Here is what you need to know, do, and gather before you book your appointment with a Superior Cabinets Kitchen Designer. Click here for additional information on Planning a Kitchen Renovation during a Pandemic. If you are wanting to renovate your kitchen cabinets and don’t know where to begin, we suggest starting with our Free Kitchen Cabinet Buyer’s Guide.
ESTABLISH A BUDGET
It will be important for you to establish a maximum budget or allowance you would like to spend on cabinets and countertops. This number will allow your kitchen designer to determine if your dream kitchen can be achieved and where the easy cost savings opportunities are to better achieve your budget. If you don’t have a budget for cabinets and countertops, you can work with your cabinet designer to help you determine a realistic budget for your project. Also, see What is the Average Cost of a Kitchen Renovation Blog.
DETERMINE AN IDEAL COMPLETION DATE
It’s always recommended to come up with an ideal completion date for your kitchen remodel project and work backwards from there. For example, if you want to host dinner for an important holiday or milestone, let your designer know. They will be able to determine the likelihood of achieving this deadline. Generally speaking, the planning and design phase takes an average of 60 days, depending on the number of meetings and scope of work of your project. From there, your cabinets will take 9-12 weeks to manufacture from the date you finalize your contract.
COLLECT INSPIRATION
If you can, try to determine your personal design style. Are you Traditional, Modern or Contemporary? Often trusted sources such as Houzz or Pinterest are a great place to start collecting inspiration for your dream kitchen. We recommend starting a Board on Pinterest or an Ideabook on Houzz to collect inspiration as you go. If you are struggling with determining your style, your kitchen designer can easily help you with this.
If you are more of an offline person, there are many great interior design and kitchen and bath focused magazines available at newsstands. Simply earmark the pages that speak to you or use post-it notes to flag specific areas for discussion. A good tip for couples is to have one partner earmark the top of the page and the other to earmark the bottom of this page. This way you will quickly know if you are on the “same page” for pages with two earmarks.
TAKE PHOTOS
It is helpful if you can take and send us some pictures of your existing space. This way your designer can have a visual sense of what the space looks like and what can be done. Pictures can also help your Professional Cabinet Designer see any areas that may purpose a risk to your design. They also can be used for your “Before” photos, which clients often forget to take.
OUTLINE YOUR FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Decide what problems you want to solve in your current kitchen or space. Knowing these pain points will enable your kitchen designer to help you solve them. A great question to ask yourself is “What do I hate about my current kitchen?” Let your Superior Cabinets kitchen designer do the rest and work their magic to help you solve those issues.
EVALUATE YOUR STRUCTURAL REQUIREMENTS
If you are keeping your kitchen in the existing footprint, you can skip this step. If you are renovating your kitchen and planning on removing walls or filling in windows, it is always recommended you consult a General Contractor and or a Structural Engineer before you book your appointment with your kitchen designer. It is important that your cabinet designer work off of firm and final information and not speculative plans (this is especially important when it comes to the removal of walls!). Once you have talked with the pros and have received approval and discussed if the extra funds spent for this effort fits your remodel budget, then proceed to the next step.
MEASURE YOUR SPACE
It all starts with a sketch! It’s good to know that in most cases your kitchen designer does not come to the home until the order is finalized at the contract stage to finalize measurements and site details. That being said, you’ll need to bring measurements for your first consultation appointment for them to work off of. Draw a Birdseye Sketch of your space. Don’t stress about the quality of your sketch or it being to scale, as expert kitchen designers can even work off of napkin sketches. Be sure to include:
- All Walls (even walls currently without cabinets)
- Windows, Doorways, Pass-through area Measurements and their actual locations
- Plumbing, Major Electrical (example: stove), and Gas line locations
- Current Appliance Locations
- Ceiling Height, measure this in 2-3 areas
For a more detailed set of information to help you measure, see Measuring for a Kitchen Renovation. You can also download a printable Superior Cabinets planning and measure grid here.
PLAN YOUR APPLIANCE NEEDS
Decide if you will be purchasing new appliances or reusing your existing ones. Visit appliance showrooms and websites to determine what appliances you want to use in your new space. The types and size of your appliances will play a significant role in the design of your new space. Also, the overall look of your appliances will contribute to the look and feel of your newly renovated kitchen.
We recommend that you do not purchase your appliances at this stage, but simply get an idea of what you would like and some printed sizes and specs from your appliance specialists. If you can, bring these appliance specs and sizes to your first Design Consultation Meeting with our kitchen designer. This way they can be sure they will fit and can make them work into the new design.
BOOK AN APPOINTMENT
Now that you have everything mentioned above together, you will need to book your FREE appointment with a kitchen design expert in one of our showrooms. We have Kitchen and Bath Showrooms in Saskatoon, Regina, Calgary, and Edmonton. This Design Consultation appointment can take on average between 1 and 3 hours depending on the size and complexity of your project. Here, your kitchen design professional will help guide you through the entire process, from beginning to end, and within your budget.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
THE FREE KITCHEN CABINET BUYER’S GUIDE
If you are wanting to renovate your kitchen cabinets and don’t know where to begin, we suggest starting with our Free Kitchen Cabinet Buyer’s Guide.
PLANNING A KITCHEN RENOVATION DURING A PANDEMIC
Here is what you need to know before you grab the sledgehammer when planning a kitchen renovation during a pandemic.
RENOVATION CHECKLIST
If you would like a sneak peek of what to expect and the required tasks during your cabinet renovation, have a peek at our printable Renovation Checklist.
ACTING AS YOUR OWN GENERAL CONTRACTOR?
Assuming the role of the General Contractor for your home or property is an important and gratifying job. Many homeowners choose to go this route, rather than hiring a licensed contractor. Here are some things to consider when you take on the responsibility as the General Contractor.
KITCHEN DESIGNER CHEAT SHEET
Here is everything you need to know when working with a professional kitchen designer.
THE SUPERIOR CABINETS BLOG
The Superior Cabinets Design Corner Blog is packed full of helpful articles.
3D VIRTUAL SHOWROOM TOURS
Tour the Saskatoon, Regina, Calgary, and Edmonton Showrooms.