Designing on a budget
Your kitchen cabinets will be the most expensive item in your remodel, but they do not have to be over your budget. There are many ways to get your kitchen cabinets on a budget. You can still get a high quality for an affordable price when it comes to kitchen cabinets.
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Choosing prefabricated or stock cabinets over custom cabinets is a good starting point, but the savings don’t have to stop there. Sometimes it’s all about the wood species you pick or the number of specialty items that you include in your design. Best of all, you won’t always have to sacrifice quality to get that budgeted price.
You’ll probably have a specific door style in mind from looking on the internet or magazines, but if your goal is to save money, it’s best to select two or three options and compare the cost. Door styles can make a dramatic difference in the price of your cabinets. Full overlay is typically more expensive than a traditional overlay. Raised center panel and inset door styles will almost always cost more. Oftentimes Shaker-style doors cost less, but they are not he lowest cost since everyone wants it and businesses believe in supply and demand. It can vary based on the cabinet manufacturer. Slab door fronts are normally less expensive across the board, which is a perfect fit for thrifty homeowners designing a modern or contemporary kitchen. By the way they are easier to clean.
The right wood species can shave several hundred dollars off your total cost if not thousands. Laminate will be the most cost effective style to choose. Oak and hickory is almost always affordable. Species such as maple can hike up the price tag by up to $1,000. Cherry is usually always very expensive.
Floating Shelves instead of cabinetry will do wonders for your bank account. Yes, you’re sacrificing storage space. Yes, they’re more maintenance. However, you’re definitely not sacrificing your retirement funds. Standard wall cabinets can account for several thousand dollars of your total cost. The price difference is nothing short of dramatic. As with everything when you are trying to save money there are Pros and cons with this choice. Sacrificing common upgrades like soft-close drawers and full-extension slides can save you several hundred bucks (perhaps even more). Remember that they are just perks — drawers aren’t required to get a functional or good-looking design. Also, just because a company says they have them standard in their pricing does not mean it is high quality mechanisms.
Any type of pullout, be it a trash bin, sliding shelves or corner swing out, will drive up the bill. Plan to place your trash bin somewhere else, such as a pantry or at the end of your island. Stick to standard blind corners and base cabinets without the bells and whistles. Customize less. You may be tired of hearing it, but it’s true: The fewer details you choose, the less you’ll pay. Corbels, decorative legs, matching end panels, glass door fronts, crown molding and more are surprisingly costly. These customized options are a surefire way to increase the cost. A glaze is tempting since the small detail goes a long way in shaping the aesthetics of your cabinets. However, a glaze adds significant cost to kitchen cabinets sometimes up to 15% or more. Since it’s more of a want than a need, don’t hesitate to take it off the table. Drawer bases cost more than standard base cabinets, hands down. You can save up to several hundred dollars per cabinet piece.
Lastly you don’t have to go all plywood for your cabinet construction. For a proper manufacture plywood you will usually pay 15% more in compared to the furniture board. If you select a manufacture that uses a perafin wax that is water resistant as their resin than choose the furniture board box and save money from the plywood construction.
So remember you can get to the budget but you will have sacrifices. Be willing to cut out some wish list items to get the long lasting high quality you deserve.
See you next week.
