FAQ

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What does Cabinet Studio & Lighting do? Back to top

We design and sell custom made cabinetry, manufactured cabinetry, counter tops and lighting.

Cabinets can be constructed from cherry, mahogany, maple, oak, walnut and other woods and stained or painted to match your décor.

We offer counter tops in all traditional laminates and solid surface counter materials, including DuPont Corian®, stainless steel, granite, marble, soapstone, slate, Quartz and butchers’ block.

Our lighting showroom in Cedar Rapids stands out because we have a dedicated and fully certified lighting designer on staff to assist you.

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Custom cabinetry vs. manufactured cabinetry—what are the differences? Back to top

Manufactured cabinetry, also known as boxed cabinetry, comes in three quality levels. You can find low-priced entry-level cabinets, mid-market level and high-end cabinetry in most showrooms and home centers. It is difficult to distinguish what level a cabinet line falls into without looking into the specifications. Plywood sides, dovetailed drawers and soft-closing hinges, once only found on better quality cabinetry, can now be found even on entry-level cabinetry.

Entry-Level Cabinetry: May have center stiles or posts between doors, few color selections and no modifications to accommodate appliances. If you look closely, imperfections in the wood and finish will be noticeable. Door frames will be constructed from minimum-width pieces and center panels may be veneered particle board. Parts and pieces may be imported and assembled in the U.S. Plywood sides, dovetailed drawers and soft-closing hinges are generally an upcharge.

Mid-Market Cabinetry: Will have real wood sides and a wide selection of stain colors and paint options. Mid-level cabinetry will have some customization options that allow for built-in appliances and appliance panels. You can also get wainscot paneling, mantles, posts and other custom wood items not found in entry-level cabinet lines. Design features like five-piece drawer fronts, full overlay doors and glazed finish options are not a problem. Dovetailed drawers and soft-closing hinges are standard items.

High-End Cabinetry: Will be the most designer friendly. The best quality wood is combined with the widest selection of styles and colors. High-end cabinet lines will allow clients to select unique custom colors and customize their doors for that one-of-a-kind look not found with mid-market cabinetry. High-end construction methods and hand-wiped finishing will extend production time. Shipping may take longer too, as high-end cabinetry is usually not boxed in cardboard, but blanket wrapped to protect the finish.

Custom Cabinetry: Possesses the quality and selections found in high-end cabinetry with some extra benefits. We can produce fully custom cabinetry in custom sizes, colors and details with little or no added expense. Since our cabinetry is produced locally, a client does not have the hidden shipping expense associated with manufactured cabinetry. Choosing Cabinet Studio Custom can save money and, in the end, you have a truly bespoke, one-of-a-kind fitted kitchen not available from any manufactured cabinet line.

Learn more about the quality cabinet brands we carry.

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Do you reface kitchen cabinetry or counter tops? Back to top

All custom cabinet shops can reface cabinetry. We discourage our clients from choosing that path. Although it saves on down time during the remodel, it will cost more than new cabinetry, and changes to work flow and layout are not possible.

The most expensive items in any cabinet project are the drawers, doors, hinges and drawer glides. Sizing and fitting them onsite to old cabinetry is almost always more labor intensive than building fresh, new cabinetry in our workshop facility.

Resurfacing existing counter tops can be more expensive than choosing new. You can save time during the remodel but will end up with a thin veneer over old substrate. Again, time is saved, but the expense is the same or more. Given that there is no price savings, we encourage people to take the extra time and go with all-new cabinetry and counter tops.

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Do you charge a design fee? Back to top

We do not charge an initial fee. We will meet on site to measure and discuss your ideas and vision. From there, we will put design to paper and develop a plan based on our discussions. We will review these plans and set a time to meet again. Once we establish a budget and design direction, we ask for a design fee. The fee is a small percentage of the overall project and varies with the scope of each project. It will be applied to your cabinetry and lighting purchase as if it were a down payment.