No one “needs” full custom cabinets. They want them. A perfectly nice kitchen can be created with stock cabinets. Look at the millions of IKEA kitchens.

The designer is more important than the brand. That’s why you have bad reviews in any brand. 85% of those are usually due to the cabinet person selling the cabinets not knowing how to design.

Find a good KD. Use what they recommend. Everyone on the planet does white shaker cabinets in multiple styles. It’s the KD that will ensure that your kitchen works for your house. And won’t break the bank. They will spend every dime of your budget, appropriately, to get you the best that you can buy. That’s why you use them. To maximize your kitchen to be yh best it can be for you.

Thank you Sophie! I have considered using a kitchen designer, but I already designed the layout myself and wanted to get an idea of cost for my own design. My kitchen poses some challenges as we are combining the dining room and kitchen into one space and it is very long and narrow. In order to make it work, I had to alter the depth in quite a few places which is why I though custom might be a better option for us (the upcharge for cabinet depth reduction is high as you probably know). Also, this is our forever home so I do want to make sure the quality for cabinet construction is there. Having said all that, I do have a contact saved for a local KD and perhaps I will give him a try. Thanks again:)

I know nothing about the Dutchwood brand but in my experience, custom cabinets are not necessarily more expensive than semi-custom if one has a lot of odd requirements so that the cost of upgrades becomes quite expensive.

I have a small kitchen and want certain specific functionality built into it and I am using a local cabinet maker recommended by my designer. For what I want, the price is less than a semi-custom like Kraftmaid. And I have seen this person's work in other projects and it's very high quality.

Like you I have no plans to move except in a small box :-) and so I want exactly what I want, within reason of course.

And I realize these are wants and not needs but I have lived with compromised functionality (and aesthetics) for quite a while and so it's worth paying the increased cost of my wants over the standard not highly functional kitchens that are common in my building. Since I share the same layout with a good percentage of units, I can see how my neighbors remodeled and that most of them favored form over function.

Custom doesn’t mean better. It just means they are made to order. A kid can make you “custom” cabinets out of his garage. Check the warranty offered. If it’s custom but no warranty, take a pass.

From my perspective custom means you can have whatever your heart desires. There are many so called custom manufacturers who claim to be custom but only if it's in their catalogue and within their permissible sizing alterations. For my manufacturer, if I can draw it they will make it. If I want a crown molding from somewhere else they will bring it in. If I need a custom door/drawer profile they will make it. If I need a paint/stain match they will do it. That's custom!

The designer is more important than the line. A poor designer can mess up even a great quality fully custom product. Get the right designer, and you will get the right result, no matter the product.

Just the latest, with a poor designer. It’s a constant parade of poor design around here.

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5357129/problems-with-omega-cabinets-tarin-line#n=2

Kraftmaid offers reduced depth and increased depth as a construction modification, your KM desinger at HD just isn't plugging that into the design (or the cost). Do not rely on a big box designer to know what he/she is talking about. Some do know (I know a few of them) how to design a good kitchen but many don't. When dealing with a big box designer, you need to vet your own design. If you're looking at Kraftmaid, go to a stand-alone Kraftmaid or Merillat dealership (Merillat Masterpiece is made in the same factory as Kraftmaid, offers the same styles and finishes, often with the same name). Talk to the designer there if there's not an independent kitchen designer in your area.

It's the installation that makes or breaks a kitchen, new construction or remodel. A cabinet dealership can't mess up on too many installations without word getting out and business falling off. The designers at my showroom have been with us for 20 and 25 years respectively. They both participate in yearly continuing education and are very familiar with the products we sell. It has to do with experience and knowing the cabinet line just as much as it does having design degrees, like our designers do.