You will be using your cabinets everyday. I haven't used Ikea ones. To me, especially for a kitchen, I think it's important to get the best quality cabinets you can afford. It is the base for the countertop, you can get a configuration that fits better with your needs, and good quality will last - soft close, heavy construction, good hinges, deep drawers, etc. Save on the laundry room or bathrooms if you need to.

We decided to go with custom quarter sawn white oak cabinetry and marble look quartz, again that resale value concept, but we were very fortunate to access a very good local cabinet builder who were very reasonable and included three uppers and then about 26' linear of lowers with many drawers and apron sink.

I did my usual budget sanity question, of how many $1000 do I spend on eating out in a year, you know the questions, how much do I earn in a week of work, is that worth spending on better cabinets.

All that being said many designers use ikea cabinets and they do have solid wood doors, that can be refinished. I would only go with solid wood, no foil wrapped or veneer versions. search 'ikea cabinets' on houzz and see what you think of the various styles of their cabinetry and how it looks

Here's your answer: http://www.semihandmadedoors.com

Go with Ikea, but get the doors from semi handmade. The difference in price is small. We will be using this company in our kitchen reno.

calidesign - Ikea cabinet's Maximera drawers use top rated Blum drawer systems and glides and are all soft close. The Ringhult and the Bjorket doors are great, I'd stay away from the cheaper thermofoil doors, no matter the manufacturer.

travelngal - I highly recommend you go over to the Gardenweb kitchen forum for Ikea specific help as well as layout advice. Good luck.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath

check out REFORM http://reformcph.com.

This whole post happened over a year ago but I just found it. Friends of ours live in the most exclusive part of town and have a home worth gazillions. They put in an Ikea kitchen quite a few years ago and it's still beautiful. It has remained sturdy and rich looking. And it has stood the test of time as far as design is concerned. That's why I'm going the Ikea route as well.

I love ikea kitchen cabinets. Some of their stuff is trash. Their kitchen cabinets are not. I can't even buy the Blum hardware for the price of their drawers with Blum!

Thanks to alI who replied. I went with IKEA cabs for all my cabinetry--kitchen, closets, bathroom, laundry. I got their sinks and faucets(bathroom only) too. Based on the money I saved not doing custom cabs (which didn't include sinks/plumbing), I was able to afford build a pool too. Further the flexibility and ease of returns is unmatched. Originally I had ordered one type of door and just before my order shipped Summer 2016, I noticed that IKEA had come out with a new door type that didn't need handles. I was able to switch out to the white Voxtorp doors for the kitchen. An amazing experience. Their software to design the kitchen was crap but I pretty much was able to realise my design--even with the limitations.

Kudos travelngal - but we do like photos....

Forthcoming shortly. It's hard to find a moment when that kitchen is spotless to take some nice shots. It's if dirty bowls and glasses spawn in the sinks and on the island the minute I turn my back. Just like dirty clothes regenerating in the hamper the second you've put away the last of the clean laundry.

Alas, I know all about that. Take your time.

Wow! What a great looking space. Your kitchen looks fresh and cool, perfect for the desert environment. Love all the natural light coming through those large windows and patio doors too. Nice!!!

I so agree about skimping to splurge. I love the built-in fridge paired with the sleek Ikea Voxtorp fronts. Same for the bathroom - the Lightology sconces look perfect with the the floating Godmorgon vanilty.

Great job all around. Enjoy your kitchen!

It's gorgeous! I love everything about your kitchen. The Voxtorp doors, those lovely light grey countertops that add just the right amount of contrast, and to top it off: those beautiful views of the desert and mountains. So jealous!

What's the name of your counters? They positively GLOW!

Thanks @modellie. my countertops are actually white OCEANA by Arizona Tile. they contain tiny flecks of glass to give it sparkle.

https://arizonatile.com/en/products/quartz/oceana.

It's not as white as the voxtorp which are more of a flat chalky white so when I first saw it I was a bit bothered by the difference but now I do not notice it.

@travelngal: I love the choices you made. Everything looks so easy to clean. How did you choose your contractor/workers? I'm looking for one now. Had they installed IKEA before? Did you have IKEA plan the layout? I hadn't considered IKEA cabinets until I was inspired by a friend who has IKEA storage in nearly every room. She put it all together herself. I want to do a kitchen, living room entertainment/storage system and laundry room remodel in 2019. Your post has helped me.

Thanks very much travelngal!

My latest IKEA project (in my own home):

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/complete-open-concept-ground-floor-renovation-with-ikea-kitchen-dsvw-vd~5554957?n=10

I have made this comment on several different homeowner posts on the topic of Ikea cabinets. Our firm does very high end homes in Coastal Southern California and we use Ikea boxes occasionally and they are great. A cabinet is just a "box" and as boxes go, Ikea is a great box that can be embellished, different doors can be put on and there are tons' of configurations. Sometimes the client wants to save money in their budget for other items and these are a great option that is not really a compromise. The photo below shows IKEA cabinets used in a very high end Manhattan Beach Home office/yoga room combo. The client had all custom millwork elsewhere in the house and this was a perfect item to fit the budget for that space.

Yoga room/Office · More Info

I'm so happy to have come across this post using white matte Voxtorpe cabinets. I keep coming back to Ikea Cabinets because the price is just so much lower than even the replacement door companies that sell for ikea sektion boxes. We have a Bodbyn kitchen in our rental and those doors are so perfect to maintain, easy to wipe clean and they look new even years later. I do prefer a flat front this time around and what I'm wondering about the Voxtorp cabinets is do they get really grubby and worn because they don't have handles. Does anyone have experience with this?