Custom Cabinetry… What does that mean?

Many people think that custom cabinetry means crafted in a local wood shop.

Dura Supreme Cabinetry designed by Lindsey Markel The fact of the matter is that all kitchen cabinetry is custom made to some degree. Let’s use Webster’s dictionary as a point of reference. Custom made is defined “made to fit the needs or requirements of a particular person”; “made or fitted to the needs or preferences of a specific person”.  Related words are handcrafted, custom-built, special, particular, specialized, handmade and made-to-measure.  Synonyms include a British term bespoke, bespoken, and made-to-order, tailor-made, customized, and custom.  Antonyms are mass-produced, production-grade, ready-made, stock.

Custom Wood Hood

“I started designing and remodeling after graduating from the University of MD College Park May 17th 1980.” said Signature’s owner Gary Case. That’s nearly half a century of design, specification, & remodeling. Signature Kitchens Additions & Baths understands the importance of delivering custom craftsmanship and service for each individual homeowner. We appreciate our cabinet manufacturers such as Dura Supreme Cabinetry, Medallion Cabinetry, & Jay Rambo Cabinetry who have blended modern technology with old school wood working craftsmanship to create excellent cabinetry.

Attention to detail by every member of the team.

All cabinetry is built after the order is placed by Signature Kitchens Additions & Baths with the manufacturer. What does happen before the order is work at the rough mill where lumber is kiln dried into rail and style stock for doors. Rails are the horizontal parts of a door and styles are the vertical parts of the door.

Dura Supreme’s beautifully hand crafted curved doors.

Of the manufacturers we represent Dura Supreme, Miralis, Belmont and Jay Rambo cabinetry all manufacturer their own doors in house. Medallion Cabinetry and Echelon purchase their doors to order from a door manufacturer. The former manufacturers are very semi-custom, custom and furniture grade and the latter are semi-custom and production grade manufacturers. One of the benefits of in house manufacturing is Dura Supreme’s practice of finishing center panels of doors before assembly. Think about the natural expansion and contraction of wood. If the styles and rails contract along the center panel of a painted door it is possible that raw wood will be exposed if the doors are finished after assembly. If a door is purchased as a blank then pre-finishing before assembly is not possible.

All wood is measured for moisture content.

High quality materials and fine craftsmanship makes a difference in the overall quality, performance and ultimately the value of kitchen cabinetry.

Large wood mantel hood being hand built.

Most of the pictures in this blog are from Dura Supreme as you can see these pieces are custom, tailor made for a customer.

Custom Built to fit a nook

Custom cabinetry can be customized to 1/16” in height, width and depth.

Wavy curves on custom cabinet.

All of our custom manufacturers and to a small degree our semi-custom can create a completely unique configuration such as the cabinets above manufactured by Dura Supreme to fit a rapidly sloping kitchen ceiling.

Weathered oak for a island.

Today finish palette is as broad as any paint manufacturers such as Sherwin Williams plus any stain manufacturer such as Valspar combined offerings. Add to that Dura Supremes’ fashion influenced combinations and enhanced glazing techniques and your kitchen can be truly one of a kind custom made for you. That is the definition of custom.

Artisian finsih

Almost all of manufacturers offer a lifetime warranty and Signature Kitchens Additions & Baths offers its own warranty on workmanship. For nearly 50 years our dedication to craftsmanship in house employees and excellent service have been our foundation.

Blue Kitchen Custom Sherwin Williams color.

There should be no compromise between beautiful styling and quality construction. Custom built cabinets made just for you in all sizes, oven-cured finishes in any stain or any color you can imagine.

Green accent cabinets. How brave are you?

This blog post was inspired by a Dura Supreme Cabinetry post written by Mandi Juskiewicz