Help me choose between 3 semi-custom cabinets

10 years ago

I am looking at redoing my mid-70's galley kitchen with one of three choices from Lowes or Home Depot. Help me think through quality and look. Right now I am leaning toward the Gresham style from Lowes since it seems to be more wood on the door at least, and we kind of like the wider trim. With any of the choices we will go with slab drawers, not the 5 piece. If we go with Diamond we will go with a painted finish- cloud. If we go with Martha we will go with the sharkey gray purestyle laminate.

Gresham details:
Square full overlay
Solid reversed raised panel
Solid slab drawer front
5 piece drawer front optional
Reflections Construction

Jamestown details:
Square full overlay
Veneer flat panel
Veneer drawer front
Reflections Construction

Maidstone details:
Purestyle laminate over MDF
? Not much else in the brochure/on HD site

I'll post pictures of the options below.

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Comments (9)

jesshs
Original Author
10 years ago
Picture of Gresham
jesshs
Original Author
10 years ago
Picture of Jamestown (hopefully smaller)
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jesshs
Original Author
10 years ago
Maidstone
annkh_nd
10 years ago
I had custom cabinets built by a local shop, so I'm certainly no expert on semi-custom, but it seems to me that the most important thing in a cabinet line is sizes and features.Can you get 15" uppers, if you want them? enough flexibility in cabinet sizing to minimize filler?

I'm not saying that door faces aren't important - but it appears that the ones you're looking at are pretty similar, so I would choose based on which line gives you the most functional use of your space.

Good luck!
jellytoast
10 years ago
I used Diamond cabinets in my kitchen. Mine are shaker style in cherry, all plywood construction, solid wood doors. Since I don't have a painted finish, I can't comment on that, but I can say that I am very happy with the finish on my cabinets. I have a total of 18 boxes including a tall pantry, and all of them arrived in perfect shape. No issues with the finish, no dings, dents, warped doors, etc. One drawer had a problem where it didn't shut all the way on its own with the soft close feature, and they sent me new glides. That is the only problem I had. I did order them from an independent dealer, not Home Depot or Lowes, and I think the service was better than what I would have got from the big box stores.

My sister used Diamond in a white finish in her kitchen and she was very happy with them as well.

Another used Thomasville in a painted/glazed finish, which are pretty much the same as Diamond except the backs are bit thinner, and she was very happy with hers, too.

All of these are recent installs, within the last two years.
jess1979
10 years ago
We just got two Diamond cabinets Gresham in white with the slab front on the drawers. I have attached a picture that I have (we are going to paint the cabinet that is not white). If you can, take a cabinet door in the cloud color home. We got white and now I wish we would have got something with a little color. Hopefully when we get the knobs on it will help break it up from looking very plain and white.
jesshs
Original Author
10 years ago
Thanks so much for the advice so far. I did get a sample of the cloud and I love it. I would call the color putty- a gorgeous brownish gray color. More brown and darker than the sharkey gray. I love it. So, I think I am definitely leaning towards the Diamond cabs. Real wood doors and painted finish are beating out the laminate, even though it is a high tech and beautiful laminate, not cheesy looking.

I keep waffling on the size of the edges- wider with Gresham or narrower with Jamestown. Is the solid reverse panel and solid slab of the Gresham mean that it is all real wood? The Jamestown says veneer panel and drawer front- does that mean mdf? I am still figuring out cabinet vocabulary.

Thanks for the pics robinle- the Gresham looks great.
jellytoast
10 years ago
I went with the wider rails like the Gresham ... I think Diamond calls them different names depending on where you purchase them. All parts of my doors and drawers are solid wood. I got the slab door fronts instead of the five-piece option because I wanted a less-busy look.

This post was edited by jellytoast on Wed, Oct 2, 13 at 11:54
texaspenny
10 years ago
If you do go with the 5 piece drawers, make sure the top drawers that are usually narrower will have plenty of room for a handle. I've seen some that look kind of squished.

Help me choose between 3 semi-custom cabinets

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Help me choose between 3 semi-custom cabinets

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