Guest post by Becky Shankle: Three reasons to buy an Ikea kitchen

Being that Gold Notes celebrates its third anniversary this month, I’m running three posts a week, not just one, throughout July. This one was contributed by one of my favorite Twitter “tweeps,” @ecomod, aka Becky Shankle.

I met Becky about three months too late. I had an architect client last winter who really wanted IKEA kitchens for the condo building he designed. He just didn’t want the hassle that comes with managing all the parts and pieces and having them assembled on site. Becky would have been the perfect resource for that project.

Becky’s kitchen design and installation company, Eco-Modernism, makes IKEA work for her clients around the country. She knows how to design in, assemble, install and, when necessary, modify these popular cabinets. Being as hands-on smart as she is with IKEA, I asked Becky to write a guest post for Gold Notes readers on the pros and cons of an IKEA kitchen. Here are her insights in the first of two guest posts. This one focuses on the pros, rather than the cons.


Frameless/Euro style cabinet construction

Frameless construction uses less resources. There is no face frame on the front of the box, which means there are also no obstructions to visually scanning cabinet contents, or accessing them.

No face frame equals less materials and less labor to build. Most cabinets have full overlay doors these days, which means you can’t see the frame. Why spend money where it won’t be seen?



Shelves can also span the full cabinet depth, instead of stopping short because of the face frame. Three-quarters of an inch doesn’t sound like much, but multiply it by 24 inches and that’s a loss of 18 square inches of precious storage area per shelf. Multiply that by three shelves and it’s a whopping 54 square inches [four and a half feet].

Under cabinet task lights can span more than one box, because the cabinet bottoms are flush. This means you can get a single longer light in lieu of two or more separate fixtures. Less wiring equals less labor to hookup.


Hardware

Not the pretty stuff on the outside. The robust, beefy stuff on the inside. Like concealed hinges, drawer slides and soft closures. IKEA uses Blum Tandembox Plus drawer slides with Blumotion closers. That means you can load up 50 kg (90ish pounds) in a drawer and it won’t pinch your fingers or wake up the neighbors when it closes.

Swinging doors have Blum’s soft closers also. And unlike a custom shop, these bells come standard on every box; there is no upcharge per hinge or drawer.


Financials

The average kitchen that comes from IKEA is about 14 boxes and retails for about $3600 to $4000 and installation. That includes all the cabinets, toe kicks, light skirts, cover panels, fillers and hardware. An identical kitchen from Lowe’s with similar construction is $16,000 installed.

Modern cabinet style lovers can have the look and functionality of much higher-end product lines like Poggenpohl and Scavolini at a fraction of the cost and delivery time. IKEA usually delivers in less than 10 days.

Good stuff: IKEA kitchen by Becky Shankle and Eco-Modernism

IKEA warranties their cabinets for 25 years. That’s enough time for avocado green and harvest gold to come back in style. In other words, most kitchens get a face lift every couple of decades, on average. [So this warranty comes pretty close to many higher-priced manufacturer's lifetime warranties for cabinets costing much less. Many discount manufacturers only offer five-year warranties. JG]

***

Next up: Three reasons not to buy an Ikea kitchen

TREND WATCH 2009: COLORS TO COME

There's an excellent chance that the colors you encounter at Target, Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, Pier1, Anthropologie and other popular design sources have been influenced by a group you've never heard of. It's a non-profit association called the Color Marketing Group, composed of design professionals from around the world. They've been accurately predicting – some would say shaping – color trends for more than four decades. Here's their take on 2009:


Purple, Purple, Purple!

Emerging as a hot fashion color last fall, purple is not just a fad -- it's an entrenched trend. Look for a greyed-out violet that works equally well as an accent or a neutral, as well as redder, plummier purples and bluer-influenced fuchsias in a huge range of products. Purple is 2009's "must have" color.



Blue is the New Green

Various greens have symbolized "green living" over the last few years, but in 2009 the environmental message is delivered by the color blue. There are watery blues, sky blues and a whole range of blues that now represent our commitment to living on a greener planet.



Cooled-down, Greyed-out Browns and Greys

Complex neutrals satisfy our urge toward classic colors in an economically-challenged time. They also bridge the area between black, which seems harsh, and brown, which doesn't seem strong enough.



Yellow for Energy

The neutrals may have greyed, but look for lots of bright vivid yellow to give us energy as we re-build the economy. It's the stand-out accent color for 2009. Bright Accents from India, China, and Turkey... The exotic has become the familiar. Oranges, turquoises and teals, reds, and yellows will abound in hues from far-away countries that now seem very near. They are the optimistic touches we crave.



White is now a Business Color

Technology has produced amazing new (and very practical) finishes, which helps explain why white is showing up everywhere. The contrasts are all in the finishes: matte versus gloss; shine and shimmer on reflective surfaces; textured whites versus smooth -- all washable and cleanable. White also represents purity of thought, motive and result.



The Return of the "M" Word

It's mauve. Remember mauve? An old color that looks new again, in dusty violet shades, mauve works as an accent but also serves now as a neutral, punched up by those bright Asian accents (orange, turquoise, teal, red, and yellow.)



Final Thoughts on Color Trends

Use these trend notes as potential inspiration for finding fresh new touches for your home, not as a call to action to throw out everything you already own! When you do add in elements that will be permanent -- like cabinetry, countertops or flooring, for example -- be sure to avoid the Top Three Remodeling Mistakes too many homeowners make!


Photo Notes

Listed in order of section appearance, from top to bottom:

Purple: This wall storage unit was designed using cabinetry from Italian firm, Scavolini.

Blue: These glass-front appliances by Dacor debuted at KBIS 2008, offering a fresh alternative to both the ubiquitous stainless steel and candy-bright Vikings and Bertazzonis.

Browns and Greys: These UltraCraft cabinets will work in a contemporary or traditional kitchen, and look good long after the CMG's 2009 report has faded into history.

Yellow: These sunny new tabletop accessories from Williams-Sonoma bring bright yellow into your kitchen without a major color commitment.

White: Here's a contemporary white storage system from West Elm, one of my favorite sources for classic and contemporary styles.

Mauve: Here, mauve accents turn up in the lovely new rug from Pottery Barn's 2009 collection. It's also visible in the coordinating pillows. The look is eclectic and unified, casual and classic at the same time.