Why do you think Conestoga are superior?

Ill look them up.

Definitely look them up, but from my research it seems like they are. Plywood or solid wood boxes and drawers, dovetail/soft close drawers, Blum hardware. I know IKEA shares some of those features but definitely not all. Conestoga also has tons of door options and customizable sizes at no up charge.

Plywood means nothing; it's no better than other materials. Dovetail...meh. Ikea does soft-close. You seem to have an idea that we need to talk about.

Ikea's cabinet warranty is 25 years. What's Conestoga's? Ikea was a pioneer using Blum hardware.

Hm really?? Well IKEA is about 2 grand cheaper so it would definitely be nice to just go with them! I assumed all those other features were more desirable...

Some people do like the look of plywood drawer bottoms/sides etc. Personally, I prefer wood where I can always see it, on doors and drawer fronts. Ikea's drawers consistently run smoothly while my neighbor's plywood drawers stick during hot/humid weather. Sheesh.

The biggest difference is customization. IKEA can be hacked and there are some gorgeous kitchens from there, it just takes a little extra thought. Conestoga just tell them what you want and they will build it. For me, I wanted inset, custom widths/depths, custom drawer depths, etc.. An IKEA kitchen isn't necessarily lower quality, from what I've read. I think you can even put Conestoga doors and drawers on IKEA boxes, but I might be wrong. What style is your kitchen? If you post your layout I bet the pros can help you see if you need custom sizes or not!

Thanks for that, Amber! I actually did post my layout (it's changed only slightly) a while back....but I'm scared to post it again for fear of layout lash back. LOL. My ice/water/stone/fire flow is more of a ice/fire/stone/water thing. haha. Unfortunately we're working with a really really tight budget and have to stick with the layout as it is now. We're also only going to be in our house for about 5 years so it's not a forever home. But maybe i'll post again and hope for the best ;)

Ok, you've convinced me. I'll post :)

I've assembled a full kitchen of ikea and a full kitchen of conestoga. Ikea was easier. Conestoga required gluing and a nail gun (new toy). Ikea was also easier to install. But conestoga wasn't bad, if you have basic carpentry skills.

I'm using both in my kitchen. I'm currently putting the IKEA together but haven't done the Conestoga yet.

Thanks guys! We have a contractor who will be installing but we'll be putting everything together so that's helpful to know! Mathteachr, did you prefer one kitchen over the other?

I did ikea in my own kitchen because I really loved the all drawer lowers for a great price. I did conestoga in my mom's kitchen, she wanted a painted and glazed traditional look, and didn't really care about getting lots of drawers, and it also turned out beautifully. My kitchen was more for function (drawers & organizers) and hers was more for the look and custom sizes. I was totally happy with both, for different reasons. Both saved me a pile of money over standard assembled cabinets, though some of the savings was the diy install.

And don't forget the option of Ikea cabinets and innards and doors/drawer fronts from someone else.

I'm doing IKEA cans and drawers with Conestoga doors. I also have 1/3 of the cabs as Conestoga for the custom sizes.

Beachem: were you able to order the Conestoga doors “for” the Ikea boxes? In other words, provide the box sizes and they do the doors without you having to know exactly what special hinge drilling you needed, etc? (And drawer fronts that work?) I’d like to use the IKEA boxes for ease of installation and cost savings, but I really like the look and quality of the Conestoga doors, and the available coordinating items such as legs for the island, custom aprons to get a furniture look, etc. Thanks in advance!