You get what you pay for, but there is a saving in self assembly. Then there is the cost of counselling...

Can you refinish your existing cabinets, if the carcasses are still solid?

Pros: attractive, affordable, great add-ons, damaged door easy to replace, sturdy

Cons: Just the stigma that IKEA isn’t quality

My daughter has the most fabulous IKEA kitchen. She bought the flat panel, higher end knobs; quartz; did all the outfits possible which IKEA offers, saved a ton of money and it looks amazing.

chook, my cabinets are 30 years old and were nothing special when brand new. so there is zero value in refinishing. I'm a fairly handy diy-er so I probably won't need any more counseling than what comes out of a wine bottle!

iamjudy, that's kind of how I feel. Resale value isn't particularly a priority, but I also don't want to get killed on it.

My friend has a lovely Ikea kitchen . If you don't want to assemble, I am sure that someone could be paid to do it. It still would represent a savings, I am sure.

I am a designer and have used Ikea cabinets in about 16 renos so far over the space of 15 years. I love them and you can't beat the price. They have a great warranty and all the hardware is from Germany. The finishes are great and I have even had some laquered to suit a certain look i wanted. I have had them in my last 2 houses and just did a reno for a client with the dark grey laquer and it is beautiful. By the way most Ikea stores have assemblers and installers to do work.

I think IKEA cabinets look much better then HD. JMO.

You'll be just fine with IKEA ;) These clients extremely happy. They saved $ on the cabinets to splurge on what "they" felt was more important. ( countertops, backsplash, fixtures etc... )

As for countertop check out Abet Laminati for something completely different, I love their stuff and affordable and not granite ( I think granite has been done to death) Also can be done by a competent DIYer

In this world you very seldom get more than you pay for.

Agree, MS, but in this world you can get less, too…in my case my very expensive cabinets have been a disappointment.

Unless I am mistaken, a kitchen cabinet box is just that, a box. The IKEA boxes are fine and if I had it to do over again, it will be IKEA, hands down. The drawers open and shut smoothly. The corner cabinets are fantastic. The pantries, ditto. Should something happen to a door, it can be popped off and easily replaced.

$25,000.00 is a lot of money to spend on something if it puts you into debt.

I am also trying to find the balance in my house. I think I am on the cusp of 'must have' and 'don't have to have' as far as the quality of my home/neighborhood. I should probably consult my realtor friend on if it would kill me on resale. I am trying to do what I want without regards to resale, but I also don't want to under install.

Patricia Colwell, as I understand it, I get killed on anything but solid surface for countertops.

spenserh, good idea to speak to a realtor. Spending $25,000.00 on a house worth $200,000.00 doesn’t make sense.

I will give you an example…my friend sold her home for $1,550,000.00. She spent a little over $120,000.00 on her kitchen a few years before she sold the house.

She purchased a lovely, less expensive home and is doing IKEA.

If kitchen cabinets are just a box, would you classify what you consider custom.

Often with clients who are trying to achieve a design goal within a budget, I recommend ikea boxes and even facades. But then the rest is customized and the savings go towards nice faucets,,countertops, backsplash, etc. the idea is to achieve the wow without the woah!

Ikea has come a long ways. They even measure and install now. There are alot of places that are cheaper than lowes. Shop around.

I just priced cabinets at a big box store like lowes versus using a custom cabinet guy. Custom cabinets were cheaper. Shop around and do some research.

What is the value of having and using the kitchen you want for 8 years and then losing a little on the resale. If all is based on resale the least you can do is best.

I would be very concerned if a custom cabinet came in cheaper than Lowes. The statement that all the boxes are the same is true so why not save some money. Custom is when cabinets are made to perfectly fit the space, with Ikea I often design the space to fit their cabinets, makes it easier for the DIY guy,

Spennseth, did you check out the Abet Laminati site. I did a counter here just a couple of months ago with the Stratifiacto with the aluminum layers in black and white it is amazing. Their stuff stands up even outside and can be ordered in hundreds of colors you should
check them out. Been used in Europe for years. Also self supporting for quite a distance depending on thickness which makes it great for counter extensions and bars.

Spenserh, do not hesitate to use Ikea cabinets. We have just completed a new build and used HD cabinets for the kitchen and Ikea for the laundry, which is a good size. After only a year, I really wish I had used Ikea in the kitchen, too. My son is a contractor, who does a lot of fairly high-end renos; he often specifies Ikea cabinets, because they have excellent hardware, lovely finishes and a great guarantee. Its easy to replace doors that get damaged, and they have experienced installers. Go for it, and spend your money on some glitz!!

http://www.ikeafans.com/forums/kitchen-planning/59238-built-project-using-ramsjo-cabinets.html

Search IKEA Fans for member johnbh. He has installed some great looking Ikea kitchens. Very creative with beautiful finishing trim work too.

Custom doors to fit Ikea frames. http://www.semihandmadedoors.com/

Many of our customers tell us that they are going with Ikea cabinets. They then do a face lift by upgrading everything that touches the cabinets. We hear about it because they often choose a Craft Art wood countertop on an Ikea base. I am going to email one customer in particular who did this recently and see if she'll allow me to post her photo!

Also, Ikeafans.com is a great resource in general. We've actually gotten customers who found out about us through people who posted on ikeafans.com (which is how I heard about the site in the first place!).

And for even more low budget with a high end look and high quality check out Craft Art's DIY wood countertops. if you are willing/able to do the oiling and final touches it's a fabulous deal.

https://store.craft-art.com/product-category/diy-butcher-block-wood-countertops/homeowner-diy-you-can-do-it/

Craft art- have you heard anything about the new Metod/Method system that is replacing the current Faktum/Akurum frames?

Our designers spec'd Ikea cabinets for our Florida complete condo remodel. I would do ikea again in a heartbeat.

We actually keep pretty close tabs on what's happening in cabinets, so we are familiar with the change that they announced back in June (may have been July?). Check out this video on their youtube. The new ones, METOD, are a building block system. The concept seems to be increased customization. It looks like Kitchen Design Lego Land (in a good way!). But keep in mind I am not a cabinet expert - just a cabinet admirer.



And here's a link to a great discussion about Ikea kitchens:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/are-ikea-kitchen-cabinets-a-good-idea-good-questions-186728

(ApartmentTherapy.com is a great site, too)

Thanks, Craft Art! Wonder how long before we can see this person.

I am looking for kitchen cabinets for my new kitchen. Got estimated from HD for 20k and from a custom cabinets for $24k ( I didnt get a lot of drawers). I love the clean looks like Ikea Cabinets, just wondering if these cabinets will last like the regular woods and easy to clean due to my chinese cooking style.

I need to cut down in our renovation budgets and I am kinds of worried of the quality.

Any suggestions I would appreciate and if anyone knows a reasonable kitchen cabinets in Framingham, Ma, let me know.

Thanks

hkwan, go visit the Ikea store in Stoughton Ma to see them for yourself.

You can design whatever you like with their brand new system.

We put in an IKEA kitchen a few years ago in our last home, and will do it again in our current home. We overbuilt the cabinets a bit with extra glue and nails. The boxes were solid. The hardware was fantastic and you can't beat the price. When we chose IKEA, Consumers Report rated them second best in quality, just behind a very expensive designer kitchen (can't remember the name). When we moved, I know the kitchen was a big selling point and my friends were in mourning over my loss! ; )
Sorry not a great pic but you get the idea. Unfortunately IKEA no longer sells these gorgeous red cabinets...

I had those in my last house I loved them the new yellow ones are kind of cool if you dare. I guess my comment on granite hit some people in a bad way IMO it has been over done and is now in every cheap little condo so just not my cup of tea.

Oh noo..I love those red color.

We avoid them. Our experience is that they are hard to install and assemble, and the quality is not consistent with our standards. and the company that IKEA uses for installation is very hard to work with as well.
In our market we can get simple custom-made cabinetry with similar finishes for roughly 10% more, including installation and warranty, than IKEA, and in the end, that is a much better value.

I do not know of any custom cabinet companies that come in a t 10% higher than Ikea that would even be around 25yrs from now to cover the warranty you get from Ikea as for hard to put together my 12 yr. old grandson can do it and you can get your own installer to install I usually have my contractors install them no problem I have been using them for 20 yrs in my design business and had ONE warranty claim in that time.

In my market - custom is the way to go. Our biggest issue is Ikea is that they do not have an official "USA" corporation, so they are nearly immune from any warranty claims that require litigation. We have not found any of their installers who carry the necessary insurance that our license requires them to have - so we can't hire their installers. The fact that they go into private homes without insurances should scare any homeowner.

We had the red doors too - loved the way they looked. We are expanding our kitchen and reusing the existing cabinets with new doors, plus additional cabinets. I managed to get them ordered just before they switched systems. The existing frames are 8 years old and in great shape. Very happy with the quality. Oh, and we assembled and installed them ourselves the first time. This time we're assembling but letting our contractor hang them.