I was just about to say that I should do the built-ins because so much of the house is "different" since it is Shingle Style Inspired, the interior trim will have more of a "Nantucket" look than heavy crown molding, etc., dining room will have high, recessed panel wainscot rather than a chair rail & the kitchen will be inset "Shaker" style painted creamy white that just isn't typical for Upstate. It probably is not a bad thing to do at least one detail that is expected. Then I thought about the window treatments. The room is 18' across with 12' of French doors (two operable). That leaves 3' on each side of the French doors. The stackback for drapes would be 2' on each side leaving one foot for a built-in if the drapes came tight up to it. I think I'll post the situation on the decorating forum to see what the general wisdom is. Perhaps, I'm being too conventional in how I'm thinking about window treatments. I'll report back. echo2400 - My two previous houses had built-ins, but they were built in the 70's. We are doing shallow tray ceilings with simple molding in the dining room & master, but that is so we can layer the lighting with cove lighting in the tray. It may be "corny", but we do like the effect (we're romantics. LOL!) Thanks - Jo Ann PS - Lauren, I sent you a PM about builders. Can't see that e-mail account until I get home.

when I was cabinet shopping Diamond didn't offer a proper cabinet for the built-in Liebherr. The 30" Liebherr requires a 29 1/2" wide cutout. That little detail really messed things up. I can't remember exactly what the issue was, but would have caused me to have a lesser cabinet for significantly more money. That was the primary reason I went with custom. And I'm SO glad I did! Custom didn't cost much more and there were no design compromises, I got exactly what I wanted. Custom inset cabinets installed cost about 5% more than Diamond full overlay installed. ~Jay

I think some of this can be attributed to many homeowner's desire to get away from the "just because" decorative feature. If you don't have a strong idea of what you'll fill them with, what you see is a whole bunch of empty shelves to fill. I've seen too many of these spaces filled with junk, just to feel like it's "decorated". Some of this might also be due to the minimalist design focus that some homeowners are after. A lot of "stuff", even artfully placed, doesn't necessarily lend itself to that. A curveball? Built-ins used to function as media centers to house equipment, and as book shelves. Technology takes out the need for large media spaces, and fewer and fewer people have a ton of books. Maybe a big ol' Kindle collection, but fewer books. Finally, I have no idea- if a person wanted them- why you'd wait until house was finished to have a carpenter build and install. Why wait until your flooring is in, all drywall and painting is finished? Why wait until you get to live with construction? And no- in my area, after work isn't even close to being less expensive than doing it during construction, due to all of that.

In my opinion, Dimplex is the best. Bought a firebox insert in 2005, at which time the product was excellent, and they have gotten even better. It's been a few years since I've seen the newer models in person but I wouldn't hesitate on this brand. Mine was the more traditional insert, rather than the modern linear style. I can't speak to how the linear styles look. Electric Fireplaces Direct is a great resource. Not where I bought mine, but they have lots of videos and info. I did buy a complete mantel/fireplace from them and it was beautiful (don't remember the brand) but the fire itself was not nearly as nice as the Dimplex. I haven't purchased the other brands you are considering so can't offer any thoughts on them. Good luck and enjoy!