A modern look for under $10,000

 

Jon and Laura Earnhart, who live on Oak Bluff Lane in Wilmington, embarked on their first kitchen remodel this spring. Laura had been thinking of remodeling their 23-year-old house for a while. They chose MarKraft Cabinets for their kitchen upgrade upon a neighbor’s recommendation.

“The customer service was great. The price was comparable to the hardware stores and you get a lot better service and a real designer,” Laura said.

                   

She had shopped around for cabinets and countertops and found that MarKraft Cabinets’ prices for materials and installation were within a couple hundred dollars of the big box stores, she said.

On her first visit to MarKraft’s selection showroom located 5424 Oleander Drive, she remembers feeling overwhelmed with the variety. But certified interior designer Suzanne Reid helped her narrow down the options to find exactly what she wanted.

“I wanted it to look modern but classic. I found out later that’s called ‘transitional.’ I liked the dark wood. So she gave me two choices and I started narrowing it down,” Earnhart said.

She took a couple small samples of wood for the cabinets and granite for the countertops home before choosing Cardell Cabinetry’s Classic II cabinets in maple stained ebony.

“[Cardell] is a line, depending on the features, that can hit a nice price point,” said Reid, who has over 20 years of experience designing Figure Eight Island, Bald Head Island and Landfall homes. “Maple is a great wood that can be stained or painted. It doesn’t have a lot of grain.” This gives it a smooth, clean, modern look that is popular in new home construction now.

                   

The installation of the cabinets with the new drawers, new shelving and a pantry plus the granite countertops took about three days and cost about $8,000. MarKraft installed floor to ceiling cabinets and soft-close drawers that increased the storage space and accessibility to pots, pans and pantry items.

“I think I have more cabinet space now than I did because of the pantry and the taller cabinets,” Laura said. “I wish I had done it sooner. I like coming into my kitchen now.”

Markraft Cabinets specializes in cabinet and countertop design and installation in both new residential and commercial construction as well as custom remodeling projects. For more information, visit www.markraft.com or call (910) 793-2002.