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What's New:
 The choices available when choosing kitchen cabinets can sometimes be overwhelming and it is difficult to know where to start.
On top of this, there are a number of terms and descriptions used to classify cabinets styles and manufacturing techniques.
Listed below are some of the more common terms used when buying cabinets, and it is hoped that this list will be added to in the near future.
Overlay:
The term overlay refers to how the door covers the frame of the cabinet. There are basically two different types of overlays.
Standard-overlay means you see the frame around the door and full-overlay means that the door covers the frame. In essence the door is larger on a full overlay cabinet.
Thermal-Foil:
Thermal-foil is a vinyl that is applied over a MDF (medium density fiberboard) door using a heat process. It is used for white or off-white doors. It is very easy to clean and is durable.
MDF Door:
MDF doors are made of medium density fiberboard, which can be routed into a raised panel design. They can be thermal-foiled, stained or painted in a solid color.
The advantage of choosing a MDF door as opposed to a constructed wood door when [...]
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 If you choose wood, you have the choice of solid wood or wood veneer. The latter is cheaper and is less influenced by weather conditions.
The humidity and temperature outside have an effect on your solid wooden kitchen doors, but the biggest influence comes from the changes in temperature and humidity in the kitchen.
Veneer can also give a more uniform look to the fronts (if this is what you want) as the pieces of wood used are cut from a larger piece in thin strips to cover all the doors.
Wood itself is available in all kinds of colors, but it can also be glossed, painted, colour washed or waxed to give it the finish you prefer. Look at the pictures on this site and on the Internet for more ideas and examples.
Cabinet Woods
Pine:
Has a casual, rustic look, some graining, color variation and knotholes. It is the softest of cabinet woods, so hinges may need to be tightened periodically as they tend to pull out of the wood after use.
Oak:
Has a casual look, a lot of graining and an even color tone when stained. It is a very hard wood and looks great [...]
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 There are a number of options when choosing a cabinet material, some of the most popular are, wood, laminate, and metal.
Each has its advantages and disadvantages and it is worth spending some time researching the numerous options.
Wood doors are covered in the next section due the the large number of combinations of styles and colors available.
Laminate
Laminate cabinet doors can have endless possibilities in color, texture and shine.
You can go for a soft look with creamy colours and a matt finish, or, if you want to make a real statement, choose Italian-style with glossy fronts and bold colors.
A great advantage of laminate cabinets is that they are virtually maintenance-free. Wood is a natural product and prone to changes in temperature and humidity and needs a lot of care, but laminate only needs to be wiped clean occasionally.
Laminate doors suffer from a lot less wear and tear than laminate countertops and should stay looking good for a long time.
Glass
Large expanses of wood or laminate in a kitchen can look good sometimes but if you want to break up the monotony, glass doors can be used every now and again. Transparent glass is used [...]
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 Because cabinet doors are the face of the kitchen, it will be very important that you choose a finish you want to look at for quite a number of years.
Keep in mind that, whichever material you choose to use for your cabinets, durability and low maintenance have to be the key to your choice.
As most of the cabinet carcasses nowadays are made of particleboard or chipboard, the only thing you have to worry about is the finish of the cabinet doors.
First of all it is important to choose which material you want to use. In this section, the different finishes and their possibilities will be explained.
Door Styles
There are a number of door styles, such as the following:
Square Raised Panel
Cathedral Arch
Roman Arch
Solid Panel
Traditional Mullion Glass Door
Country Mullion Glass Door
Beaded Panel
Shaker or Mission Style Door
Shaker Door with Center Stile
Raised panel doors are available in a square, roman arch or cathedral arch style. The drawer fronts are offered flat or also with a raised panel. Styles range from simple to beveled, or grooved with added details. The arch or square style works well with traditional decor. The square door works well with contemporary decor.
Recessed [...]
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 The first decision when selecting cabinets is whether to go for stock cabinets, semi-custom, custom units or frameless cabinets.
All have their own advantages and disadvantages.
There are the three basic classifications of cabinet manufacturing: Stock, Semi-Custom & Custom, and this can be further subdivided into Framed and Frameless.
Pricing will vary depending on your layout, the manufacturer, wood, finish, door style and the interior accessories you select.
Stock
Lowest price range
Limited selection of door styles, woods and stain colors. Solid woods and veneers are both used. Wood selection is usually oak, hickory, maple, cherry and MDF doors in white or off-white thermal-foils (see ‘Kitchen Cabinet Terminology’ below).
Usually offers three different grades of construction. Standard consists of particleboard sides and a 4-sided drawer box that is dadoed, stapled and glued. Mid-range upgrades the drawer box to wood with dovetailed joints and usually thicker shelves in the wall cabinets. Best offers all this plus plywood sides instead of particleboard. Hinges used are concealed, drawer glides are an epoxy side-mount. The finish is machine sprayed and sanded (finish quality will vary between various stock lines)
Cabinets are pre-made in standard sizes that increase in 3″ increments from 9″-48″ and [...]
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The new 42-inch French Door fully flush refrigerator from Jenn-Air belongs to the recently introduced collection of high performance built-in refrigerators that marries seamless design with thoughtful functionality. Other flush refrigerator models include 36-inch bottom-freezer and popular 42- and 48-inch side-by-side door refrigerators. The new JF42NXFXDW is the industry-first 42-inch French door bottom-freezer refrigerator offering the widest interior space available in any fully flush refrigerator currently on the market and bringing the clean, seamless and refined look to your kitchen. One of the important design features is the hidden articulated hinges that allow for minimal gaps, no larger than that of surrounding cabinetry, making the refrigerator virtually disappear in its environment. The completely integrated look of the Jenn-Air refrigerator is all about aesthetics, yet functionality and performance are not sacrificed but further enhanced. Thus, the thinner exterior door provides a flush fit with custom cabinetry for a seamless exterior, while the interior offers even greater usable cubic space than similar flush refrigerators and a faster temperature recovery time after the doors are opened. High performance vacuum insulation panels help maintain energy and keep food fresher, longer. The articulated hinge is equipped with [...]
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Tip of the Day: When ordering appliances, carefully check the specs
 Carpenters live by the adage, Measure twice. Cut once. The same advice can apply to ordering appliances and equipment for a kitchen remodel, says one New Jersey homeowner who recently undertook a top-to-bottom makeover of the 300-square-foot kitchen at her 1960s Cape Cod house.
Because Helaine W.’s new kitchen includes a bank of windows on the exterior wall, the plans called for an island vent hood—a wall-mounted hood with through-the-wall venting wouldn’t fit the design. What’s more, the hood had to be 24 inches deep or less so it wouldn’t overhang the counter.
To find the right-size hood, Helaine, her kitchen designer, and a salesperson from a local appliance store searched the Web sites of several major manufacturers and found the Franke FDF 367 1XS 36-inch-wide island hood. The Franke site indicated a depth of a little more than 19 inches, ideal for the application. An order was placed for the unit.
When the hood arrived four weeks later, the contractor notified Helaine that the Franke FDF 367 1XS was deeper [...]
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The large Liebherr WTes4677 Vinidor is the capable wine refrigerator that stores wines at three different temperatures from +5°C to +20°C or +41°F to +68°F. This state-of-the-art wine refrigerator holds up to 143 bottles in three separately controlled temperature zones and enables both long term and serving temperature storage. This allows you to store champagne, red wine and white wine each at its optimum temperature without undermining the quality of wines produced by different grapes, prolonging the flavour and aroma and longevity. Liebherr equips this refrigerator with a dimmable LED display for accurate temperature monitoring. A carbon filter fitted to each zone purifies the incoming fresh air for purity. Even the hand made, untreated wooden shelves contribute to optimum wine storage. Refrigerator humidity is maintained between 50% and 80%, guaranteeing ideal conditions to ensure the corks do not dry out. The WTes4677 also allows wines to be stored long term, with the UV light repellent door keeping harmful light at bay while the motor, housed in an isolated environment, ensures a vibration free environment. This triple temperature wine refrigerator from Liebherr retails at approximately £2,850. Also, wine storage [...]
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The fully integrated Miele wine refrigerator has three unique cooling zones with independent controls permitting you to store or temper champagne, white and red wines at their ideal conditions within 40°F to 64°F range. The environment is maintained by Miele MasterCool controls that protect wine bottles from any temperature changes, controlling it precisely for long-term wine storage. To protect your collection further, Miele equipped this wine refrigerator with the proprietary RemoteVision system that uses wireless local area network technology and unique application software developed by Miele for its Independence Series, enabling the cabinet to connect to Miele monitoring center. If there is a significant change in temperature or other conditions, the center notifies you for further action.
The humidity levels are controlled with the help of dynamic cooling system ensuring that corks are kept moist to effectively seal the bottles. The fully integrated wine storage refrigerator guarantees an even circulation of air and constant humidity so your wines always give a perfect bouquet for the enjoyment of family and friends.
Specially designed LED illumination system of this Miele wine refrigerator doesn’t affect the [...]
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Gaggenau now offers two 24 inch dishwasher models – the DF 260 with Euro tub and DF 261 with tall tub. Both power dishwashers provide restaurant-grade dishwashing capabilities while meeting all your decor demands with the sleek luxurious, built-in design. The new DF 260/261 24 inch dishwashers are strong enough to clean up after the most prolific home chefs in just 59 minutes flat – thanks to the unique Power Boost option, so you have quick and spotless results each and every time. And an Intense Wash setting is perfect for mixed loads. 6 additional programs include an Extra-Dry setting to remove all water particles from hard-to-dry plastics such as Tupperware. Very economical and efficient, the ‘AAA’ rated dishwashers save time, money and energy without sacrificing strength. Gaggenau exclusive Aqua sensor technology determines the load and degree of soiling, optimizing the water temperature, water quantity and the length of the washing cycle accordingly. The 24 inch dishwasher also has automatic detergent function which adjusts the amount of detergent used to the needs of each load. Not only does it take the guesswork out of doing the dishes, it also conserves [...]
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On AMC’s Mad Men, attention to detail includes appliances in the Drapers’ kitchen
 Much has been written about the painstaking detail that goes into every costume, set decoration, and cocktail on Mad Men, the hit drama on AMC about the advertising industry in the early 1960s.
We’ll leave it to the fashion scribes to decide whether the lapels on Don Draper’s suit and the furniture at the Sterling Cooper ad agency were appropriate in the season-three premiere on Sunday, August 16.
What we’re interested in are the appliances you see on the show. From that admittedly narrow perspective, a standout image from the premiere had to be the electric cooktop that Draper, played by Jon Hamm, is seen standing over in the opening sequence as he warms some milk for his pregnant wife, Betty (January Jones). The photo, courtesy of AMC, shows the Drapers’ kitchen.
The way the camera lingers over the glowing-red coils, the appliance definitely conjures a specific place in time. (As do those knotty-pine cabinets and the plaid wallpaper in the kitchen.) We didn’t test cooktops [...]
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Someone sent me an email and asked if I thought there was a design flaw in a section of her cabinet design. I had to write back that, yes, I agreed with her that part of the design was flawed. Unfortunately, it was a finished picture of the kitchen that they had sent me, which made it even more uncomfortable for me to give my opinion. The kitchen was installed, and it looked like it cost a pretty penny. Here are words of wisdom:
“Lesson Learned
I learned a big lesson the hard way and wish I had gone with my instinct to hire a kitchen designer during my kitchen design process.
My contractor convinced me that it would make more sense for him to design the kitchen layout because he was also working on the electrical, plumbing etc. so there would be a cost savings to me if he designed it and worked with his preferred cabinet company.
We decided to go ahead and in the end I thought the kitchen looked great until I noticed some design elements that look flawed to me.
I believe that a good kitchen designer would have done a much [...]
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Here is what’s catching my attention…new and/or interesting products you need to know about.
 Blue Star is sort of a lone wolf (no pun intended) in the pro range category. A somewhat silent player, it’s a product that deserves more attention. Blue Star says that they are the only genuine restaurant range for the home due to their open burner system, producing 22,000 btus of power, resulting in shorter cooking times and an even simmer. BUILD YOUR OWN Blue Star range (that’s what I built in the image) to reflect your personal style and preferences.
Miele hasjust redesigned their CombiSets, or modular cooking pieces. I LOVE modular pieces. It’s a super flexible, super functional way to precision-design your cooking needs. The new line includes an induction cooktop and Japanese Tepan Yaki. The design of these pieces are gorgeous, with controls that are slanted in an ergonomic way. A slightly larger 15″ size is available for some models and that really makes sense to me.
 I’m crazy about sink accessories! In my new home, I have this one small built-in cutting board, and it’s so incredibly useful to have it right nearby. We [...]
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One outcome of the declining real estate market has been a move to building and offering smaller homes. It was a trend that had been suspected but earlier this year the statistics were announced that back it up. The average size of homes started in the third quarter of 2008 was 2,438 square feet, down from 2,629 square feet in the second quarter, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.1
Many consumers are looking for smaller digs for a variety of reasons. Some have made a philosophical shift considering a move to a smaller living space less of a down-sizing and more of a right-sizing decision. They choose to use less of the earth’s resources.
Others have made the switch for demographic reasons:
The 80 million-strong Generation Y, the so-called “millennials,” want to live in exciting urban settings, are interested in value engineering, and consider smaller living spaces acceptable.2 Urban lofts are hits in cities less populated than New York City or San Francisco– including Louisville, Kentucky; Des Moines, Iowa; and Spokane, Washington, to name just a few.
Aging baby boomers are selling their larger homes and trading them for more [...]
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Name of Product: Blue Ember Gas Grills
Units: About 88,000 units in the United States (47,000 gas grills were previously recalled in October 2008) and 25,000 in Canada
Importer: Fiesta Gas Grills, of Dickson, Tenn.
Manufacturers: Unisplendor Corp., of China and Keesung Corp., of China
Hazard: The hose of the gas tank can get too close to the firebox and be exposed to heat, posing a fire hazard to consumers.
Incidents/Injuries: Fiesta has received 161 reports of grill fires, resulting in nine injuries, including two incidents of major burns on different parts of the body, six incidents of minor burns, and an incident involving temporary hearing loss.
Description: This recall involves Blue Ember liquid propane (LP) outdoor grills with model and serial numbers listed below. The cabinet style grill has two doors and is silver and black or silver and gray. “Blue Ember” is printed on the grill’s hood. The model and serial numbers are printed on a rating plate label on the rear of the grill.
MODEL NUMBERS
SERIAL # RANGES
FG50045
FG50057
FG50069
07000003 thru 07010912
07057153 thru 07060224
07015613 thru 07018300
07062217 thru 07062344
07064221 thru 07064604
07029021 thru 07031580
07065373 thru 07065500
07032093 thru 07038876
07039261 thru 07039743
07067165 thru 07073548
07039837 thru 07039964
07074189 thru 07074316
07040221 thru 07042332
07074573 thru 07074828
07043013 thru 07043112
08K000001 thru 08K000640
07046416 thru 07046465
07049362 thru [...]
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The frame is the front of the cabinet box where the door attaches.
