The 3 big variables are what is your space (#1), what are your dreams(#2) and what is the story at the HD(#3).

#1 & #2 are pretty closely related and the only answer will be to work with the designer and see what the lines the HD offers can do. A custom shop or line is going to tell you that semi-custom isn't very custom but what the impact of that difference will be on your kitchen will really depend on your space.

#3 varies dramatically from HD to HD. A good designer is a good sign but it doesnt mean the installers are any good. Do your research but more than a few people here have found excellent installers at the HD (if you even need them to do the install). HD can offer a good kitchen designer some things that a smaller shop can't (pension, health benefits, flexible hours) so not every KD there is a barely trained novice as some would suggest.

Don't underestimate the intangible qualities like having a good rapport with somebody or genuinely liking them. There is never any harm in investigating custom lines or custom shops in your area. Good luck!

There are a lot of variables, but ultimately you need to decide if there's a cabinet line that HD carries that you'll be happy with. If not, you need to look around some more.

It's always a good idea to pricing and layout input from several different venues if possible. Take your design to a big box like HD and then to a recommended custom shop. I hesitate to tell you to go to a small kitchen shop if you are going to have no plans on using them (most $$ option maybe?). Each place/KD should offer some suggestions on "tweaking" your design and give you price options. You can then make a decision about what' the best all around bang for your buck. Relationship with the KD, dependability and availability of communicaiton all factor in with intangible value as does the tangible value of the cabinet construction/style itself.

All good advice. My taste is Plato inset cabinets but my budget is not. My space is limited but I will see what HD can do. I really like this designer, he has years of experience in interior design and some of the best ideas I have heard to date. Were it not for him I would not even consider Home Depot at this point. A good designer is important I know I just really didn't know if Home Depot has what I need in cabinets. I do know they have some good designers, and some not so good. I talked to one last year when initially planning this remodel and lost all confidence. I even paid them to professionally measure my space. Then gave up because I knew it just wasn't right.

You can get very nice cabinets from HD. They use some of the same well regarded manufactures as are available from many kitchen showrooms. You won't get substandard quality just because you order Kraftmaid from a big box. They all come off the same assembly line. Generally, the big boxes don't offer quite as good a discount off of list as do the kitchen showrooms though. They have to eat too many mistakes and they have a very liberal return policy with KM, so their discount can't be quite as high. There are often some good promos running that can equalize on the price, and the credit offerings are usually among the biggest draw that the box stores have.

Now, where you get variables are in the KD and installers at each individual store. That's a crap shoot for sure. I know several well qualified and certified KDs at box stores. They have done some really spectacular work when given the opportunity. (Most KDs at box stores do tons of cheap non creative kitchen by demand.) But, I have also known some lulu's at box stores! People who not only didn't have a clue, but ones who would rather make up something to tell you rather than tell you "I don't know, I'll have to call the manufacturer and ask". That's one of my pet peeves. I find it extremely difficult to work with a BS artist. Yes, you find those at showrooms too. But, there seems to be less accountability at the box stores and less incentive for anyone to move them on down the line.

If you have a good feeling about this particular KD, then ask to see a couple of kitchen in different brands that she's done. Ask her about how long she's used the installers assigned to that store. Ask her about their comfort level in doing something that isn't the "usual"

Yes, you can get your dream kitchen from ANY source. Some are just harder work on you. Unless you're willing to pay oodles of money to turn it over to a design and build firm and not have to worry about any details, you're still going to have to be the second set of eyes and ears and brains on ANY kitchen job---not just a big box renovation.

live_wire_oak

You sound like you've been down this road a few times. I'll put your suggestions to use by asking those questions. Funny thing is this designer did my neighbors kitchen so I am going to go see the real thing in person and ask them how they got along.

But you are right and I do not want the cheap non-creative kitchen. That is the design the first KD was trying to give me and had no ideas for anything else.

I'll just see how this goes when I meet with the designer and get a feel for what he does and his ideas and go from there.

He seems excited to work on this because he knows I don't want to just line my walls with cabinets that fit so that's a good start.

peggy,
live wire is an experienced KD who generously offers up her expertise and advice on this forum. I'd definitely pay close attention to her input. She's an invaluable resource.

I have been to 4 cabinet & design stores, an architect, and the HD. I was quite surprised at the skill of the designer at my HD. He was the only one of the 5 who took the time to listen to my needs and to pay any attention at all to what I was interested in. He put together a very good design, much better than the people at the more 'exclusive' stores and better than the architect. I still haven't decided whether or not to use the HD-- I have one more kitchen company, recommended by the contractor, to go through but he won't see me until his new displays are installed. Hmm, not sure about that!

So I agree with everyone that to some degree this is a function of skill, creativity, vision, training and experience and not necessarily a function of the 'place'.

We had the same bad initial HD experience, pursued a number of different options (RTA, custom, semi-custom, and full service shop using a stock line) which refined the design and ended up at another HD. Ordered the week before last, tear out is the end of this week and the install is November 14 (the combined benefits of a stock product and a close proximity to the manufacturer). At this store the designer, project coordinator and installer have all been around for years so it has been pretty smooth sailing.

I agree with l_w_o that you really have to keep your eye on things but that applies almost everywhere.

My 2001 house had Thomasville cabinets through HD. I got some good ideas from their KD, but had figured the layout pretty much on my own. The order went smoothly and the cabinets were ready early. They sat in my garage for 8 weeks, and when we were ready to install, there were a couple problems. I then learned that I should have inspected within 30 days. However, the KD went to bat for me and problems were resolved quickly and easily. Our GC did the install so I can't speak to that.

This house: We ended up ordering Shiloh cabinets but were absolutely blown away by the professionalism, helpfulness, and creativity of our local HD KD -- to the point that we felt BAD not ordering through her!! I even wrote a letter to the store manager about how good she is.

Be an educated consumer, keep an eye on what you're doing, get more than one quote, see how your HD KD falls in the general scheme of things.

Arlene

I think it depends on the level of complexity of your remodel plans. If you are keeping to the same footprints for your appliances, and not changing the location of cabinets very much, then you may not need the services of a professional designer -- or you can "trust" the HD designer, who may or may not be all that good. But if you are gutting everything and changing the footprint, and maybe breaking down walls etc., then you need somebody with a lot more expertise. I would not trust HD in such a situation.

Even with a professional kitchen designer, you can say I WANT THESE CABINETS AND THESE COUNTERTOPS. And you should insist on them, unless the designer tells you that it will look too dark or too light or too bulky, or whatever. Then you should consider that advice.

I'm trying to find some filler cabs for a corporate rental I'm remodeling next. I went to HD just to see what I could get. The KD (who I dont need since I'm designing the kitchen) was a total idiot. And then she was trying to force their installer on me (I have a GC who is a finish carpenter and works with very high end kitchens most often, so there is no need....I just wanted to price out some boxes and doors. I don't know what her designs look like, but sheesh she couldn't even price for me.

I'd be fair to your local companies and be sure to give them a bid as well. It's amazing that people all think the HD's of the world are the cheapest, but really, the local shops have many options and can often beat the price, with a better or comparable product.

And I believe (but maybe I'm wrong) that Live Wire is a dude :) A vaulable contributer, but a dude none the less. (Is that right?)

I got to say based on the posts dude was my guess.

Agree about the price on semi-custom, but in my experience I think you might look a long time before you could beat the price on the re-badged stock lines the box chains carry. I don't know the US lines but in Canada the base construction of the two lines below Thomasville but above Mill's Pride is better than the base construction of Thomasville or Kraftmaid.

My Mom had a doozy on her first go round but the OP seems to have found someone good to work with so I'm assuming it's about product and price now.

IChick and others, I'm a chick too. ;) It just happens that I grew up in a very DIY household and continued that tradition once I was out on my own. (It was either learn to DIY a lot of things or go without!) So, I've actually got a lot more hands on construction experience than your average 40 something designer type female. My husband and I hands on built our 1500 square foot climate controlled shop/garage addition ourselves with just our four hands and a LOT of power tools.

I went to HD and to a specific KD that was referred by a friend. I loved her kitchen and asked about the KD. I had my own designs when I went in, and we spent 5 to 6 hours fine tuning the design with the American Woodmark cabinets we selected. Our kitchen is small and we were not changing the overall footprint.

We installed the cabinets ourselves so I only had to deal with the ordering of them and they were great! I think it all depends on the KD you get. I have dealt with others that didn't have a clue

Good Luck,

Laura

Hello again Peggy,

Just my two cents here - Because of budget we are DIY'rs. We ended up going with Lowes on their cabinets because we liked the designer so much. We had been to others at the big box stores and were not impressed, but then we ran into some guy that had been doing it for 5 or 6 years in there kitchen dept and loved his job. He listened to what we were trying to achieve and spent oddles of time with us trying to make things work based on what I was trying to accomplish inside my cabinet doors and my space in addition to getting the "look". Had it not been for him we probably would of ended up looking into custom - we are having to manipulate and piecing things together to achieve the look we want which has required alot of patience and frustration along the way. Maybe this is normal with DIY...there were certain elements that I wanted within the cabintry that couldn't be done (feet on my island, panels on the sides of cabinets we built up to look like furniture, roll out trays on our island that they didn't carry for that piece, etc.,) Looking hindsight I would have checked into custom, I've heard it here before as igloochick mentioned that alot of times it can be cheaper!
Another problem we ran into is after we ordered and installed our cabinets we went back to add crown molding (we waited on this because at the start of our renovation we bumped our wall out 2' and it gave a slanted ceiling, we wanted to install our cabinets first to see what we would need for pieces with the crown molding - in the meantime our designer from Lowes moved and we had to begin dealing with someone else in that dept which has been a nightmare - that is a story in itself - Kraftmaid says we have to deal with Lowes and go through them for our needs. I'm sure this wouldn't happen often but it is possible - our original designer has tried to help us long distance but Lowes does not want him to handle it out of state since our take backs and pick ups are here....with all that said I wish I would have checked into custom since I knew what I wanted - BUT I am happy with the way things are looking, just thinking the frustration and aggravation wouldn't be as it is AND it could have costed less.

BTW, I answered you on my post (I too had a hard time finding my post??!!) Just in case you don't get there - Thank you for all your support! I would love to see pics and hear progress! Keep in touch

Jen

To be clear, working with a box store isn't all kittens and rainbows. I think the framework has some real limitations that have nothing to do with the abilities of the staff. I don't think if I were using Kraftmaid or Venezia I would go with a box store. If you are laying out 20 grand or more for cabinetry I think you are entitled to a level of customer service a box store can't provide.

l_w_o, I hadn't given it a lot of thought but it was never the breadth of knowledge and experience reflected in your posts that made me think you were a particular gender but rather the communication style used to convey that information. I'm not sure what that says about me (probably nothing good) but it is certainly no reflection on you.

I made the trip to Home Depot yesterday. Now here is the dilemma. The designer is a dream..........best ideas, listens to everything I say, willing to think outside the box. Worries about storage and practality, as well as the visual appeal. He is the most wonderful designer I have come across. He has thought up things that no one and I do mean no one has ever come up with for my small space. He is still working on the design. Even took into conderation my entire living room and how things should look and work in there with the removing part of a wall. No one has even metioned that. Ideas for furniture arrangement and how it should look when you come in the front door. HD's cabinet selection may not be the dream that custom or some other lines have. But the designer is priceless.

How could I possibly take his design and go else where??????? I love him and his ideas. Home Depot aside, I don't love HD, I'm aware of the hassles you can get into. What to do. I have been so indecisive. I will probably work with HD on the kitchen just because of this great designer. It's the kind of help I need. Hand holding, and a good trained eye! LOL!

A good rapport with a designer is priceless. So, use the KD at HD. And, they have good quality median price cabinets and even good quality lower priced cabinet lines. You should be able to get a door style/finish in Kraftmaid for sure that you love, as they have one of the industry's largest varieties for semi custom. So far, so good. Be sure to ask questions about the installers and meet with them yourself before deciding yay or nay about them. If you are doing a more extensive remodel that involves moving walls or plumbing, then you need to interview several GC's as well as HD's potential candidates yourself. There are many levels of doing a remodel, and you need to decide yourself your own desired level of involvement. If you are not going to use HD's installers, then you need to find the installers that you will use before the design is finalized. You want their input as to the potential pitfalls of the designer's ideas. Sometimes design world and real world clashes, and a good cabinet installer can save the day. It's better to have their input before the design is ordered and changing things is difficult and expensive.

I did my last kitchen through HD, and it was a dream. We got Kraftmaid cabinets, and they were very nice, looked really good, had all the options we needed. The KD we used spent many hours doing the layout. The cabinets were the only thing we got there. We got tile, floors, lights etc. at different places. So no KD help for those, but the kitchen turned out great.

I'm new to this forum, but I suggest not using HD installers. My Kraftmaid cabinets are fine, but the installation was a disaster. The guy ended up being fired after finding out that he was charged for shoddy work in another state. Maybe you aren't even considering a HD install, so this may not even apply in your case.

live_wire_oak,

You are right, it is priceless, the realtionship with the designer. It's also the key ingredient that I have been missing. I hope to use my own contractor for the work we need done removing the wall etc. But I may consider HD's installers, especially if the design gets complicated. But I will take your advice and check them out too! One thing about HD is I do think they will make things right, eventually. I will also check things out with the installer before we push the button and order. Good advice. Thank you so much!

lovetocook9,

I do appreciate all of your thoughts here and your experience in working with Lowes. I think the problem with me in working with custom is I'm not sure of what a want. I've talked to a couple of custom cabinets makers. One very nice and responsive but no good design ideas. He would do anything I want or try but I would have to know all of that up front with very little help from him. The other place very unresponsive. One problem I have with custom is I see so many custon cabinets that I do not like the finish on, blotchy stains, glazes very uneven, heavy and unnattractive, and that scares me to death. This should be another thread I know there are good ones, but how do you always know. It's too big an invetment. Too many choices, too many decisions. Just having a few finishes to pick from may suit me better in the long run

So that being said. Me being me, I may be better off with factory finished cabinets and a good designer from HD with a few hassles. That is how I am looking at this right now.

Have you looked at tile for your backsplash yet?????? Keep me posted.

Hi mpeg,

No, BUT I did tell my husband last night I did not want to do the granite behind the stove, and was ready to look at tile. (He would still like the granite :( I'm quite sure I don't though....and he's fine with that. Now I go to delve into a whole new world of another dimension of my kitchen remodel. Up to this point haven't looked or considered anything. From the advice I received on my post will keep an eye out for those mentioned and do as you suggest by bringing some home and looking at them - hopefully for not to long : ) I think I'll be posting questions on what to do in each step I take so I think you'll be seeing alot of me here soon - hopefully the others don't get tired of me - LOL

I'll be hearing from you on your progress - no commitals!

Someone , I think here, mentioned when they asked to see an installed kitchen that HD said no it was against their policy. Not my experience, I asked and a week later I was standing in a very nice couples kitchen with my Mom looking at what I thought was very good installation job. His role was just as l_w_o suggests if I wanted something they weren't sure about the bottom line was ask the installer and he would settle it. There was an excellent rapport between the designers and the installer. Install will make or brake your design it isn't the place to take chances or try to save money.

My feeling is if the in store staff is not good and the installer gets left holding the bag s\he won't stick around and the reverse is true if a good designer is seeing things botched on the install then they are not going to want to hang around. You have a good rapport with the KD I bet he will be straight with you.