Why Ikea?

I have to admit, as much as rely on Ikea for affordabe home goods in many cases, I hesitated on outfitting my kitchen with its cabinets. I was worried that the quality may not be the best, or that since their style is so recognizable, future buyers might be turned off by the Ikea brand.

So began some research. First, I questioned my realtor (turned friend) who assured me that it would not hurt resale. That could be different if you're in a million-dollar neighborhood. In ours, the fact that the kitchen was updated and opened would make it a standout. I turned to blogs about other people's experiences with Ikea cabinets; most reports seemed good. 

Cliq cabinets are made of wood & stylish.
They just didn't fit our budget.

I also looked at other brands. I was in love with the gray Cliq cabinets, but their estimate was about $8,000 with a discount. Gray was our preferred color, partly because we thought it would be a good contrast with the dark wood floors and, well, we just like it. 

I made the rounds to Lowe's and Home Depot, as well as getting samples from some of the online RTA (ready to assemble) cabinet companies. With the former, I found that I couldn't what I wanted for my budget. At the lower end, the materials were pretty much the same as Ikea. 

We almost went with one of the RTA companies. Even though they didn't have the gray that we wanted, the price was comparable to Ikea and the fronts would be real wood. 

Still, I'm not the decisive type, and my husband had never seen Ikea cabinets in person. So we made a trip to the store, where we got some insider information: in fall 2013, they would be introducing Lidingo Gray in the US (it was already available in Europe). Suddenly, the color we wanted would be attainable at a price we could afford. This

Ikea gave us a similiar look for half the price!

was in late spring, but we decided to plan our remodel around the US release of the cabinets. With all the bells and whistles, we'd spend about $4,000--or half of the first quote we received. 

While I took the long way to get to this decision, I don't regret doing the research and spinning my wheels a bit. I don't feel like I compromised and automatically went with the cheapest option. Ultimately, it felt like the best fit for our situation and budget, and while I can't yet speak to long-term durability, I'm pretty darn happy with how they look and function.

Oh, and we saved a ton being able to install the cabinets ourselves. (By "ourselves," I mostly mean my husband and a family friend.) According to him, the process was pretty straightforward. The written directions are basically stick figures and sometimes confusing; his recommendation is to watch the installation videos on YouTube. They're also helpful for putting the cabinets together.