breadth of members, both consumer and professional. The pros have provided invaluable advice, for free, to many DIYers and consumer working with other professionals. But, even the most experienced professional only sees a fixed number of projects over their career. It's just mathematically impossible that any individual has seen every possible combination of products, home layouts and construction problem or situation. Since there are hundreds and thousands of pros and consumers who visit these boards every month, the chances rise that someone has experienced the same situation rises dramatically. (There are also an huge number of very common questions, of course). It never never ceases to amaze me that someone has seen some product being sought, or has experienced some unusual situation first hand.

Now, back to the OP, Carrie. One thing you should ask yourself is, what type of KD do I want? Some are full service firms (KD/ID/GC) with strong design reputations that charge accordingly. Others offer a limited range of services (say turning your plan into a feasible reality in the lines they carry). You really need to ask yourself, what are you seeking?

Thanks, Gooster. Agree with what you say about the invaluable combination of both professionals and passionate amateurs with a breadth of knowledge!

I have a KD who works for a cabinet company. I have a layout that I like very much and that will work well for me. So, I feel like I'm well on the right track. Very exciting. I would be no where near as far along - or as on track - as I am without the help of folks on here.

Stop and think about the time wasted on 10 estimates. Sure, they're free to the consumer, but someone eventually has to pay for all that time or the contractor/KD will go out of business.

In my initial conversation with a prospect, how many other estimates you've received will be part of my qualifying questions. If you refuse to answer, no bid for you. If I'm the 9th bidder, no bid for you. I can't afford you, you're a tire-kicker and we're not right for each other. I'm amazed the 4th guy didn't sniff you out, but he and 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are getting exactly what they deserve for not doing so.

I'm curious, too, as to why someone would want or need to get 10 estimates. Melis918, if you were happy with the very first estimate you received concerning quality of the product and the price, and felt confident in the person and the company who gave you the estimate, what motivated you to get 9 more? I can understand getting two more for comparisons sake, but what were you looking for beyond that? Agree with Tre that "free" to the consumer is not exactly free to the one who is providing the estimate, so I don't understand getting more estimates than is necessary. Is there something specific that motivated you to get so many?

I agree that 10 was more than I needed, however I did not shop around at all during my last remodel 12 years ago and my cabinets started deteriorating after 2 years. I suppose I was obsessive about finding the best cabinet line in our price range that had a KD that I clicked with. Also, two of the quotes don't count since they never got back to me. Two other quotes were for cabinets that I have read about here on gw for years and they were way out of budget, even after being up front about our budget. Honestly, when I got that very first quote, I had no idea if it was too high and my intention was to look around, see what else is out there and compare the cost. Yes, in the end I am going with what I believe is a good cabinet line and I am working with someone who I'm comfortable with. After doing what may be too much research, I am at least confident about my choice.

Thank you, melis918 for explaining your process!