The Reveal, Part 4

In my previous blog posts, I shared my experiences with the design process, the unpacking and tear-out process, and the installation process. Now, it’s time for the reveal. Time to take a moment to step back and admire our work and review our checklist to assess if the finished product meets our expectations.

In the heat of the “installation” moment when you’re surrounded by a bunch of cabinets, tools and installation materials, it’s hard to really focus on what the finished product will look like. It’s a lot like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Your focus is generally on finding the next piece that will get you one step closer to completion, rather than on the finished assemblage.

How does the finished product look? Well, we loved the navy blue sample supplied by CliqStudios during the design process, but we weren’t certain about how a “sea of cabinets” might look in this anything-but-traditional color [Where do I get the best design ideas?]. We can describe the finished product in a word — fantastic! The shaker doors and navy blue finish are everything that we hoped for and more!

Appearance aside, the cabinet layout allows for plenty of elbowroom and comfort. The accessories — pull out shelves, lazy susan, and vertical tray dividers maximize storage and provide easy access. But the real “shock and awe” happened once the blue-veined azurite granite countertops and white subway tile backsplash were installed. Wow! Talk about a gorgeous kitchen. We have one for the pages of House Beautiful.

The soft close drawers and doors, and the finished easy-to-clean interiors make day-to-day use a pleasure. Gone are the days of banging cabinet doors and shifting cutlery caused by a swiftly closed drawer [What is a quality kitchen cabinet?]. What could be better?

As a remodeling contractor, traditionally, most of the cabinets that we install in our projects are custom fabricated in a local shop. That can be both a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing to the extent that you can, as the burger chain states, “have it your way.” That means that you typically don’t need “fillers” to take up space that predetermined factory-made cabinet sizes generally require. Custom made cabinets can be a curse because they can take forever to get, they can cost a veritable fortune and if something goes wrong — and something always goes wrong — getting a replacement can completely derail your project schedule [What do kitchen cabinets cost?].

I was surprised to find how well made the factory-built CliqStudios cabinets came together with very little need for fillers and other installation elements. I will put my CliqStudios kitchen up against a custom kitchen any day. The biggest difference? Price! You can spend three to four times more for custom cabinets and there simply isn’t three to four times the value.

In retrospect, would I have done anything differently? Not one thing!

In my next and final blog post, I’ll share some best advice for DIYers and project managers.

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