I think it depends on how much advice you'd like/need, whether you're positive you want a particular cabinet line, etc.

We went with a KD who gave us the option of paying her directly or buying cabs from her. She did an excellent job of squeezing maximum utility from our small (10X11 foot) space, and has since been advising us on countertops, appliances and backsplash. She's pretty good on the design end of things IMO, less so on the 'what's the latest and greatest' but I have you all, so it's okay. ;)

Thanks zobeet. So, did you elect to buy cabinets from the KD, or did you pay her for her time and guidance?

We bought cabinets from her because it was easier and the price was competitive.

I definitely suggest you talk to several KDs, get their input, ask them what they'd do with your space and check references.

hi sayde,

when i started my process, I did the same as you, hand done drawings of the walls in my room, at first not to scale, but as I refined, to scale.

I went to a number of different retail locations to meet with cabinetry sales people (I suppose some of these people are KD's, but honestly none had any earth shattering advice or design expertise I couldn't live without...).

Some of the lines I looked at are: Plain and Fancy, Quality Custom Cabinetry, Woodmode, Custom through a local cabinetmaker, Medallion, Kennebec Company, Lowe's (but they don't carry any lines that do inset) and went with Crown Point. I had to look at so many different lines because we were on a budget and going over on the cabinets would have meant no custom hood, or no fancy dishwasher, etc.

Perhaps you could try to go it alone and if you get stuck post your plans on here to see if there are any glaring problems and/or if a KD might be helpful.

Is your space problematic with design challenges that might warrant a KD?

if you decide to go it alone, one suggestion is to keep a tape measure with you at all times. I would constantly be measuring my old cabinets for size to see how much bigger / smaller the new ones should be. I'd be measuring cereal boxes, and cookie sheets and all sorts of other things to figure out how big my draws, pantry, etc. should be.

if you decide to go for a KD perhaps you could do a little research on area showhouses and get some names that way. in my area, there are Junior League showhouses, along with other charitable showhouses and This Old House showhouses so you can see the work of some really talented designers and possibly find someone that way. just an idea.

Thank you so much mamadadapaige!

One of the big take-away messages that I have gotten from all the people on GW but especially from you is that it is important to be very detailed and specific before asking for quotes, and critical not to abdicate any of the decisions. The more I measure and plan, the more I see the need to get as crisp as possible. Not that I couldn't benefit from lots of input and advice, and I am most grateful for everything I am learning here.

I was hoping to ask you which cabinet makers you looked at. You anticipated my question! Can I ask you why you selected Crown Point? .Who did you work with there? Any tips for working with them? Am I right that one of your first requirements was full inset? I want full inset drawers but not sure about the doors yet.

Your hood is so spectacular! Making it a budget priority to have that hood was a very good decision. (note to self) Thanks so much for pointing me to that supplier. Did you get the fan insert from them as well?

My kitchen is 12 by 13 feet -- small enough that I need to watch every inch as well as every dollar. One of the "wishes" I have is to harvest and re-use some of the components such as leaded glass windows/cupboards (build new frames) and perhaps also harvest some of the gumwood veneer door panels -- would like to take these from the existing cabs and reframe them and combine into a pantry wall. Gumwood is now an "extinct" wood for cabinetry -- it was used a lot in my area in the twenties. The veneer panels on the cupboard door are quite amazing and I would like to keep the best of them.

After looking at lots of pictures --and especially your pictures -- and collecting favorites into a file I see that enlarging the window to stretch from sink to ceiling and also widening it would be a key priority. So that means new leaded glass. Nothing that cannot be done, but all a matter of -- what will it cost?

Thanks again for your responses.

hi sayde,
i am off to pick up my daughter but wanted to get back to you quickly... i chose crownpoint because a couple of friends had used them and spoke highly of them. i liked the look of Plain and Fancy cabinets but the showroom near me is staffed by some very young people who i didn't really trust to get the measuring right.

the guy we worked with at crownpoint, Mark Wirta, has been there a long time and thus has encountered probably every situation known to man and that gave me a great comfort level. Mark came down to my house to measure (with the contractors) and this was good because we had some walls out of plumb and thus Mark had to make notes for extra depth on certain cabinets so that they could be scribed by our contractors on site. The contractors were impressed with his thoroughness and the follow through on everything was pretty amazing.

delivery went extremely smoothly. there was one little problem. the spice rack had three hinges (to support the extra weight of items on the door), the cabinet door on the other side of the range only had two hinges. I thought for symmetry purposes it should have three. I called mark before the delivery person left. he had me send the door back with the delivery person. They added the hinge and sent it down to me FedEx so I had it a few days later.

While I didn't ask much of them in the design department, I do get the sense that they would be fairly capable of putting something nice together for someone who needed that. The drawings I sent to the them when I initially contacted them were pretty close to what I ended up with with some minor changes, although the island changes quite a lot for cost reasons.

In getting quotes from all the different companies, the island cost A LOT from everyone.

will check in with you later.
k

Mamapapa, thanks again for your guidance. You have been so generous!
A new message from your response is that it was important to have your contractor lined up and on site when Mark the rep from Crown Point came to measure. You are helping me think through the process. If I read you correctly, it sounds like, after your design was done, the next step was to engage the overall GC (and some of the specific subs), and then the next step was to bring in the cabinet supplier. Is that right? I do think that makes sense-- to have the overall responsibility and primary liason with the local GC. It seems that the process if you go to a KC is that they design or help with design, and they order the cabs but they may or may not do a complete liason with the other trades and may leave you to do some of that.
I have no problem linking among the subs but it seems preferable to have the ultimate responsibility rest with someone local -- the GC --who makes sure everything comes together.

Thank you also for your message in the previous post about measuring all current storage and making sure that planned new storage will meet those needs. It's time to (temporarily) stop ogling the kitchen porn and get down to tapes and pencils and paper.

It was very encouraging to hear that you had such a good experience with CrownPoint. Also, I have registered your point about the experience maturity level -- the cabs will be only as good as the people who do the measurement.

Just cannot tell you how much I appreciate your guidance. Thanks so much!