Well, hopefully someone with direct experience with this will chime in...I have looked at the Kitchenaid dimensions and installation instructions online because I want mine flush also. (I'm not using inset cabs though.) The dimensions are not entirely clear because they are not model-specific and show a front control panel in the diagram. However, it looks to me like the depth dimension is 24-1/2" to the outside of the flat plane of the door. (24-7/8" to the outside of the control panel on models with visible ones on the front, I think.) Plus up to 3/4" extra in the back for insulation, which varies by model and may be compressed. Whatever that means. I suppose you could even choose to leave it off, to save the space. So KA has not really provided enough information to know the depth exactly. But it looks like it will be AT LEAST 25-1/4" deep with a 3/4" panel attached, and as much as 26" with insulation depending on model. I would ask your contractor ASAP if the DW can be recessed into the wall. If not, and if an extra inch or two of counter would cost a lot of extra money, I would go with a Bosch model which I'm pretty sure is not as deep. To me, it would not look good to have a paneled DW not flush with the adjacent cabinet doors.

ahhh! Pasta. I was thinking pencils, kabob skewers, bottle brushes, and ran out of ideas! :) Pasture19, yes, that square hole thing is quartersawn oak, as is the 6" spice pull-out. What you haven't seen is the two, W1536 that I'm just stripping right now. They will be the only non-plywood boxes I have, because they're so beautiful. Shame, they're actually particle board I've reinforced dramatically. Lovely, though. The 4-drawer and its 2, B24 cabinets are plain, beautiful oak. Interesting that just two years ago I was reading and buying products to hide oak grain under my paint. Once I discovered that gorgeous gray/brown reclaimed color, it opened me up to wood cabinets I'd never liked before. Cerise + darker stains = oooooooooOooooo I haven't put up pictures yet of my cherry uppers and bases, nor my maple credenza. Then we have the LR floor-to-ceiling bookshelves I'm going to face frame (beaded of course) and build doors for the bottom shelves. Then the DR & laundry. I have more cabinets and species than most showrooms. Good thing I love unfitted and very eclectic decor, right!?!

I've done both in the last year - custom cabinets in my kitchen and Ikea in the kitchenette in the basement. My kitchen cabinets were built by local Amish cabinet makers and I could have any size I wanted. Wall cabinets were 13" deep standard, which is what you want with inset since you lose some depth. It was a 10% upcharge for inset cabinets (which I only did on the wall cabinets), a 10% upcharge for painted cabinets, and a 10% savings for frameless (which I did on the base cabinets). It was $11,000 or $12,000 for my 19 cabinets (some of which are very large because I have 10' ceilings) and all the trim, and here's a picture to give you an idea of what I got: For my Ikea basement I bought 7 cabinets and spent about $2000 (that's what my budget says but I didn't go back and add it up) for all the cabinets and trim. It was new construction so I planned the space so the Ikea cabinets with their limited standard sizes would fit well. Here's a picture of that: So what's the difference? I had the fun of loading and unloading the Ikea boxes in my minivan and putting the Ikea cabinets together. My custom cabinet boxes are 3/4" plywood and look like they'll last forever. My Ikea cabinet boxes are 1/2" particle board that made me nervous when I put granite on them. I figured when I attached two together it made 1" particle board, and that made me feel better. The plastic legs on Ikea cabinets made me nervous too. My wood cabinet doors can be touched up or repainted when my kids clobber them. My Ikea doors can be replaced easily. The hinges and drawer glides are about the same. My wood drawers are beautifully made and heavy-duty. The Ikea drawers aren't nearly as sturdy - I wouldn't load them up like I do my wood drawers (NOTE: Oops, I goofed, and I retracted this statement below - the drawers are sturdy). The greatest advantage to Ikea is that there is no waiting and you can quickly make changes as you go along if you need to. So I would definitely take the time to price it out both ways. The difference probably isn't astronomical, and then you can decide if the inset are worth it.

jejvtr - thanks for the pics! The partially concealed ones are the ones I always think of when I think of hinges - I mean they're the ones I grew up with myself. I really want the totally concealed kind though...although it's possible I could just give up and go for the butterfly hinges like I have on the upper cabinets but I'll try not to give up just yet! Seems there are so many down sides! antiquesilver - those pics are really helpful, thanks! And therein lies the rub - mine have a frame all around the openings. So hey - this analogy works for me!: mine are more like a regular door in a house (that people walk through). There's the door, and the frame next to the door, and they're flush with each other, and connected by a hinge, rather than the hinge being connected to the door and the wall next to the door (like in your case). Your pics make me very curious about seeing more of your cabinets from afar. I'm so curious about their style and colors. I love your cabs' interior paint...and what backsplash do you have? More pics, please. Yes that is a pretty massive hinge! I've saved the site though, thanks!