THE LURE OF THE EUROPEAN STYLING....
The Low-Down on High-End Cabinets
Don Vandervort
November 11, 2005
Have you fallen in love with some of the European cabinets you've seen in magazine ads? If you're considering imported cabinets, have your checkbook ready. Allmilmo, Poggenpohl, SieMatic, and a few other European manufacturers offer cabinets that are truly beautiful, and are clearly for high-end kitchens. Most average about $30,000 per kitchen; some far exceed that figure. Also be prepared to wait from 6 to 16 weeks, depending upon the company and the products you order.
Because highly individualized kitchens may be created from imported cabinets, they're referred to as "custom." Actually, some cabinet widths can be modified and you can order some special cabinets but, for the most part, you order within their wide range of standard sizes and finishes.
The German company Allmilmo, for example, offers about 120 different looks, with surfaces of laminates, wood veneers, lacquer finishes, or hardwoods such as maple, spruce, mahogany and beech. All have frameless, melamine-laminated carcasses. The drawers are high-grade "Meta-Box" drawer systems with metal sides, integrated full-extension slides, and melamine bottoms.
SieMatic, with lines made in Germany and Canada and with some doors made domestically, also markets a wide range of standards in styles, from country-style hardwood cabinets to high-gloss, lacquered contemporary models.
In addition, SieMatic distributes Smallbone Handmade English Cabinetry, a line of beautifully made wood cabinets, including their very popular "unfitted" cabinets. Unlike typical cabinets that are installed in runs, these are made more like individual furniture pieces. Installed and hand painted on site by specially-trained craftpersons, these cabinets push the upper limits of price, averaging from $45,000 to $60,000 and topping out well over $100,000.
With Poggenpohl cabinetry, an entirely custom-made German line, you specify all sizes and finishes. Of the European-style contemporary products on the market, Poggenpohl cabinets are considered some of the highest quality and highest priced.
HomeTips
HomeTips is your one-stop resource for help with home improvements, remodeling, repairs, decorating, and major purchases of appliances and other home products. You'll find free home-improvement advice, great tips, an online edition of How Your House Works, and more. The Head Homeboy at HomeTips is Don Vandervort, segment host on the award-winning HGTV show "The Fix," home-improvement guru on MSN's Home Advisor, frequent contributor to national magazines, and author of more than 25 home improvement books.
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Don Vandervort
November 11, 2005
Have you fallen in love with some of the European cabinets you've seen in magazine ads? If you're considering imported cabinets, have your checkbook ready. Allmilmo, Poggenpohl, SieMatic, and a few other European manufacturers offer cabinets that are truly beautiful, and are clearly for high-end kitchens. Most average about $30,000 per kitchen; some far exceed that figure. Also be prepared to wait from 6 to 16 weeks, depending upon the company and the products you order.
Because highly individualized kitchens may be created from imported cabinets, they're referred to as "custom." Actually, some cabinet widths can be modified and you can order some special cabinets but, for the most part, you order within their wide range of standard sizes and finishes.
The German company Allmilmo, for example, offers about 120 different looks, with surfaces of laminates, wood veneers, lacquer finishes, or hardwoods such as maple, spruce, mahogany and beech. All have frameless, melamine-laminated carcasses. The drawers are high-grade "Meta-Box" drawer systems with metal sides, integrated full-extension slides, and melamine bottoms.
SieMatic, with lines made in Germany and Canada and with some doors made domestically, also markets a wide range of standards in styles, from country-style hardwood cabinets to high-gloss, lacquered contemporary models.
In addition, SieMatic distributes Smallbone Handmade English Cabinetry, a line of beautifully made wood cabinets, including their very popular "unfitted" cabinets. Unlike typical cabinets that are installed in runs, these are made more like individual furniture pieces. Installed and hand painted on site by specially-trained craftpersons, these cabinets push the upper limits of price, averaging from $45,000 to $60,000 and topping out well over $100,000.
With Poggenpohl cabinetry, an entirely custom-made German line, you specify all sizes and finishes. Of the European-style contemporary products on the market, Poggenpohl cabinets are considered some of the highest quality and highest priced.
HomeTips
HomeTips is your one-stop resource for help with home improvements, remodeling, repairs, decorating, and major purchases of appliances and other home products. You'll find free home-improvement advice, great tips, an online edition of How Your House Works, and more. The Head Homeboy at HomeTips is Don Vandervort, segment host on the award-winning HGTV show "The Fix," home-improvement guru on MSN's Home Advisor, frequent contributor to national magazines, and author of more than 25 home improvement books.
More Articles By This Provider
Five Keys to Remodeling on a Budget
Green Thumb Secrets for a Great Lawn
Summer Activities
Mulching Mowers Make Sense
Decks: A Clean Deck Lasts Longer
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