Spring Is The Time When The Homeowner’s Fancy Turns To New Cabinets

Maybe your yearly spring cleaning frenzy has gotten you thinking: “Boy, this house would sure look a lot more cozy and inviting with some new cabinets.’ Whether your redecorating daydreams involved new kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, closet cabinets, storage cabinets or all four types of cabinets, a manufacturer of do-it-yourself cabinets can make them a reality … without breaking the bank.

The Evansville Courier & Press recently ran an article titled “Discover the decorating style that fits both your family and your home.” The premise of the article centered on taking your home’s style into consideration when choosing a new decorating scheme. That advice extends into the realm of new cabinets, where do-it-yourself options are not only affordable, they’re also surprisingly versatile.

The newspaper points out that “Pinpointing the right design style for your home can be tricky – you have to consider everything from the corners to the color, and still keep in mind that it has to fit your family’s lifestyle.”

A do-it-yourself cabinet manufacturer that offers a wide variety of assembled and ready to assemble cabinet styles can aid you in your quest for the perfect cabinet redesign. Such a cabinet manufacturer can also offer advice on how to purchase cabinets and how to design your new room.

According to the Evansville Courier & Press, the first step in selecting the right cabinet design style is to take a look at which of the following categories your home falls into:

1. For Victorian homes, the newspaper’s expert recommends, “Cabinets are usually weathered looking and made of heavy, real wood with chrome pulls and knobs.” Champagne oak and natural rustic hickory are good cabinet style finishes for the Victorian homeowner.

2. Recent designs for the Modern home “include sleek, straight and clean lines. Common materials include stainless steel, marble, granite and frosted glass.” Fenwick Arctic Light, Kenton White Gloss and Sutherland door styles best suit the Modern home.

3. The Southwestern home “features a lot of detail and craftsmanship. Natural materials such as wood, quarry tile, ceramic tile, earth tones and vibrant accessories” are common with this house style. Cider, Bay and Burl Gloss door styles reflect the desert nature hues that are often seen in Southwestern decorating schemes.

4. Traditional home styles have a formal feel with “dark stains, honey tones, semi-opaque paints, and oak cabinets.” Nile Gloss, Burgundy and Ruxton Brown cabinet door color finishes play up the Traditional home’s features.

5. The rustic, weathered look is a hallmark of the Country home. To create “a warm, cozy feeling,” try colors that “range from muted hues to earth tones.” Pine paneling is another element that is used to express the Country style. Westbrook, Glendale, Avalon and Wadsworth door styles give you that paneled look.

6. Homeowners whose style runs the Eclectic gamut tend to combine “both old and new for a harmonious look.” This style is “a mix of extravagant decorations from numerous eras.” Gatsby door panels in a custard finish provide the Eclectic homeowner with the perfect blend of antique and contemporary.

www.LKNcabinets.com

The Kitchen Cabinets of Your Dreams on a Budget

Last month, The Boston Globe asked it’s readers a $10,000 question: “Is it possible to gut-renovate a 50-year-old kitchen without spending so much that you’ll never eat again?” To answer it, the article posed this query of an area architect and designer, who offered up his very own kitchen “as a lesson in where to splurge and where to save.”

What advice did this exert serve up? To stay under the $10,000 mark, his plan of attack was simple: to buy ready-to-assemble or pre-assembled kitchen cabinets. That decision set him back just under 15% of his budget, leaving him plenty of room to splurge on appliances and other personalized finishing touches.

The architect was quick to point out that “Expensive doesn’t have to embarrass cheap.” Indeed, assembled and ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets from a leading manufacturer often rival custom designs. Constructed using the latest methods and styles, as well as superior materials, assembled and ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets are an investment you’ll be more than satisfied with for years to come.They also offer some other kitchen remodeling perks:
• You can get started (and finish) more quickly with pre-assembled cabinets.
• You can eliminate manufacturing and home assembly wait times, so you can see your cabinet style, finish and dimensions sooner.
• Assembly is simple using the quick attach fasteners that come with your kitchen cabinets.
• Flat packaging reduces shipping costs and makes transport more convenient.
• A variety of door styles and finish options are always in stock.
• Pre-assembled and ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets make it easier to stay within your remodeling budget.

What was The Boston Globe’s expert’s final word of advice for achieving the kitchen of your dreams on a limited budget? “Trust your instincts but think differently. You know what it is you want. You don’t have to accept the standard out-of-the-box kitchen, when a little creativity can make it seem like so much more.”

That advice rings true even if you opt to go with out-of-the-box pre-assembled cabinets. With so many options to choose from, you can get the look and feel you’re yearning for off the shelf, without breaking the bank. But if you’re the crafty type, you can get even more personalized bang for your buck.

That’s because assembled and ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets are perfect for customization with your preferred finishing touches. Take the architect highlighted in The Boston Globe article. He “made the cabinet moldings himself, using scraps from a [discount warehouse’s] ‘as is’ room at a cost of about $125.” It helped, of course, that he “did most of the work himself, including customizing the cabinets,” but even if you bring in a cabinetry expert to attend to the final details, you’ll still save money on your kitchen cabinets over the long run.

Why not take those savings and run with them? Use them to purchase the stainless steel refrigerator or the two-drawer designer dishwasher you’ve been eying up. Better yet, put them away to cover your heating bill this upcoming winter. Come oil, gas or electric bill time, you’ll thank yourself for selecting affordable assembled or ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets.

www.LKNcabinets.com

Give Your Home a Makeover With New Kitchen Cabinets

Americans are a migratory people and we move around a lot. Compared to the population in most other countries, we tend to buy and sell homes much more frequently. It’s also not uncommon for us to “trade up” as families grow or our budgets allow, or downsize when kids move out on their own or we’re tired of that big yard and the extra rooms. The difficult real estate market of the past couple of years has put a damper on all this, with many people either unable to move on as it’s difficult to sell, or unwilling to take a big loss. As a result, instead of buying new homes, a lot of people are staying put and invest in their existing one. One of the most popular home improvement projects is giving kitchen cabinets a makeover, so let’s take a look at how to go about it and what’s available.

The kitchen is a very special place in almost any home. It’s the center where we meet, hang out, prepare gourmet meals together, pop some corn in the microwave, grab a quick snack from the fridge or stick notes and artwork on it. Kitchens are warm, friendly places that play an increasingly more important role in our homes, and attractive, functional cabinets are an integral part of it. If yours are old and worn, consider starting over. The difference new cabinets can make is absolutely amazing. It’s like having an entirely new kitchen, but at only a fraction of the price.

Whether you will be doing the work yourself or have someone do it, planning a kitchen cabinet makeover is lots of fun. First, familiarize yourself with all the looks, shapes and materials. Cherry, maple, birch, and oak all have a distinctly different look and you’ll want to pick whatever fits your personality, your home, and the kind of effect you want to achieve. While wood is very popular, some people like all-white cabinets for that bright, clean, modern look. You can also pick from a variety of different styles and designs; different grains; framed or frameless cabinets; and numerous different drawer arrangements.

Once you’ve picked your wood or material, you can also select from different finishes. Finishes can be natural, or a variety of shades to complement the basic color and grain of the wood. Some types of wood and cabinet styles can be ordered with half a dozen different finishes, which makes it easy to match new cabinets to an existing décor.

If you prefer white cabinets, you can select either thermofoil or melamine surface. Thermofoil is a fairly new technology where a thin layer of rigid vinyl is heat-fused to cabinet doors, drawers and other surfaces. The thermofoil process makes a perfectly smooth surface with uniform color and texture that is more durable than even the best paint. Melamine is a fire resistant, heat tolerant synthetic polymer material that also has a smooth, uniform color and texture. Melamine cabinets are generally quite affordable and easy to clean.

So whether you plan on staying in your home and want to freshen things up a bit, or whether you intend to sell, getting new kitchen cabinets should be on top of your list.

www.LKNcabinets.com