apples to oranges- they should not be in the same comparison-the prices you differences are close to what you should expect (even though all are pocket hole constucted frames etc). If WBF best suits your budget then fine. But if you can even consider affording DS then ... Sounds to me like one of the dealers misread where your at. DS comes in two price groups, and offers both framed and frameless as well as inset. Even the lower priced DS will be a good bit more than WBF DS vs. Kraftmaid- DS has a very nice finish and will have better wood grading, quality control, along with more design flexibility. KM makes a competant cabinet that will last and has a good selection. You may need to have a door or two replaced to get where you want to be, they might be a tad trickier to install. But bottom line they will hold up for a long time- lots of GWbers have em and are happy- that might be said for the others too though. I'm not a fan of Chinese cabinets so not big on JSI- there is a thread on that where you will find some more positive thoughts by others (along with my personal rant) There is another thread on cabinet priorities worth a look too.

I chose Homecrest, a little upgraded (the doors and drawers I think so they are soft close). They have worked out quite well and we get lots of compliments on the design. So far have also held up nicely!

The weird part of the layout is the bump out where our daughter's closet is, by the stove. Husband isn't keen on taking that out, so for now it would be a work around. If the one wall comes out (where the "doors" are on the top wall), it will extend that part of the kitchen back out another 3.5-4' by 11'. (the rooms are currently offset, which I couldn't figure out how to show w/the planner so I just went ahead and made it so that wall was eliminated, making the dining area larger. Otherwise it would be like this, and not have a peninsula. There's nothing else I can think that could be changed to do w/the layout and traffic, so if you guys see something, feel free to point it out! The door on the left is the basement, that can't go anywhere, and the door on the right is an open doorway that goes to the living room, so that can't go anywhere. The door on the bottom wall is the patio door to the outside.

I ended up going with Showplace because the kitchen designer was really helpful and invested in improving on the architect's poor design and I felt that he would personally stand behind the product if we ran into any issues. Our cabinets are ready but will be delivered in a couple of weeks. However, if I already had a layout I was happy with or was just replacing cabinets in an existing kitchen, I think the Cabico cabinets would have been a better choice for me. It's all a blur now, but I preferred the color selection and overall they would have been more cost effective because I think they are cheaper to begin with and you could use a combination of custom and semi-custom cabinets from their line to meet your needs. With Showplace I found that every time I made what was a small change in the design from my perspective, it was incredibly expensive, and we were cutting corners to avoid completely blowing my budget. By cutting corners I mean not including cabinet accessories that I could get cheaper aftermarket or not putting in glass door cabinets that I had originally had in mind. Overall, I am happy with my concept and the turnaround on the cabinets is quick (about 6 weeks).