With cats, its all about opportunity and attraction. A tight weave - eg smooth chintz upholstery fabric that would be hard to get a claw into - is best choice. Sheets - microfiber or high thread count. Another part of the equation is you have to provide them with a suitable place where they CAN scratch. You cant just say "dont do this," you have to provide them with an alternative. Rough textures attract them - so you need to have the only rough textured things in your house be things you WANT them to claw. I have two big ugly weathered gray sawhorses in my house and the cats have them torn to shreds. I was using them as sawhorses when doing some work and the cats took right to them, so rather then mess with success I just kept them in the house. They are tall enough so they (the cats) can stretch out full length and they dont wobble - which is important for a scratching surface. Also train kitties to accept nail trims, starting at a young age. They are not "sharpening" claws so much as they are wearing off the excess claw (they grow like fingernails) so if you keep the nails trimmed there wont be such a need to do as much clawing.... though they still like to do it for esthetic reasons (its like graffitti for other cats to see and admire LOL). They can be trained over a period of time by first starting out with touching the paws, then workng up to a foot massage ... at some point they will realize that they LIKE it.... from there you can sneak in the clippers and start trimming.

Hi All, Am a first timer here, came to look out of curiosity & this thread caught my eye. I've been thinking abt doing this as I have quite a large but totally inefficient closet (double barred, front to back, a very full front bar means I can't access the back bar at all, so much of my clothing stays on hangers on the closet doors, yeah that's useful (sarcastic) ... cluttery looking too). As I'm working on decluttering (am serious amateur plant collector 180+ plants) & quilter, I've abt hit the end of my patience w/ the clutter. So ... I'm thinking abt redoing the closets, unless I win the lottery it's DIY only. Was recently in Bed, Bath & Beyond, saw the system they offer called FreedomRail. Looks pretty doable & versatile, I'd just need someone to help me set the foundation which is the horizontal rail(s) (need someone to drill for me). Anyone have experience w/ this system? Since the closet is approx 36" deep (& abt 60" wide), there's a lot space being wasted. Seems much more efficient to put 1 long rail (bar) across the back & then short rails along the 2 sides, maybe one side having an upper & a lower, so I could hang, say skirts on the bottom & shirts on the top. Then of course, the enormous work of emptying the closet & going through all the clothes (decades worth, yikes). Makes me think I should take a couple of days off from work to do this. Anyway, anyone have experience w/ this particular system? Thanks in advance. (PG) Karen

@jdesign_gw The multiple latches that were broken were plastic push-to-open pieces. The small plastic pegs that stick out of the hardware were broken off on doors all over the showroom, making the doors completely non-working. One display had uplift doors that were too stiff to open without enormous effort. I would imagine a real kitchen would receive just as much wear as a showroom over years of use. Do you follow up with clients as to their long-term outcome with the cabinets you've installed? I was thrilled with my Ikea closet when first installed. A year later, not so much. I'm glad you've had a successful business with Ikea products. Perhaps your custom work includes your own door-opening hardware that isn't failing prematurely like some of the hardware that comes standard on Ikea doors. By the way, I ended up getting 3 drawers instead of more shelves to add to my longest shelf area as I feel the box construction of the drawers will better prevent sagging. I did notice that the Ikea kitchen cabinetry stayed within a narrower width tolerance for all the units available versus the closet systems, and I wish they would restrict width on the Pax closet system as well to protect customers from the sagging shelf problem I am facing. I loved one of the 3D laminate option on the kitchen doors, and the tolerances of the door clearances and design options looked great compared to other displays of frameless cabinetry brands I've seen. Pros and cons are mixed with Ikea, in my opinion. I've bought a lot of things there, but the closet shelving was my most expensive purchase and a little disappointing in the long-term. I will doubtless shop there again, just not for cabinetry or shelves unless I hear they have upgraded to prevent some of the quality issues I've experienced.

Andi - I like pure white trim throughout the house no matter what anything else is in the house. But cabinet trim should match cabinet color. Keep it light with the walls and I'd go white on the cabinets, you could do the lowers a different color -- navy blue or dark gray -- but i'd go simple, not too busy and light in color/white for the countertop. Backsplash could pull it all together depending on what you pick.