We had American Woodmark at our old house for a couple years before we moved. We didn't have any problems with them. We upgraded to the full extension undermount glides, which to me was a worthwhile upgrade. I did not like some of the grain/knots in the Maple Spice wood, so they sent me new doors right away. We kept the old ones in the basement as spares...never needed them. We briefly considered AW for our new kitchen remodel but they just didnt offer as many options and cabinet sizes as Kraftmaid. For instance in AW, our 36 inch pantry would have that "flap thingy" on the double doors so you have to close one door before you can close the other (I think it is called a mullion?). Since we know we are going to be in the house for a long time, I did not want to have to deal with that forever. However, I think as long as you stick to basic cabinet sizes, you should have no problems. I agree that AW and Shenandoah are the same company so go with whichever store you like better. HD and Lowes will usually work with you to beat each other's prices so get a few quotes from different stores. Some people have suggested "Just Cabinets" or buycabinets.com, but I have no experience with either of them. Good luck!

You are supposed to recess that toekick until it covers the black. A wood skin covers the sides. Your sides are currently just the vinyl print boxes that aren't flush, and they have the bit of space for the skin that's supposed to be applied. After the skin and toekick are applied, then scribe molding is used at the wall and any edges to cover the seams. Any cut edges use the touch up marker to conceal them. And both the skins and the toekick should be bradnailed in place, not glued. Then the brads are covered with a bit of the matching putty from the touch up kit that should have been ordered with the cabinets.

I heard they are closing 2 of their 11 plants. I would highly doubt they are going out of business.

OK, just did some digging. Apparently, Artistokraft is not a series of lines, they are a line within MasterBrand Cabinets. Based on what I saw, I stand by my assessment. Artistokraft only has a 5-year limited warranty and appears to be the least expensive line of MasterBrand cabinets. My experience with Aristokraft: Other than the lazy susan, all drawers and cabinets were falling apart within a few short years. Surprisingly, the lazy susan never had issues and worked and looked just as good when we demo'd as when we first moved in almost 13 years before. However, after a few years we had to replace the hinges on several cabinet doors as they wouldn't close. The drawers did not open/close smoothly. The decorative drawer fronts on the sink base had to be reattached several times. They were painted and the paint began wearing off within about 5 years. The shelves in the upper cabs were bowing. My research: American Woodmark’s brands: American Woodmark cabinetry - Home Depot only Shenandoah Cabinetry - Lowe's only Timberlake Cabinetry - major homebuilders Waypoint Living Spaces - all others? I could not easily/quickly find a cost/warranty breakdown like I found for MasterBrand below. . Artistokraft Cabinetry - a brand of MasterBrand Cabinets. Artistokraft appears to be a "brand" within MasterBrand Cabinets and, at least online, does not appear to have other "lines". If that's the case, then if it were me, I would not get Artistokraft based on my previous experience (see above). MasterBrand cabinet lines: Artistokraft Cost: $ Warranty: 5-year limited Homecrest Cost: $ - $$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Diamond Cost: $$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Schrock Cost: $$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Kemper Cost: $$ Warranty: Lifetime limited KitchenCraft Cost: $$ - $$$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Decora Cost: $$$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Omega (Dynasty - Semi-Custom / Pinnacle - Custom) Cost: $$ - $$$ Warranty: Lifetime limited Appears to be the only MasterBrand line to offer fully customized cabinets