Are you worthy of custom cabinetry?

Do you know that one of the major expenditures of most renovations are spent on cabinetry? I actually didn't realize that until I started getting estimates from different contractors. Of course you can go with Ikea and save loads of money with some very good looking cabinets. But your room better be of certain height, build around the dimensions of the cabinets and if you don't mind that the base cabinets are built with particle boards. Besides, you also need to factor in the time you spent designing your own kitchen with not much help and finding someone to assemble it. Don't get me wrong, I love Ikea and the modern design, but for this big renovation, I think I do want something more custom made.


Recently my friend Karen just finished building her most amazing net zero energy home with beautiful cabinetry throughout the house. I was reluctant to ask for her cabinetry maker as I assume that it will be way above my budget. So originally I went with some semi-custom cabinets and was more than shocked by the absolutely not so frugal price...So I started working with Noor Adabachi of Spirla III Design of San Bruno.


I am going to use the same plyboo plywood throughout the house. Plyboo is sustainable and green certified which is part of the reason I chose it. I also like the interesting side details of the bamboo.

Another challenge is to choose the right finish! Stained to which color? Bleached? Less grain? More grain? I practically went through at least 6 finishes before narrowing it down to 2, and eventually to the one after at least 3 weeks of contemplation. I kept telling Noor that I like the "unfinished" color, basically the most natural color to me, but with the sealant and the stain, apparently it's almost impossible to get the same natural hue. I do like the eventual color that he was able to make for me. I sure do hope that it will look good in the finish cabinetry.


On Friday I went to Sprial III design workshop to look at the progress of the cabinets, and they do look good so far. It's getting to be quite exciting.

the inside of the cabinets

Noor holding up the exterior plywood to one of the base.

Drawers interior. FYI, drawers are the most expensive elements of cabinetry.

The double ends are necessary to cover the interior layer.