Know Before You Go: What is Custom Cabinetry?
What Makes a Cabinet Custom?
What does the term custom cabinetry mean to you and your kitchen remodeling project? Custom cabinets are measured, designed, and built to fit your specific kitchen. This article will provide an overview of custom cabinetry to help you purchase your new kitchen cabinets. Selecting your new kitchen cabinets is a big design decision. They set the style for the kitchen remodel-whether modern, transitional, or traditional. They also need to be highly functional and last for years. Additionally, kitchen cabinetry accounts for a large portion of your renovation budget.
Key Terms:
Stock, Semi-Custom, and Custom Cabinets
Stock cabinets are premade in standard sizes and available from retailers like Ikea. These stores keep their costs low by limiting choices, sizes, and materials and shipping the product unassembled. The customer is usually responsible for assembly and installation.
The term semi-custom cabinetry refers to altered stock cabinets with trim, door styles, or knobs to fit a particular design aesthetic. Lowes and Home Depot offer both stock and semi-custom options.
Having custom cabinets means they are built according to the homeowner’s specific design requests or a kitchen designer’s layout. Cabinets of the Desert considers itself a custom cabinet supplier (with some limitations). Our designers collaborate with you to design your space, and our manufacturers build to your specific design.
What Role Does Customization Play in Choosing Kitchen Cabinetry?
More customization equals greater design flexibility and more functionality. Depending on the manufacturer, we can modify cabinetry to one-eighth-inch increments for width, height, and depth. There is also a vast range of finishes, door styles, and accessories available for you to choose from for your unique kitchen design. If you want a sleek modern kitchen, the customization process lets you create cabinets to fit your style. You can choose the wood, finish, and hardware of your cabinets.
Being able to select your cabinets’ location, height, depth, and width is also possible and will optimize functionality. And you can customize your cabinetry layout based on how you plan to use the kitchen – whether that is 30-minute chef family meals, gourmet experimentation, or large-scale entertaining.
Most kitchen spaces – especially in an existing home remodel – are not a standard size. In an especially small or oddly shaped kitchen, stock and prefabricated cabinets are likely not worth the initial savings since they will not fit well. Custom-fitted cabinets can be the most cost-effective way to get a livable and functional kitchen. Remember, you don’t have to figure your kitchen design out on your own. Cabinets of the Desert offers complimentary initial design consultation, professional measure-up, and kitchen design services. Our designers have designed hundreds of kitchens using gold-standard kitchen industry software and will help you make yours special and functional.
Are Custom Cabinets More Expensive?
Many stock cabinets are made from lower-quality base materials and assembled with plastic joints, screws, and glue. Custom cabinets made by a reputable maker use sturdier construction and joinery methods. Custom cabinet makers will often use dado and dovetail joints and confirmat screws (specialty screws used in fine furniture construction). Stock cabinet makers use nuts, bolts, nails, and plastic parts that are not as durable.
Custom cabinets also offer options for sturdier hardware elements like soft-close hinges and drawer glides. Other options that will add to the wear and longevity of your cabinets are also available – including easier-to-clean interior shelving material and toe kicks. All our manufacturers also offer long-term warranties.
These differences mean custom-fitted cabinets made of high-quality materials will look better and function longer, making custom cabinets a better value.
Want to do a little more research? Check out our Know Before You Go blog series for information on common cabinetry terms, cabinet materials and finishes, and more. Or, come by our showroom to take advantage of the complimentary design consultation and get started. Let’s plan your dream custom kitchen together.