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Elevating Multi-Family Living: How the Right Kitchen Cabinets Maximize ROI and Tenant Appeal

 

In the competitive multi-family housing market, the kitchen is no longer just a utility space—it is the ultimate selling point. Whether prospective residents are touring a luxury high-rise apartment or a premium condominium complex, the kitchen is almost always the first area they evaluate. It sets the tone for the entire unit.

 

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Professional Kitchen Designer vs. The Big Box Store: Why Expertise is the Ultimate Luxury

The difference between a kitchen that looks new and a kitchen that feels like a dream realized isn’t found in a price tag—it’s found in the intent.

When you walk into a big-box retailer, you are entering a warehouse of inventory. You aren’t being sold a vision; you are being sold a SKU. But for the homeowner who views their kitchen as the soul of the home—the place where Sunday mornings happen and holiday traditions are anchored—buying “boxes” simply isn’t enough.

Here is why choosing a dedicated design showroom is the bridge between a “house project” and your dream home.

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What Is Custom Cabinetry?

 

Whether you’re starting a kitchen renovation from scratch or replacing your current cabinetry, shopping for new kitchen cabinets is a big task. Cabinets from big-box retail stores and custom cabinet makers all vary in appearance, cost, and quality.

How do you know if stock, semi-custom, or custom cabinets are right for your kitchen renovation? Stock, custom, and semi-custom cabinetry are all great choices for a kitchen renovation depending on the project. They each offer a unique set of pros and cons, which our following three articles will relate in simple, straightforward terms.

Let’s go cabinet shopping!

 

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WHAT IS SEMI-CUSTOM CABINETRY?

 

Whether you’re starting a kitchen renovation from scratch or replacing your current cabinetry, shopping for new kitchen cabinets is a big task. Cabinets from big-box retail stores and custom cabinet makers all vary in appearance, cost, and quality.

How do you know if stock, semi-custom, or custom cabinets are right for your kitchen renovation? Stock, custom, and semi-custom cabinetry are all great choices for a kitchen renovation depending on the project. They each offer a unique set of pros and cons, which our following three articles will relate in simple, straightforward terms.

Let’s go cabinet shopping!

 

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WHAT IS STOCK OR PRE-MADE CABINETRY?

 

Whether you’re starting a kitchen renovation from scratch or replacing your current cabinetry, shopping for new kitchen cabinets is a big task. Cabinets from big-box retail stores and custom cabinet makers all vary in appearance, cost, and quality.

How do you know if stock, semi-custom, or custom cabinets are right for your kitchen renovation? Stock, custom, and semi-custom cabinetry are all great choices for a kitchen renovation depending on the project. They each offer a unique set of pros and cons, which our following three articles will relate in simple, straightforward terms.

Let’s go cabinet shopping!

 

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A Mediterranean Large Kitchen for A Gourmet Chef

We had the privilege of working with a serious home chef in Harford County, Maryland who wanted to create a luxuriously elegant, large kitchen that could accommodate her gourmet cooking and entertaining. The homeowners wanted to include the latest in technology while maintaining the warmth and coziness of home. Since the family entertains on a large scale, we needed to open the design discussions to using all different kinds of appliances and include each chef’s unique perspective into the final design. Every amenity they desired was included in the redesign.

 

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Why Professional Cabinetry is the Foundation of Great Design

 

A guide to choosing between Bespoke Custom and Designer Semi-Custom for your Baltimore home.

A kitchen or bathroom renovation is likely the most significant investment you will make in your home this year. But as any seasoned homeowner knows, there is a vast difference between a space that looks good in a photo and one that performs flawlessly ten years later.

At Grandior, we believe that cabinetry is the “architecture” of your interior. Whether you are commissioning a fully custom kitchen or optimizing a master suite with semi-custom cabinetry, the foundation of your investment remains the same: Quality, Engineering, and Design.

 

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Professional vs. DIY Kitchen & Bathroom Renovation: How to Decide

While most of our clients don’t ever struggle with this question, there are a few who, before hiring us, asked themselves: “Should I take on this remodeling project myself or should I pull in a professional?” The main concern of those who consider remodeling their kitchen or bathroom DIY is to save money: “Will it save me enough money to make it worth doing the work myself?”

 

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You Aren’t Just Remodeling—You’re Reimagining Your Life

 

You don’t wake up in the morning wishing for new 3/4-inch plywood boxes or soft-close glides.

You wake up wishing for a morning that feels different. You’re looking for the quiet click of a hidden coffee station while the house is still still. You’re looking for the confidence of hosting a dinner party where the kitchen isn’t a “work zone” to be hidden, but the centerpiece of the evening.

At Grandior, we don’t just design kitchens, bathrooms, and closets. We design the backdrop for your life’s most important moments.

 

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5 Lazy Susan Alternatives For Your Luxury Custom Kitchen

Why is the Lazy Susan one of the most unloved kitchen cabinet accessory?  This is most often due to past negative experiences.  Many have either grown up or lived with a poorly functioning Lazy Susan.  There were many bad designs and most were extremely flimsy and hard to turn.  We often hear complaints of the old metal Susan’s which were mostly known for that awful creaking noise the second it started spinning!

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Things to know about cabinetry before you start shopping

 

Are you thinking of getting new cabinetry for your house?

Purchasing new kitchen cabinets is one of the biggest investments you can make in your home.  Since cabinets are one of the first things people notice in a kitchen they can have a huge impact on both the value and the appeal of your home. There has been a lot of changes in the cabinet industry over the years and there is no bigger confusion than a framed cabinet versus a frameless cabinet.  Traditionally, American manufacturers have built cabinets using a framed construction.  The cabinet box is constructed with a 1-1/2″ face frame that is attached to the front of the box.  This allows for the cabinets to be attached via the face frame. Below is a picture of both a framed and frameless cabinet.

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WOOD SPECIES INTRODUCTION – RED OAK & WHITE OAK

INTRODUCING RED & WHITE OAK

This piece is the first in the Grandior Wood Species Series, where we’ll be discussing various natural wood species, how they’re often applied in cabinetry, and how you can use them to create inspired designs.

Style that stands the test of time? In more ways than one, oak remains the gold standard. This distinctive hardwood brings character that’s impossible to replicate. Even so, that same character requires careful examination as it can offer surprises every designer and homeowner should be aware of.

 

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2025

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

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Tips for Finding the Best Semi Custom Kitchen Cabinets

Shopping for kitchen cabinets can be like talking to parents about their kids: Everyone thinks their child is the smartest, fastest, strongest, kindest, etc. Parents lack objectivity when it comes to their children, and kitchen cabinet manufacturers lack objectivity when it comes to their products! How do you as the consumer sift through the opinions to find the best semi custom kitchen cabinets?

You learn what to look for…

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2024

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2023

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2022

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2021

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

Cabinet Storage Greatness Is Right Around The Corner!

 

Corners are problematic, especially in kitchens where functionality and space-efficiency are crucial. We’ve identified this problem a long long time ago so by now we’ve come up with some pretty great ways to deal with it, a lot of them having to do with corner kitchen cabinets. Curious to find out how you too can optimize your kitchen’s design? Check out our top kitchen corner cabinet ideas to find out more about each type.

 

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2020

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

What is a “Free Estimate”, and Should you decide whether or not to acquire one?

Everyone loves free, right? Let’s face it, the term “free” automatically gets our attention.  It’s used in advertising everywhere. From free fries with a burger, to buy-one-get-one free offers, everyone likes to think they are getting “something” for nothing.  Free is great. I like free, you like free. Free is good. It means “Yes, i got SOMETHING”!

We feel good when we get something. As long as it puts us ahead of whatever we gave to get the “free something” to begin with. Free offers work for many of our daily consumables. Shampoo, soap, coffee and soda and even the “35% more macaroni” we just consumed. For consumables and other commodity-type goods, FREE is a great marketing tool. When you have a choice between two brands of the same type of “thing”, FREE is a great way for one to stand apart from the others. So when does it not make sense to trust “free”?

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2019

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

What is the difference between Plain Sawn, Quarter Sawn, Rift Sawn and Live Sawn Lumber?

When lumber is cut from logs for custom cabinetry, it is typically cut in one of three ways: quarter sawn, rift sawn or plain sawn. Each type of lumber is dependent on how the log is oriented and cut at the sawmill. The result is a particular orientation of the growth rings on the end grain of the board and is what defines the type of lumber. The type of cut also determines the figure in a piece of wood cabinet and the wood’s mechanical properties.

Sound too confusing? This graphic will help…

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The History of Marble in Home Design

The use of marble countertops is not a new fad. Marble has been used for both decorative and functional purposes within architectural design for thousands of years. Of course, earliest uses of marble appeared mainly in public, religious, or government buildings due to the great expense and effort to quarry the material.

So how did marble eventually find its way into the home? Where did the idea to make a bathroom vanity top out of marble come from? And why has the use of marble in today’s home design come to be so widespread? A brief tour through marble’s historical use can shed light on each of these questions.

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Care and Cleaning Tips for Wood Cabinetry

We receive lots of calls from customers asking how to clean their cabinetry. Luckily, they want to care for them in the best way possible! Unfortunately, with a quick google search I found 6,190,000 results to answer that question. Six million answers — they can’t all be right. How can cleaning your cabinets be so difficult?

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2017

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

A Real Kitchen Remodeling Budget – Trust Your Kitchen Designer

Are you ready for your dream kitchen?

Let’s talk about budgeting for your kitchen renovation… Cabinetry will always be the largest portion of your budget, and the amount depends on variables such as the square footage, the number of cabinets, the cabinet material, construction, finish, and door style. The next largest portion will be the appliances, then countertops, flooring, lighting, fixtures, and other materials. A professional kitchen designer has an extensive knowledge of real costs and can design a project that fits your budget perfectly. Let’s delve into the issue of a realistic project budget.

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Kitchen & Bathroom Remodel Beginner’s Checklist

You’re ready for your dream kitchen or bathroom! Kitchen and bathroom remodeling can be a little overwhelming, right? Don’t panic – we’re here to help. Let’s take a look at the design process… one step at a time.

  1. Evaluate your current kitchen and/or bathroom
  2. Look for ideas & inspiration
  3. Determine a budget
  4. Work with a design professional
  5. Design & planning process
  6. Installation
  7. Relax & enjoy your new space

Let’s take a look at each of these steps in more detail…

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Compare Traditional and Transitional Kitchen Designs for Your Remodel

Often when homeowners are browsing Houzz.com, they add dozens of kitchen photos into ideabooks without knowing which style of kitchen those photos represent. There’s nothing wrong with that. But when you’re a homeowner ready to start making decisions on your kitchen remodel, knowing what style and trends you like will help narrow your design options and direct your focus.

When you have hundreds of options before you and a limited budget, knowing your personal style will help make the decision process easier for you and your kitchen designer.

In this blog post, we will define traditional and transitional styles as they are most often confused. What are the differences between traditional vs transitional kitchen design, and where does your personal style most likely fit?

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How to Survive Your Kitchen Remodel

You’ve made all of the big decisions and settled on a budget. Now, it’s demolition time and you’ve got to function in a home under construction. You’ll realize the kitchen truly is the epicenter of the home when you have to live without this space, or at least work around the mess. But living in dust for a while is worth the reward of a new kitchen.

In the grand scheme of homeownership, this is but a short period of inconvenience amid years of kitchen bliss. Keep the process in perspective and treat it as an adventure. When you’re hard at work in your sparkling new kitchen, the temporary hassles will fade from memory.

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How to Design a Kitchen Like a Pro

Are you ready to remodel your kitchen? The kitchen is a valuable space, and according to Remodeling’s 2016 Cost vs Value Report, even a minor kitchen remodel recoups 83% of its cost at resale.

Although the kitchen is one of the most complicated remodeling projects, kitchen design can be just as daunting for those of you who are building new! These tips from our Grandior Kitchens & Baths design professional will help you through the design process. Whether you are building new or remodeling your old kitchen, the best place to start is with these five design principles to guide you in how to design a kitchen like a pro.

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Expert Tips To Maximize Your Kitchen & Bathroom Remodeling Consultation

FIVE TIPS TO GETTING THE MOST MILEAGE OUT OF YOUR FREE KITCHEN REMODELING CONSULTATION:

Where do you start working with a kitchen designer? What is the best way to prepare for your first meeting? What should you bring? What should you do beforehand to get the most mileage out of your free session?

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Ceramic/Porcelain Tile vs. Vinyl Tile: Which Is Better for Your Kitchen?

Your kitchen and bathrooms take a beating. Water is flying everywhere in both rooms, all kinds of soaps and chemicals are spilling on the floor, and both get their share of various stains and scrapes on the flooring. So, when faced with having to put in a new kitchen or bathroom floor you might have narrowed your replacement materials down to either ceramic or vinyl tile. Here are some advantages and disadvantages to both materials that should give you some direction in your decision making.

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Timeless Luxury Custom Closets To Help Organize Life

Every fashion-addict dreams about it: a custom-designed closet, preferably walk-in, with all your clothing, footwear and accessories in sight and at arms’ reach. The kind of space which makes getting dressed in the morning feel like shopping on Madison Avenue. It can be yours with a custom closet system. If you’re ready to take the plunge and go custom, here are some things you might want to keep in mind.

 

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The Ultimate Resource for Kitchen And Bar Wood Countertop

Wood countertops, butcher block countertops, wood bar tops, and solid wood tables are visually rich and warm to the touch. These natural beauties are great addition to your house or restaurant. Here’s how to determine if they’ll work in your space.

After being eclipsed by showy stones like granite and marble and maintenance-free engineered materials like quartz and solid surfacing, natural-wood countertops are enjoying a real revival. Constructed from pieces of hardwood laminated together with glue for strength and stability, they provide a warm, organic landing surface in a kitchen, one that is wonderfully forgiving, gentle on dishware, and able to absorb the noise of a busy household. Wood can also be revived if damaged; if it gets dinged, stained, or gouged, you can refinish it.

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Everything You Need to Know About Fireclay Sinks: A Complete Guide

Fireclay sinks have become one of the most sought after kitchen sinks and are still going strong by proving their worth to the wear and tear of everyday chores. Popular for its durability, appearance and eco-friendly properties, having a fireclay sink in your kitchen will be a great addition for years to come. Below are some things to consider before you buy a fireclay sink!

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All You Need to Know About Grout Joints and Grout for Perfect Tiling

The space between the tiles is called a “grout joint” and the main reason grout joints exist are to accommodate for slight sizing differences from tile to tile that are created during the manufacturing process. The grout joint enables the installer to adjust the tile to compensate for these sizing differences and allow for a straight grout line. Less variation in the tile size allows for a smaller grout joint. Due to the technology incorporated in the manufacturing of tile today, there is very little variation in size and therefore grout joint widths are generally much smaller than they have been in the past. Typically, we recommend grout joints being no less than 1/8 of an inch however some precision cut tiles and stone can withstand a smaller grout joint.

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Awarded Best Of Houzz 2016

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

Awarded Best Of Houzz 2014

Grandior won one of the most popular awards among the more than 65 million monthly users on Houzz!

“Best Of Houzz” is people’s choice award on Houzz. Each year the prestigious Best of Houzz Awards are presented to many of the top-rated professionals and popular home designs across United States and around the world.

Read more

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