last weeks kitchen

[Wysong]

This is the type of stuff that I do every day .
These are from a week or so ago .

[Bryan @ Woodstock]

Nice! Not sure I like the wall tile, but the kitchen boss must be happy!

[Mark in Ottawa]

That is some incredible work - having just finished my kitchen, I know first hand how hard it is...and it didn't come out a tenth as nice as this one!

Mark

[Rusty]

Beautifull work Hutch. I love the colour. I can't quite see in the pics but are the corners mitered on the doors and drawers? In one pic it looks like it. The panels on the Island finish it nicely and I see you didn't scrimp in favour of one piece drawer fronts either. I like 5 piece fronts.

[Wysong]

They are a mitred door in that Renniasance Style with gold high lighting , Rusty.
thats a 52 degree crown on that job , elevated 2" to reach the ceiling .

The kitchen , that I built last week ,I've been out installing today , is a shaker style .

I'll take pictures when it's done . Also with Light rail (but different style)
and a shaker style 38 degree crown.
Very Dark Brown in colour

[Brian @ Muir]

Nice looking kitchen. Do you buy or build your own doors?

Brian

[Wysong]

thats a Chinese kitchen , right out of the box
just assemble and install

can ya believe that

[Scott M]

>>>thats a Chinese kitchen , right out of the box
>>>just assemble and install

You serious? The pics make it look like custom sprayed with HVLP. No wonder the custom cabinet guys are having a hard time competing these days.

What's underneath? MDF?

[Pat from Elora]

This is off the shelf cabinets???
I agree with Scott..looks like a custom finish in the pics

[Scott M]

Besides, Hutch.... what's the point of having all that massive iron back at your place if you're gonna slap together Chinese cabs?!?!?!?!

{grin} {kidding}

[Brian @ Muir]

The saving grace to these cabinets as there are still people out there that have money and in no way would they ever admit to their friends that their kitchen came from China, Ikea etc. There are also people that have lots of money and take pride in telling their friends how much they paid for their kitchen, it is a status symbal. You will not find them hanging out on Woodworking forums, lol. I have sold builder quality kitchens that I buy in London. I have sold a few of them. I spend more on finishing my own kitchens than these kitchens cost me.These builder quality kitchens are manufactured in London. The made in China cabinets have been around for at least 5 to 8 years and they are improving in quality. In going to the AWFS in Vegas you get the opportunity to compare quality. They are improving but on the higher end stuff they have a way to go. Two years ago there was an area of the AWFS that had about 12 booths from India. They were selling kitchen accessories and the quality seemed good. Years ago we would see rustic furniture that came from Mexico and we still find it in Canada and the US. In the past year while travelling in the US I have found similiar looking furniture that was still rustic but the drawers were a little better fitting, finish had improved and generally in the right setting would complement any room. They were rustic but not crude like some of the early stuff made in Mexico. In speaking with the retailers I was surprised to find they originated in India. At the AWFS there is an area occupied by the Chinese selling entrance doors and these are not your typical steel doors. Mostly African Mahogany with bevelled and stained glass with lots of wrought iron, 8 to 10 ft tall and elaborate side panels. These doors are more like ones you will find in Million dollar homes and they sell for about 1/4 of what you would pay for a custom built door made in N. America. One thing they seem to be lacking is a distributation netwooks. They are hitting on anyone that wants to stop and talk to them. One guy hounded me to buy a 20 ft container with 30 doors. Little out of my league but if someone was looking for a business opportunity there is plenty available at AWFS. Enough of my rambling.

Brian

[Wysong]

Well if ya can't beat them , join them

My shop has been closed for quite a while now , either selling everything off or putting
it all in storage for Dec 's end .

My lease runs out then .
My shop is basically a big stoage locker , I havn't worked out of it
for 7 months now , only machine restorations are happin there now.

When my wife was dieing from Pancreatic Cancer (she pasted this April 17th),3 months yesterday ,
I found it just to much stress . looking for work , doing estimates , spending 8++ hrs a day
in the hospital , So I took this job to be closer to the hospital. I basically lost all interest in my
own work, I had taken the last 2 years off , to be with my wife , but ran out of $.
Time can buy ya $ , but $ can't buy ya time .

I couldn't buy the materials alone , for what I can bring these in for .
I've been able to mark them up as high as 500 %.

cabinet construction is baltic birch type plywood , with the sides, top and bottoms being 5/8 "Plywood,
shelfs are 3/4" Baltic birch plywood , door frames are solid 3/4"maple , some of the interior raised panels may be
coated mdf , there are 7 style of door choices coming in one colour only for each design .
They are a face frame type design .

ya want to take a guess what the customers final cost on that kitchen was ?????

[Scott M]

>>>ya want to take a guess what the customers final cost on that kitchen was ?????

The news about your wife is heart wrenching. I'm sorry. Most sad.

Nothing else to say; other than you, sir, are a very strong man.

I wish you well (tearfully).

Scott.

[Rusty]

Your wife passed 1 day after my son's birthday. The strain of dealing with that type of illness is staggering. Best wishes from Cathey and I Hutch.

[OttawaP]

Sorry for your loss. Stuff like this always gives me a bit of perspective on what stress really is and makes my day to day look pretty easy by comparison.

[mightyoak]

first thing i thought when i saw the first picture was that the doors were made somewhere else..just give them a few years, you'll see the panel will shrink and the finishing will split at the seam..it still looks good from far, but its far from good

[tylerzachary]

Looking really good! A small pot and green flower will perfectly on that desk.

[Bobcdn]

Well if ya can't beat them , join them

My shop has been closed for quite a while now , either selling everything off or putting
it all in storage for Dec 's end .

My lease runs out then .
My shop is basically a big stoage locker , I havn't worked out of it
for 7 months now , only machine restorations are happin there now.

When my wife was dieing from Pancreatic Cancer (she pasted this April 17th),3 months yesterday ,
I found it just to much stress . looking for work , doing estimates , spending 8++ hrs a day
in the hospital , So I took this job to be closer to the hospital. I basically lost all interest in my
own work, I had taken the last 2 years off , to be with my wife , but ran out of $.
Time can buy ya $ , but $ can't buy ya time .

Hutch, sorry for your loss. I can relate having fought my own battle with cancer. Everything you have worked so hard to amass seems to be a burden rather than something you enjoy. You realize that material possessions are a waste of time and that time is so much more important. I hope that you are able to find a way to keep your tools for when your passion returns. All the best.

[mullins13]

May i ask a couple of questions? This kitchen looks great!

I'm looking to remodel our kitchen myself in the next year or so, hoping to take on the task myself. Looking at ordering the cabinets to install myself. I'm wondering if the crown and lighting molding come pre-painted? Can you have paint tinted to match cabinets for using stock moldings and for touch ups?

Thank you,
Dave

[Owen]

Hello Wysong (Hutch) I just wanted to say that I am sorry that your wife passed away. My wife and I offer you our sincere condolances. We just went through the same situation with my Dad. It is a long hard road Hutch. All my best to you.