Kitchen cabinets are a vital consideration for any contemporary kitchen, whether you are constructing a totally new kitchen or just redecorating it. It is not always as straightforward to install cabinets as it appears. Sometimes you need to bring in a professional to help you with the best choicesA qualified carpenter can also be necessary to redesign your kitchen to get the most from the space you have and to visualize how many cabinets you will need to store your crockery and kitchen utensils. Bringing in a professional can also mean you get a better deal on premium materials.

You can often find experts who will help you redesign your kitchen or bathroom at retailers, wholesalers and building contractors. Kitchens advisers can also be found at home centers and some of these will be qualified architects. Getting an expert on-board a project means that you will benefit from their understanding of how kitchens are used, how to locate important kitchen fixtures in the most appropriate place and can recommend particular brands to suit your requirements.

All kitchen cabinets are made differently. Some manufacturers are more flexible than others and will use the materials the customer chooses and customize their designs. Customization of cabinets is not always possible, especially when bought from wholesale stores or home centers who have a fixed stock of goods available. What most people want is to select the fronts of their cabinets, since this has a huge impact on the overall appearance of the kitchen. Often builders give customers a choice of different stain tones from which to choose, typically, blond, maple or cherry. This often occurs when kitchens are being designed for use in model homes as part of new development sites. The choice is usually fairly restricted because the builder will have bulk bought the backs of cabinets beforehand from a wholesaler and the choice is likely to have included some custom ordering from a limited choice of door fronts.

With complete freedom of choice there is a huge selection of build materials. You can specify just the door material or the whole unit. Here are some of the most popular options: Decorative laminate, Alder, Poplar, Ash, Walnut, Pine, Maple, Oak, Birch, Hickory, and Metal.

When you pick out kitchen cabinets on your own or even with an expert, ask if the kitchen cabinet brands are approved by the KCMA (Kitchen Cabinets Manufacturing Association), and have the KCMA seal on the inside of the cabinet. Only kitchen cabinet manufacturers from the United States and Canada that have passed rigorous testing on each and every brand that is manufactured by an approved company can display this seal. You can tell the manufacturer by the code on the seal. Below are kitchen cabinet manufacturers and their codes currently approved by KCMA:

• American Woodmark Corporation, Code X.
• MasterBrand Cabinets, Code MBCI.
• Continental Cabinets, Inc., Code CC.
• De Pere Cabinets, Inc., Code PJB.
• MasterBrand/HomeCrest Cabinetry, Code HA.
• Kitchen Kompact, Inc., Code I.
• Republic/Legacy Cabinets Inc., Code LE.
• Prestige Acquisition Corp., Code PI.
• Republic Industries, Inc., Code RI.
• Rosebud Manufacturing Co., Code RK.
• Armstrong Cabinet Products, Code H.
• Eurocraft, Code EUC.
• Texwood Industries, LP, Code QJ.
• KraftMaid Cabinetry, Inc., Code GA.

You can get plenty more kitchen cabinet ideas in the big kitchen sections of your local department stores. But why not save time by starting at Kitchen Cabinets

Annie Endwhistle’s runs ANE Kitchen Cabinets aiming to help visitors find ideas, good design examples, and get help locally. If you are planning to upgrade your kitchen, don’t miss out on Annie’s site: http://www.anekitchencabinets.com/

Author:
Annie Endwhistle
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