I ordered all my appliances locally and did as well or better as the random websites - plus, I have a local person to run over and see when (not IF, the way I hear it) my appliances need service or I have a problem. Customer service is primary - and small local guys would not stay in business if they couldn't provide it. That said, I ordered my sink on-line (it was delivered today and haven't opened the box yet) for $200 less than the lowest local price; my faucet on-line for $150 less than locally, and will order my under-counter filtration unit on-line because the one I want, nobody around here carries.

acountryfarm - Thanks for the response. Looking at the pics of your bath posted on the B & W Bath thread, I certainly don't think your tile falls into the "cheap stuff" catagory... I think your bath is beautiful. The subway seems to have a patina, which is what I am looking for and not the cheap high glossy look. Did you buy it from a local dealer or on the internet? I live in a very small town close to nowhere, so my choices are limited.......... I will check with the two local stores in the area and see if they can get me a sample. Does it come in any other colors????

Hi squarefour, We worked directly through our local plumbing supply house for all faucets and plumbing fixtures, but we had to make it clear to our GC (who had to let his plumber know up front) that we would handle the purchase of all fixtures. Our local plumbing supply saleswoman gave us about 40% off retail (maybe partly because it was the 2nd whole house remodel we did w/her). We bought mostly Kohler fixtures with some Hansgrohe and Grohe. I price-checked against several online retailers and found, on most items, she was giving us a comparable, or sometimes better, price as those found on efaucets.com. You can save even more during the efaucets free shipping or 10% off promotions, which they run quite frequently. In a past remodel, we had a plumber get quite upset about the fact that we intended to buy fixtures directly through the supply house because (unknown to us) he had bid the job with the expectation that he would also get a markup on the fixtures. We ended up working it out with him and paying him a bit more, but our GC had not explained this process to us (it was a cost plus contract) so we assumed it was okay for us to do our own thing with fixtures. During our most recent remodel, we knew the question of who buys plumbing fixtures was one we should specifically ask the GC before the contract was signed (both for plumbing and electrical). It was fine with him and was perhaps different because we were on a fixed price contract and maybe that makes a difference, but I don't really see why it would, as long as you make it clear to the GC and his plumber that he should not assume he'll get any fixture mark-up on the job, and his bid numbers need to reflect that. Also, some plumbers will try to convince you that it's important for them to buy the fixtures because they will then stand behind them, but I've never understood that position because the fixture warranty is what matters on the fixtures, and the contractors' work is supposed to also be guaranteed, so if there's a problem with either within the set period of time, you should technically be covered. If, for example, there's an issue with a faucet and you have to pay a plumber to come back and fix it, you'd probably have to pay for the plumber's time (unless you get the manufacturer to agree to cover it all) so you'll have to weigh the risk/benefit of getting the lower price on the fixture. I'm sure others will disagree with this strategy, and of course, I'm speaking from the homeowner's perspective, not the contractor's. Regarding light fixtures, as it turned out, I wish I bought these online. My electrician told me he and many of his clients have had great luck using online retailers. Instead, I used my local lighting showroom, after researching the types of fixtures I wanted online. They did give me a fair price (which I, of course, doublechecked against online retailers), but actually, the local showroom service left a lot to be desired. We had a few fixtures that came in damaged, and they did not "pre-check" them so they sat in my garage unopened yet damaged and then when our electrician came back to set fixtures, we found several of them were broken and, as it turned out, were on backorder so it took about another 4-5 weeks to get them in and could have delayed the final building inspection. The electrician claimed that it was the lighting store's responsibility to check the fixtures for quality control when they arrived in the store before we picked them up. We also paid one of the lighting showroom "designers" a $100 fee to come out to the house, give us design advice for proper fixture sizes, review our order and make sure that our downrods were correctly sized for chandeliers, etc. As it turned out, when the fixtures were delivered, she had not ordered long enough downrods on the DR chandelier and two of the ceiling fans. Again, another 3 week wait for these with another return trip by electricians! Very frustrating. So, you can get poor service either way, and who knows, I may have been better served by going online. There are some excellent lighting retailers online who offer good phone support, as I've since found out. Here are my favorite online retailers for both lighting and plumbing, all of which seem to offer excellent prices - For lighting - www.1800lighting.com (the store is actually called Capitol Lighting, but this is their website address) www.lightinguniverse.com For plumbing - www.efaucets.com - they seem to offer around 40% off retail, but I don't have any experience with their service. Also, do a google search for ongoing coupons for all of these websites and you may find they have a weekend sale of 10% off or some such thing frequently. Best of luck on your project!

Kat is right about HE, their prices are within reason as lighting goes. I've been looing at a Schonbek light at $399, and haven't found it for less yet~it's $497 at Lampsplus. I was impressed with overstock.com, and have heard their customer service is quite good. Only problem is, you may not find lighting collections ie:hanging, flush, pendant, sconce, etc. Check out the ebay stores too. I haven't purchased yet, but am considering. Some of the sites may offer free shipping, or minimal~one site has many lights that are shipped at $22. If there isn't a store in your area, they may not be able to charge tax~I would question them on that. There *are* discount sites, you just have to do a little research.