Cabinetry questions -

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

Hi everyone,

I'm in the process of planning our kitchen reno for summer 2022. We are keeping the same layout and I'd like painted cabinets (full overlay, framed) - white for the perimeter and dark blue/gray for the island. I'm looking at semi-custom (Candelight) and custom cabinets (which range from handmade by local craftspeople to Signature). The price range is just bonkers, with some of the semi-custom coming in higher than the custom.

SO - what are the best/right questions to ask? How can I compare? What do I need to know?

Thanks!

Featured Answer

User

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

95% of the cost isn’t in the marketing buzz words. Its about build materials, methodology, and finishing steps and materials. It’s WORK to really understand it. This is where your independent kitchen designer can help you sort through the whole.

Roughly, price never doesn’t not correlate with quality. But sometimes, a high end custom brand has a lot of no charge custom options, vs a semi custom charging for each customization.

The best and worst possible is ”local custom” as custom isn’t a synonym for quality. If local custom isn’t MORE than a manufactured high end custom line, then their quality won’t be equal to it. It can’t be. Large manufactures have huge economies of scale that smaller local manufacturers just cannot compete with.

The myth of the local cabinet maker being half the cost of a high end brand is exactly that. A myth. If its half the cost, its less than half the quality. The people that say that, really have no real idea about the realities of cabinet construction and finishing. They don’t know enough to be able to judge quality.

It would be like a Doberman breeder being asked to judge a local cat show. They know a bit about anatomy and coat care, but they are completely clueless about cat breed standards. They can pick pretty though! And that is a homeowner wading through the minefield of cabinets. They all look virtually ”the same” to the untrained eye.

Decide what is your price point, which will correlate with a quality point. Then, if you are at a mid grade quality level or above, don’t sweat it and second guess it.

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Comments (9)

herbflavor
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
the same layout? white framed on perimeter? what makes this custom or semi custom w upcharges it sounds you are getting???? You can do RTA especially if the same configuration. Emphasis on drawers and their sizes ? You have plenty of time w graph paper if you know your layout..... reach SCHERRS or CABINET JOINT or one of these online RTA or IKEA and other sourced fronts for even more savings.... you can get help w details in a very comprehensive way w some of these on line RTA and you have plenty of time. this is all homework . money should be spent on drawers and various storage options if layout is not changing.....this sort of thing is not dependent on a custom maker but rather time spent on details . Showing your plan /a pic of your space will give you feedback that can be helpful and also w regards reining in or keeping a budget.
Sally T thanked herbflavor
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herbflavor
5 years ago
curious as to your initial info posted ...why the FRAMED with full overlay???
Sally T thanked herbflavor
Sally T
Original Author
5 years ago
@herbflavor - I only care about the full overlay part - but don't really have an opinion about framed vs. frameless - any input? Thanks!
User
5 years ago
Frameless is far superior to full overlay. Framed is only ever really needed if you are doing inset. It also separates the men from the boys, quite literally, when discussing cabinet makers and installers.
Sally T thanked User
M Miller
5 years ago
Frameless cabinetry provides additional space inside the drawers and cabinets, and there are no dreaded stiles. If you have the opportunity to have frameless cabinets, I see no reason to forego the extra interior inches by getting framed.
Sally T thanked M Miller
Sally T
Original Author
5 years ago
Hi all, ok, I'm convinced re: frameless.

Any other suggestions for what to LOOK for in terms of cabinet quality? Ask about? Thanks!
User
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Pick up a copy of Danny Proulx’s book on frameless cabinets as a start to education. There’s a half dozen of his other books that are worth reading too, especially the one on doors and drawers, but they are more focused on framed. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/217079.Building_Frameless_Kitchen_Cabinets

Bob Lang’s book is a classic. https://www.rockler.com/bob-langs-the-complete-kitchen-cabinetmaker-revised-edition-book

Join a few cabinet building groups on FB. This is probably the best and broadest overview, with novices and experts exchanging and sharing. https://www.facebook.com/groups/2033092130155445/

Any of Bob Flexner’s books on finishing is a start to understanding that extremely complex and rapidly changing aspect of cabinetry. The basics of a good finishing process do not change, even if the materials evolve to be more technologically advanced. . https://www.thriftbooks.com/a/bob-flexner/215939/

This is the best DIY cabinet finishing group, for learning the absolute basics of the process. https://www.facebook.com/groups/PaintingKitchenCabinetsforProfit/ Ignore the DIY product recommendations for the most part. Pros use much more durable products, and this is the intermediate level group where newer pros are learning about that. https://www.facebook.com/groups/486292682703500/?ref=share

Or, instead of spending the next 9 months immersed in the arcane details that really make the difference between a $500 cabinet and a 5K cabinet, hire an experienced *independent* kitchen and bath designer who has 20+ years of learning and knowing all of this stuff. Not someone who focuses on selling you more, and more expensive, cabinets to pay their included unknown commission fee as a ”free” service. Pay for design help, and design knowledge, as a separate unbiased service from selling you cabinets.
Sally T thanked User
Sally T
Original Author
5 years ago
thanks @User! I'm trying to find an independent kitchen designer in my area (Metrowest Boston).