Unless you have the equipment and shop to make any cabinet in any wood and in any style and any size that any customer might want, then you aren't a custom cabinet maker. Period. Someone who orders doors and just makes boxes may have the right to call themselves a "cabinet assembler" or "cabinet finisher" even a "semi-custom cabinet shop", but there is NO WAY that they are a true custom cabinet maker. Appropriating that label to make yourself appear to be more skilled and capable than you are is unethical and self aggrandizing false advertising. I find it extremely distasteful. Ask him if he can make you a 1" thick, 17 11/16 x 41 1/8, mitered and coved walnut frame around a reverse raised panel sapele inset with cherry inlay, and the box be the same (integral door as box). If he can't do it, then he isn't a custom cabinet maker and has zero right to use that title. Finishing is also a step that the "custom" guys can have questionable practices. If they don't have their own clean room on site where they spray their finishes and use a conversion varnish as a top coat, then RED FLAG them and pass them by. You don't want the site finished inevitable dust and dirt in your cabinets's finish. Nor do you want the non durable finishes that they can produce but that won't show up until their warranty has expired. That is not to say that such a cabinet shop cannot produce some great and even economical cabinets for you if what you want is a common profile in a common wood. However, the quality will have far more to do with the company that they order the doors from than the box maker. Mitered doors will be composed of 4 different stiles and rails just like the mortise and tenoned doors will. Anytime you have 4 different pieces of wood, you have the chance of them not matching perfectly. That's a sign that is is a natural substance. Each tree is different, and you should NEVER expect a 100% match between wood. What you should expect is a very close match, if the maker uses premium all heartwood and no sapwood. That is a LOT more expensive than standard cherry, which is a mix of heart and sap. And yes, a mitered join has more surface to be affected by wood's natural swelling and shrinking in response to fluctuating humidity levels. You may notice some tiny gapping in the winter, and the joint may swell back to no gap in the summer, or even a tiny bit of buckling or warping because the wood has absorbed so much summer humidity if you don't have AC. A whole house humidifier in the winter and the use of AC or dehumidfiers in the summer is the key to any wood in your home to being happy. And that goes for that elaborate crown molding, to your cabinets, to your wood floors or any other wood furniture.

Our house was built in 2001. We have a double front door and garage entry door, both fiberglass by Thermatru. The front door with full lite glass has had serious warping. The top and bottom both twist in. This is in a covered area facing East. The garage entry is fine, but the seal went out in the 1/2 glass. I sent claim to thermatru direct. Via email I was able to get replacement. But not what I wanted. They were willing to send me one new door slab and 3 new pieces of glass since our style was discontinued. That would have been a nightmare trying to get the new one to match both inside and outside with paint and stain. We compromised with 2 new front slabs and 1 new glass. They sent it immediately. We are just getting around to replacing with spring weather. I’m exasperated and haven’t even started. Seeing what they sent, it is going to be a huge hassle to change out the glass AND strip and repaint the surrounds, etc that didn’t get replaced. Now looking at steel doors from Menards, Mastercraft. I see the good and bad reviews, but honestly I’d be happy if that lasted 2/3 the time these did as these fiberglass doors are crap. I want durable fade free doors. I did buy a Home Depot door for garage to house, with glass, not fire rated, my concern in that. Our installer said it was the easiest door he’s ever put in and to this day it opens and closes perfectly. On at least its 5th year. Didn’t spend more than $500 for it.

That is the normal orientation for a handle/knob set with a full mortise entry lock. The thumb lever pushes up on a mechanism in the bottom of the lock, but the knob actuates another mechanism in the middle. Cylinder sets use gearing to turn the up/down thumb lever motion into rotational movement, so it transmits via the knob-point input, making the handles at the same height as the knob. It's two different styles, the mortise locks are older style and work nicer. Casey

I have an open plan, U-shape kitchen. The refrig is on one of the legs. The general rule is to have it open towards the work triangle. Instead, mine opens to the exterior of the U where you're walking in, not the interior - see my very simplified drawing (which is so very not to scale, LOL). A contractor thought I was crazy. But the legs of the U are very short. I wanted the frig to open in the direction where I'm putting groceries away - or conversely, pulling prepared food/condiments out to take over to the DR opposite. This way, when DH opens the frig and snitches a cheese stick and salame, he is standing at the OUTSIDE of my work triangle, rather than coming inside it! The aisle running from the LR, past the pantry and to the stairway, is a full 4' wide for easy access from the front to the back of the house. I have a movable cart in the middle of the kitchen which is expandable to 5' wide. Also, the corners of my "U" layout are actually Lazy Susan cabs with hinged double doors. The double pantry unit is my "funny story". I have a lot of cookware, flatware, tableware, and variety of serving dishes. I sooooo carefully planned out the kitchen storage to make sure I had a place for everything! I was proud of myself for about a week when I suddenly realized I had COMPLETELY forgotten about someplace to store....FOOD! Fortunately we had not placed the cabinet order yet, so a hasty addition of two 18" wide x 8' tall twin pantries with roll-out shelves was put on the list.