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Our list of the top six myths about kitchen remodeling not only debunks the top kitchen renovation misconceptions but it also identifies the sources of the misinformation.

1. Removing a load bearing wall is very expensive. This misconception comes from HGTV and other poorly researched home remodeling shows. In reality removing a load bearing wall that might cost 2 or 3 thousand dollars is very little compared to cabinet and appliance upgrades. And removing a wall with a lot of ductwork and plumbing could be far more expensive than removing a load bearing wall.

2. You can reuse your granite countertop and save money when you remodel your kitchen. Insurance companies propagate this myth because they don’t understand the countertop industry. No contractor would be qualified removing a granite or quartz top and reinstalling it, and no countertop company will remove and replace your existing top for any less than a new top in the same color would cost. This is due to the likelihood of the top breaking during removal and because it is more work removing AND replacing than simply buying a new top.

3. The more expensive the cabinets, countertops, and appliances the more durable they are. People that sell these products have a vested interest in consumers believing this. In reality the cost of these materials has very little affect once you get to a certain, easy to afford, level of quality. Custom cabinets, higher priced countertops, and professional appliances, can be beautiful but they don’t last particularly longer and can be damaged just as easily.

4. Architects are good kitchen designers. Architects themselves propagate this myth. While someone with a degree in architecture could work as a full time kitchen designer and bring an added level of expertise to their customers, in reality most architects don’t design kitchens exclusively or work for cabinet dealers. The lack of experience makes them terrible designers. The saying “A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing” describes the issue best.

5. The first step in starting a kitchen renovation is getting estimates from contractors. Contractors, HGTV, and false assumptions made by consumers feed this misconception. The best place to start working on most kitchen renovations is with the kitchen cabinet dealer and an experienced designer working there. The designer can give you ball park estimates on construction to help you budget. Once you complete the kitchen design, which is usually quite different from what a customer initially plans, several contractors can bid on the detailed and fleshed in project. Contractors bidding “apples to apples” will get you more accurate and lower estimates. Not to mention that the contractor will not be able to inflate material costs.

6. You know exactly what you want. A simple lack of knowledge is responsible for this misconception, and MANY people contemplating a kitchen renovation firmly believe it. In fact the more certain that a consumer is the more likely they are to be spending their remodeling budget poorly and on a bad design. Doug Mottershead says it best and in a funny way in our video. Click on photo below:

As Paul says in the video “We are here if you need us”

Main Line Kitchen Design

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Homeowners are often confused as to what experience and education qualifies someone as a professional kitchen designer. The most basic qualification is simple.

You aren’t a professional kitchen designer unless you are working full time designing other people’s kitchens and selling them cabinetry.

Real kitchen designers know that you can’t even begin to be qualified at our job unless you design kitchens and sell cabinetry as your profession. Professional kitchen designers will measure and begin working on designs with several new customers each week. Their many appointments with these customers devoted to refining designs in the cabinet brands the dealer sells makes them experts selling those lines and knowing what designs are possible in any particular space. Over a year, the average full-time designer will have worked on over 100 different kitchens.

When a non-professional kitchen designer tells me that they have expertise designing kitchens, they usually are equating designing a few different homes with the vast experience acquired by a full-time kitchen designer over years in our field. This would be like someone who does their own taxes each year claiming that they were an accountant.

Architects, Contractors, Real Estate Agents, Engineers, and Interior Designers who aren’t working as kitchen designers also often feel empowered to design kitchens. Their work, as nearly all professional kitchen designers will tell you, is often so poor it’s painful for us to see. In fact, homeowners with no experience can, and sometimes do, create far better designs. This is because people with no experience might be humble enough to research what they don’t know and will learn the fundamentals of kitchen design before attempting it. While related professionals who are equally in the dark about kitchen design, will feel entitled to break every design rule they didn’t bother to learn about. As the saying goes “A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing.”

Many of the best kitchen designers, in fact, do have backgrounds in architecture, engineering, construction, or interior design but those educational and life experiences were what drew them into the field. Once these same designers began working as kitchen designers full-time they quickly realized how much they still had to learn. Personally, I have found that designers often you need to make a mistake to understand how not to make it the next time. There is no substitute to the trial by fire that beginning kitchen designers go through on the way to becoming experts in our profession.

Simply working as a kitchen designer doesn’t make you great at it. But you can’t be competent at it without doing it professionally. The designers at Main Line Kitchen Design have different educational and employment backgrounds but we all have many years of kitchen design experience in common. We also need to be detail oriented, cautious, and good teachers in order to educate our customers.

All the best kitchen designers work on commission so in order to succeed we must design beautiful and functional kitchens mistake free, while making the process enjoyable for our customers. This is why most of our designers are funny and why I miss the in-person company meetings and lunches that we have forgone due to Covid.

Sometimes our customers express things better than we can. That’s how we
all feel about this 5 star review from Houzz.com

Ed’s design skills and industry know-how are rivaled only by his endearing personality. From the moment we had our discovery call, Ed struck the perfect balance of professionalism and humor, setting the tone for a casual yet constructive dialogue that allowed him to educate us on the design/build process (which we were desperately in need of and thankful for) and create a forum for us to ask the many, many seemingly stupid questions – typical of first-time homebuyers/renovators – without feeling like morons.

We look forward to designing you a great kitchen and if you laugh with us along the way don’t be surprised.

The kitchens shown above were created by the designers listed. Photos and short Bio’s of our designers can be found on our website’s ABOUT page along with their contact information and LinkedIn profiles.

Stay safe and of course . . .

Bon Appetit!

Paul, Julie, Ed, Chris, Lauren, John, Tom and Stacia

A sure sign of a kitchen DIYer are words most often heard on HGTV and HOUZZ.COM like shabby chic, shiplap, and IKEA. Professional kitchen designers cringe when we hear these words. Just Googling kitchen photos with these profane words brings up page after page of kitchens that will devalue a home.

Shabby Chic is a term used to put a good spin on renovating a kitchen with some new elements but keeping other outdated design features. These kitchen creations are a complete waste of money and only forestall the time when a more sensible person will rip it all out and create something tasteful from scratch. Below are two examples of “Shabby Chic”

HGTV personality Joanna Gaines popularized using shiplap exterior siding in kitchens. Beadboard, tongue and groove planking, or wainscoting is often used by professional kitchen designers. I’m pretty sure Joanna just didn’t know any better when she started using an exterior product inside but soon all these products became “shiplap” to the public. Googling “shiplap” brings up some frightening DIY kitchens like the example below.

Houzz.com enthusiasts and DIYers love IKEA. Professional kitchen designers know that IKEA is a terribly made cabinet line and not even a good value. I find just hearing the brand name irritating.

Many far better constructed cabinet lines exist that come already assembled and cost no more than an IKEA kitchen. It is only because novice designers don’t know any better that they value IKEA. Respected psychologists actually named the delusion of overvaluing things you design and build yourself The IKEA Effect. And, the IKEA designs that DIYers like Christina below create are always flawed and odd looking.

Some of the oddities above include solid cabinet doors over lower glass doors. This makes cabinetry appear unbalanced. Wall cabinets over windows, traditional door styles without crown moldings, and cabinetry sitting on a countertop very close to a sink break fundamental design rules. Mixing styles that don’t go together can be done to be eclectic but I suspect that here, it is unintentional. Finally, an expensive potfill over a cheap range with a back control panel on it, just makes me nuts.

Kitchen Cupboards is an old term used for kitchen cabinetry that is often used by people “not in the know”. Doing a Google search for the term brings up DIY experiments like the kitchen below. Should a professional ever use this term WATCH OUT!

The Hippocratic Oath a physician takes says to first “do no harm”. All professions should follow this rule and for kitchen designers this means not endorsing designs that will destroy the value of a client’s home. Were a customer to request any of the kitchens above, as ethical designers, we would pass on that project.

I wish that all kitchen design professionals would put the value of their customers home above simply selling cabinetry.

Homeowners looking for a design firm and cabinet dealer that puts their best interests above simply selling cabinetry will find the right partner with Main Line Kitchen Design.

Stay safe and Bon Appetit!

Paul

A designer who is both an interior designer and a kitchen designer, is a rare find for homeowners who are renovating their kitchen. This is because each type of ‘designer’ brings different skillsets to the project.   

The first step in understanding this value is to understand the difference between an interior designer and an interior decorator. Interior designers complete a four year degree in Interior Design. The curriculum includes:

• Space planning & Spatial Concepts  
• Building codes & Structural Integrity of Buildings  
• Handicap accessibility (ADA codes)   
• Sustainability & Environmentally Friendly Designs  
• Electrical/Lighting  
• Fabric Education – Residential & Commercial Design   
• Ergonomics & Universal Design  
• Spatial Concepts, Ethics, Psychology  
• Furniture Design & History   
• Color Theory & Design Trends  
• Proposals, Presentations, Budgets & Timelines

Alternatively, interior decorators can obtain certification with as little as forty hours of training.  Both designers and decorators can be very helpful to homeowners. However, when it comes to what is generally, everyone’s largest asset – their home, homeowners understandably seek experts with the right credentials!   

I am an Interior Designer with more than 15 years of experience focusing on kitchens and bathrooms. I offer full-service interior design services through my company, www.greenprintsdesign.com.   

I am also a kitchen designer here at Main Line Kitchen Design. Training to become a kitchen designer is also not something you can just do overnight. Understanding the cabinet nomenclature, learning about individual cabinet lines, staying up to date with cabinetry trends and products, designing with kitchen codes and clearances are just the beginning of the knowledge required to assist clients with making the best use of the space they have and the dollars they have to invest in it.  

So, what is the difference when you work with a kitchen designer who is also an interior designer?  
Main Line Kitchen Design’s Houzz page showing 94 kitchens from all our designers demonstrates a range of tremendous talent from our senior designers – all of whom, like me, have devoted years and years to becoming leaders in our field. We also each bring our own personal input to our customers’ projects.   

As both an interior designer and kitchen designer, I see the entire project in detail, in color, with the furniture, the lighting, the cabinet hardware and with every finishing touch while I am creating a floor plan. My approach includes asking questions like a detective who wants to know how you spend every day utilizing your kitchen, and uncovering the style and motivation of your entire house.  I strive to find ways to solve spatial dilemmas and design obstacles.   

Good kitchen designers, like the Main Line Kitchen Design team, will ask you the important questions that are needed to create a good kitchen design.  The questions I pose to customers vary because of my background and training.  I can’t put a name or description on my unique interior design-kitchen design process but my completed projects always include features and attractive details that specifically reflect each individual client. My in-depth and occasionally more personal questions result in discovering more about each of my client’s use of space, and how they work in their kitchens.    

In addition to standard industry questions, here are a few samples of questions I ask, and after gaining some insight, my possible responses.   
   

Q:  What is your preference of the bar stool style and size?   

A:  If you want larger stools, perhaps we can add a larger overhang and we will have to add hidden or decorative supports to allow for weight of the countertop beyond the standard 12” overhang.  I will allow for more clearance in the walkaway as well.  
 

Q.  Are you considering adding new accent lighting to the kitchen?    

A:  If you want to install a pendant light or a wall fixture above the kitchen window, we can design the space without a valance above to allow for the decorative light fixtures.   
 

Q:  Have you considered what tile you want to use for your backsplash design or what style or look you want to achieve?    

A:  If we leave more wall space next to the range hood, we can highlight the glass mosaic tile you want to feature as the focal point.   

For some kitchen designers, the backsplash color may be irrelevant. Alternatively, working with a kitchen designer who is also an interior designer provides additional considerations such as leaving extra inches of space next to a chimney style range hood. This can allow a tile pattern to create a more dramatic look which clients appreciate.    

For the important investments in life, you want to hire professionals who you trust will do a superior job.  When it comes to redesigning your kitchen, working with someone qualified and experienced in combining both interior design and kitchen design proves invaluable to many – two designers combined into one package!  

If this approach appeals to you, I am looking forward to working with you.  

And, of course . . . Bon appetite! 
  

Lauren Marie Sciarra  

Senior Kitchen Designer, Main Line Kitchen Design   

Interior Designer & Owner, Greenprints Design Studio

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These three custom kitchens made lemonade from the challenge of the lemons produced during Covid-19. All three are designed in Brighton Custom Cabinetry with beaded inset door styles.

This Brighton beaded inset kitchen designed by Chris Rossetti is striking. Getting to the finish line on this kitchen took a little longer due to shipping damage created by the stress that the pandemic put on common carriers, UPS, and FedX.

This Brighton beaded inset kitchen, designed in a customized Cascade door style, was almost completed this past spring when Covid interrupted its final touchups and adjustments. The photography was also put off several months, in favor of a safer time.

This Brighton kitchen was stopped right after demolition due to the Pennsylvania shutdown. The homeowner, a medical professional, was caught between a stressful hospital environment and a kitchen halted mid renovation. The pandemic also made getting replacement parts and pieces from the factory difficult because Brighton customer service staff were forced to work from home and factory workers were out sick or had child care issues.

The homeowners from the three kitchens above deserve medals for their patience amidst trying times. Always cheerful and understanding, they were a pleasure to work with while a few other customers who experienced less inconvenience were impatient and irritable.

The contractors we regularly work with have been amazing during the last 9 months. They have endured delays from all their suppliers and rose above their own personal Covid challenges everyday. They created Covid safe work environments for their staff and subcontractors, even when some customers ignored CDC guidelines. Through it all, they were always positive.

Main Line Kitchen Design looks forward to a time when life returns to normal. When meeting with multiple sets of customers in our offices is possible and we can discuss design changes face to face. We miss the comradery between our fellow designers. And while Zoom has been a tremendous time saver that we will continue to use in the future, we miss our company lunches at Ryan Christopher’s in Narberth.

Stay safe and of course . . .

Bon Appetit!

Paul

Selecting a contractor for a kitchen renovation can mean the difference between a smooth and cost effective renovation, and a drawn out nightmare. Homeowners often feel qualified to judge a contractor using techniques that make sense to them, but are in reality, unreliable.

For example, many homeowners will ask contractors to supply three references. There are no contractors who don’t have many satisfied customers if they can cherry pick projects over years of service. Asking “Where are you working now?” and “Can I speak with THAT customer?” is the better reference.

Using a contractor’s estimate as a tool to judge a contractor can also be problematic. Main Line Kitchen Design has worked with many talented installers that are poor estimate writers. We have also worked with contractors who provided very detailed estimates and turned out to be poor craftsman – and unscrupulous businessmen. A detailed estimate shows organization -but not necessarily construction knowledge, installation skill, honesty or reliability.

Recommendations from friends and family can be helpful, but less so if their job is different from your project. Construction projects vary greatly. Kitchen renovations often require complex home alterations, detailed finish carpentry, sophisticated ductwork, and other challenges that use a very specific set of skills. Contractors who do great jobs finishing a basement, putting on a deck, or building a family room addition, are often not up to the task of a complex kitchen renovation.

Price is the worst way to judge how good a contractor is. Expensive contractors can still be incompetent, simply overpriced or just greedy. While less expensive contractors could offer a smaller company with more personal service.

What are the most reliable ways to judge a contractor?

First Google the contractor and read their online reviews. Bad reviews can be telling. Not having any reviews can also be a bad sign. Alternately, large numbers of good reviews cannot be faked. Unhappy customers will be quick to write poor reviews even when undeserved, so having a strong positive ratio of good reviews to poor ones is meaningful.

Read the reviews to see what prior customers have said. A lot can be learned from reading these reviews. Even bad reviews can help you gain confidence in a contractor, if you suspect that the customer was the root of the problem. Also check Yelp, Angie’s List, and Houzz.com. Angie’s list allows customers to review contractors that weren’t hired, so you can see if people felt a contractor’s estimate was too high compared to the others.

The most reliable reference you can get is from another industry professional.

A kitchen designer you respect may have worked with thousands of contractors over their career. A referral from an experienced professional is far more valuable that one from a friend or family member. Not only do they have vastly more experience working with kitchen contractors, but they put their own reputation on the line when they recommend someone else.

Do you know a painter you like? They also will probably have worked with many general contractors. All kitchen renovations must get painted and the painters get to see the finished product! An expert painter’s recommendation for a general contractor carries great weight.

A kitchen renovation is often the biggest and most complex home improvement people make. Working with the right professionals at every stage is key. We look forward to helping with yours!

To all our customers, past, present, and future-

Main Line Kitchen Design wishes you the happiest of holidays in trying times and . . . of course . .

BON APPETIT!

Paul, Julie, Ed, Chris, Lauren, John, Tom, and Stacia

Everyone develops a pattern of how they do things in their kitchen. When redesigning your kitchen maintaining that pattern is usually not a benefit.

For example a customer might tell us that they never use their present island to cut or chop vegetables, so they don’t want to ruin the look of their new island with a sink in it. However, were a prep sink with a garbage disposal and trash pull out added the island it would become convenient to work at. Cooks could then face company and conversation while preparing meals.

Often the reasons people develop specific work patterns are not because they work better that way, but because of a problem with their present kitchen.

A past customer told us that they wanted the kitchen table very close to the refrigerator so that Dad, who sat at the head of the table, could open it and reach in for beverages without getting out of his seat. Clogging the entire kitchen with a table in the middle of the room was perceived by the family as a positive, because they had grown used to it.

It took a lot of convincing to allow us to move the kitchen table off to one side of the kitchen in front of windows with a view . To outsiders, this design change might have seemed obvious. But human beings become vested in how we do things, and embracing change can be confusing or frightening,

People don’t realize that they will adjust instantly to a better kitchen design. If we can open our customers minds to accept change, experienced kitchen designers know that good design is universal and that customers never regret sensible design changes. Because of this there is no risk for kitchen designers recommending the changes that experts agree on.

Below Paul and Doug Mottershead discuss managing customer regret:

Wishing you the best and to stay safe this holiday season.

Bon Appetit!

Paul

As we approach what is going to be an unusual Thanksgiving, my wife and I have been reflecting on a number of past Turkey Days. Our most vivid memories often include Main Line Kitchen Design, cooking, home repair, and Thanksgiving destinations.

First to give readers a little background, both our marriage and Main Line Kitchen Design began the same year. My wife and I took on the challenge of integrating me as a new stepdad to her teenagers, and starting a business at the same time. Both took lots of work and love. Now, ten plus years later, we reflect almost every day on how lucky we are.

One of our first Thanksgivings together was actually before we were married. I was to cook a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for my future wife and her children in their home. While my wife ran holiday errands, I prepared an elaborate meal. In between my cooking duties, I did a some minor home repair assuming that my home repair skills would be as appreciated as my cooking prowess.

During my repairs, I needed to turn off the main circuit breaker to her home. Calamitously, the breaker broke, and replacing it required opening the electric meter and a licensed electrician. Without the repair we would be without heat, electric, and a stove on Thanksgiving! My wife returned home from her errands to find her daughter, Riesling, waiting by the front door to report that “Paul broke the house!”

Everything worked out in the end. We found an electrician willing to come on a Thanksgiving morning and make the repair. He left with our thanks, a huge tip, and an apple pie. “Paul broke the house” is now a family inside joke and we keep that circuit breaker along with other “less formal” tangible mementoes in my great-grandmothers crystal bowl.

Another Thanksgiving soon after we were married pitted myself against the rest of the family when my wife and Riesling picked up a special turkey from a farmers market. Due to extended shopping after the turkey pick up, there was a debate on how long a fresh turkey could sit in a car on top of an ice pack and remain safe to eat. The argument was settled when I threw the 23 pound turkey in the trash. No holiday meal now goes by without referencing that famous turkey and contrasting how delicious it was sure to have been, with whatever’s on this years menu.

On two other Thanksgivings, my wife and I devoted the extended holiday weekend to setting up new offices for Main Line Kitchen Design. We built displays, hooked up electronics, and installed flooring and countertops. Sore and famished, we particularly enjoyed our holiday meals at outstanding local restaurants.

Now that the “kids” are grown, their Thanksgivings are sometimes spent with significant others and their families.

We use these “two of us” Thanksgivings to travel. One year we played Duplicate Bridge in broken French followed by a Thanksgiving dinner in Quebec City. We’ve hiked glaciers, explored caves, and sat in thermal baths in Iceland before enjoying a Thanksgiving gourmet chef’s tasting and wine pairing in Reykjavik.

This Thanksgiving will be memorable too. We will stay at home and I’ll cook just for two. We will see our family on Zoom and play our weekly game of Quiplash. Knowing that we are all being safe will help us persevere to better times.

Wishing all our customers and readers the the happiest of Thanksgivings. Please stay safe. Don’t “break the house!” . . and of course . . .

Bon Appetit!

Paul and Julie

If you enjoyed this Thanksgiving blog here are two other similar ones:

https://www.mainlinekitchendesign.com/general/whos-the-best-kitchen-designer-in-philadelphia/

https://www.mainlinekitchendesign.com/general/kitchens-familys-best-memories-made/

Main Line Kitchen Design can but usually doesn’t act as a Design and Build company. While we are capable of supervising a kitchen renovation, we believe that kitchen renovations run smoothly and are the best value to the client when the experts in each part of a complex renovation focus on their area of expertise. Because of this we normally recommend general contractors to our customers who can supervise every detail of their kitchen renovation. Or we will work with a general contractor the customer knows. Working with a new builder can expand our contractor base and be beneficial to everyone.

Under this plan Main Line Kitchen Design would do all the design work needed and sell cabinets, countertops and sometimes hardware to our customer but the day to day decisions during the renovation would be handled directly by the people on the job site daily. Namely the customer and the general contractor. Jobs tend to run smoothly this way and the customer saves the added cost of making the kitchen company responsible for their renovation. Most kitchen companies would simply sub out the renovation to a general contractor and charge an additional 20 percent for this responsibility.

Home centers like The Home Depot and Lowes charge up to 35% over what the contractors charge them. Ironically even though home centers charge a higher percentage they do not become involved in the instillation unless there are problems, and their employees don’t normally have any experience in the work they are charging the higher percentage for.

Over my many years in the kitchen renovation industry working first as a builder and a general contractor, before becoming a full time kitchen designer, I have found that most design and build firms don’t add value to the project. You can not be an expert in all things and so most design and build firms excel at building but their talents are lacking as designers. Paying a firm more money to supervise what they aren’t great at makes little sense.

Separating the design phase and cabinetry and countertop purchasing from the construction saves the home owner the 20 to 35% in additional charges and allows everyone to do what they do best without added middle men.

Main Line Kitchen Design uses this same philosophy for the other materials our customers need to purchase. And so we pass on our discounts at appliance, flooring, lighting, and tile companies and have clients work directly with expert sales people in each area.

Spending less to get a better designed and better installed project make sense for everyone! Please examine our portfolio of award wining kitchen renovations and see if you don’t agree. LINK HERE

Paul McAlary

The drawings and designs produced by kitchen designers are considered the intellectual property of the design firm. Watching the funny video below will help you understand the kitchen designer’s perspective.

The work required to do the preliminary designs for a customer’s kitchen usually requires at least 8 hours of the designers time. This includes measuring the customers home, creating the designs in 20-20 CAD and then, during Covid-19, Zooming with the customer for one long or two shorter appointments. During these appointments designers make design changes and give detailed estimates on the cost of cabinetry, countertops, appliances, and other materials as well as a budget for construction costs. Customers may also want to visit our offices to review cabinet lines, door styles, and finishes.

All the work that the designers do to get to this point is included in Main Line Kitchen Design’s initial $150 deposit.

After showing a customer these designs and pricing out their kitchen in detail if customer wants to proceed and pay our second $350 deposit then we will give them copies of our designs and have more appointments helping them make selections and additional changes. We give the customer our work product as a good faith gesture under the assumption that the customer will be buying cabinetry from us. The total $500 that the customer pays in deposits is credited towards the cabinetry upon ordering.

However paying the $500 does not pay for the designers time, the companies overhead, or the designer’s expertise. Customers that have many appointments working with their designer only to take their drawings and buy cabinetry from someplace else are taking advantage and stealing the intellectual property of the company that designed their kitchen. They have also bought a kitchen from someone lacking integrity who was not present for any of the conversations and considerations that produced the design. This is a recipe for disaster.

As the funny video above points out some professions lend themselves to being taken advantage of while others do not.

We look forward to helping our clients with the creative and detailed planning that goes into a complex kitchen renovation. If we respect the each other and the work we do together the end result is always one that makes everyone involved feel proud.

Stay safe, please vote, and of course . . .

. . . Bon Appetit!

Paul