38: Kitchen Plan

I had certain ideas (and tears from magazines) of what I wanted my kitchen to look like, but I can't say enough about the value of a licensed kitchen designer. When I decided to work with Plain & Fancy cabinetry, they connected me with Empire Bath & Kitchen in Utica, New York to help me develop a plan. I'll admit that in the beginning I doubted that they were going to be able to show me anything I didn't already know, but boy was I wrong. My kitchen isn't that large, so there weren't a lot of options for how the room could be laid out. The kitchen is partially open to rest of the first floor, and it's also the passageway into the house from the back door. Plenty of reasons to turn to a kitchen expert.

It made more financial sense to have the open upper shelves built by Oak Tree Homes, but Empire Bath & Kitchen worked out a plan for the Plain & Fancy cabinets below the counters and also above the counter on the stairwell wall.

Empire Bath & Kitchen really took all of the guesswork out of planning the space and maximized my storage. They knew where I needed single drawers and where I needed a stack of drawers; where electric outlets needed to be placed above the counter; and figured out how to make it all fit in the limited space. It couldn't have been easier or flawless experience. The counters were templated, cut and installed as per the schedule they developed, and once everything was delivered (cabinet production took about 12 weeks) the entire room came together in a week.

Kitchen showrooms and dealerships are still more or less a mom-and-pop business, and their design services they are figured into the costs of the cabinets. There are mass retailers who make it possible for homeowners to assemble a kitchen on their own these days, but I've never seen one of those that looked seamless. Kitchens are great investments, and I would never recommend building a kitchen or renovating one without the skills of a licensed kitchen designer...even it you just need them to make your ideas into the beautiful room that you imagined.