Custom Kitchen Cabinets For Less

When we bought this house eight years ago, the most impressive part was definitely the kitchen. It was huge with cabinets from top to bottom. Like any house though, it was designed with the original homeowner in mind.

I'm convinced they must've been giants. The microwave was set up high, which to a short person could be dangerous if you're pulling out hot liquids.

When we finally committed to having the cabinets refaced (as opposed to replaced) I asked for some modifications. The first on the list was moving a nice wide drawer that was in the wrong place. Originally, it was below the inset wine rack, which I hated. It was impossible to clean the wine rack even with my little hands.

Also, when we realized we'd have a big hole after replacing the old Sub Zero fridge, we knew we'd need to hide that space, but it was beyond the contractual obligation of the carpenter so Greg built me a pull-out drawer in that long narrow space. He did this twice, but I'll explain why in a later post.

I keep my most used items in the pull-out: spices, vinegars, some pastas, and sprouting seeds. Of all the changes in the kitchen this is definitely my favorite.

I had thought about cabinet refacing for a long time but no one would give me a ballpark figure. They were very willing to send out a salesman though and do an estimate. To me that meant big $$$, so I resisted.

One day, we decided to hear them out. Home Depot had the best reviews of everyone I researched. The salesman came out, did his rough measurement, showed us samples and then flattened us with the estimate.  Too high, I told him. He adjusted some stuff and gave me another figure. Still too high, but Greg cautioned me that what they were going to do was beyond his grasp because of the materials involved. The cabinets have a hardened finish that we could never duplicate.

According to the salesman, they would send out a team that would remove the cabinet doors and drawers, sand the face frames down to bare wood, repair any defects, then resurface the frames, and install completely new drawers and doors.

After his explanation I could see why it was as expensive as it was. I certainly wouldn't do it for less. Moreover, the husband and wife team that did the work went above and beyond.

They fixed things that were not in the contract, like giving me an additional cabinet where the microwave stood, and fixed the water-damaged interior of a cabinet under the sink. They worked very long hours for five and a half straight days. Some of the doors were damaged in shipping so they had to come back (last week) to finish the job.

I'm difficult to please, and I won't deny it, but Home Depot impressed me from start to finish. I will tell you the price, only because when I did my research, I couldn't find a base line anywhere. Had I known beforehand I might not have gone through with it. After seeing the results, I'm glad I did. It looks like a brand new kitchen. What am I saying? It is a brand new kitchen, good enough for a magazine spread.

We got free financing for 2 years if we paid it in full. The final price was $30,000 (rounded up). Mine is considered a very large kitchen, with nearly 70 square feet of cabinets. The carpenter told me that smaller kitchens run between 10-15k.

Before, every cabinet was stuffed to the seams. Now I actually have EMPTY cabinet space because Greg added the tall pull-out drawer, and removed the wine rack and the microwave. This gave me room for two more full cabinets.

It's rare when I ask for anything major like this, but I think it'll be a good investment in the long run. I'm especially happy with the pull-out drawer. I'll do a post on how Greg did ours in case you ever want to try this at your home. It's such a great way to use an otherwise useless space.

Now on to refinishing the floor. That'll have to wait for a few days. I have a sick husband at home. He's running a fever so it's soup and tea for a while.



UPDATE: One year and one month later and it's paid in full! It still looks as beautiful as the first day.

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