Home Entertainment Cabinetry
By / May 4, 2016 March 18, 2023Home entertainment cabinetry is a great idea for any home. Because many people choose to stay at home for family entertainment, or choose to entertain gu
ests in the comfort of their own home, having a custom
entertainment area with home entertainment cabinetry is a great investment in your home. Entertaining at home takes space, and finding room to store your Blu-ray collection, AV equipment and family games is often a challenge, and can cause a clutter problem in your home. At Kountry Kraft we can create home entertainment cabinetry to clear the clutter and enhance the fun.
Developing entertainment areas in your home by adding home entertainment cabinetry is a great way to enhance your family’s together time, create memories and build a place to unwind and relax. Home theaters with built-in entertainment centers are a great addition to any room in your home. Recreation space allows you to invite friends and family to gather to watch a movie, play games, or have a party – the possibilities for your new entertainment area are endless.
Custom entertainment centers for your home theater also help reduce the stress caused by clutter in your home. Piles of movies stacked on your entertainment unit or crammed in every corner of your home creates an unsightly mess – and makes it hard to find what you need. Home entertainment cabinetry organizes the mess and create a unique space to relax and enjoy family and friends. And with custom cabinetry every corner of your home can carry your style and express your individuality, while providing functionality and storage.
Home entertainment cabinetry considerations:
- What is the primary leisure activity of your family? Who will be the primary users of this space?
- Do you entertain large groups? Do you need a separate home theater room or can you integrate your entertainment area into an existing family or play room?
- How much space do you have to devote? Do you need to maximize storage, or maximize entertainment space?
- How long will the space you’re planning fit the needs of your family? Make sure the area you’re planning will have longevity or be a flexible space that can evolve as your family evolves.
Custom cabinetry isn’t just for kitchens – consider adding home entertainment cabinetry to enhance the functionality of your home. Contact a Kountry Kraft dealer near you that can help you start planning your entertainment space today.
Profile of Cabinet Dealers – Hanford Cabinet and Woodworking
By / April 27, 2016 September 2, 2021
Each month we profile one of our talented cabinet dealers and this month we are excited to profile Hanford Cabinet and Woodworking, located in Old Saybrook, CT. Hanford is a fantastic dealer led by owner and founder Stephen Hanford and a truly talented group of hardworking cabinet designers and staff. Hanford established his renowned firm in Connecticut over 35 years ago, based on his love of wood and the inherent beauty and warmth that it brings to life, and they pride themselves in creating quality projects built to last a lifetime.
Stephen began his passion for woodworking at a very young age. His father was a college trained instructor in woodworking and helped Steve progress in the wood medium. His love for the art grew as he became older. In fact, he chose to purchase an existing cabinet shop instead of gaining his PhD. In Botany!
Excellence in Woodworking
Stephen relishes the most unique and difficult projects because of his love and indisputable knowledge of 
woodworking and forestry. No project is too challenging for Hanford Cabinets and Woodworking. His knowledge and background in wood technology and forestry has proven to be indispensable when it comes to handling the more difficult and unusual jobs. Steve’s talent, both natural & trained, has turned Hanford Cabinet & Woodworking into the reputable Connecticut business it is today.
Stephen and his wonderful team of designers have fortified Hanford Cabinets and Woodworking as a well-established and reputable Connecticut business that we love to work with. For the Hanfords cabinetry truly is a family affair. Lane, Steve’s wife and business partner, oversees The Front Room Gallery and office duties. Sarah Hanford photographs finished work and does graphic design, and Allison Hanford is office manager, and also does design, build and install.
Hanford Cabinets and Woodworking offers cabinets, furniture, countertops, appliances, plumbing fixtures and much more. We love partnering with Hanford and are proud to include them in our list of talented cabinet dealers. Visit their website to see more of their beautiful custom cabinetry work.
Timeless White Cabinetry
By / April 13, 2016 February 25, 2023Over the years we have certainly seen our share of cabinetry fads, but one color has withstood the test of time – white cabinetry. Whether it is with a modern door style or fits into a traditional kitchen, customers still look to white cabinetry to provide them with a pure, clean space.
White Finishes
White finishes and glazes can be applied to any of our wood types to create a unique effect. You can choose white stained cabinets, or white painted cabinets for a different effect. White maple cabinets have a completely different look than white applied to cherry or knotty pine – and glazes can create a completely different effect. This color on distressed wood also has a unique appearance.
White cabinetry can truly help a small room look large. Adding white cabinetry will brighten up a room, enhancing the feeling of space in the room. Since white cabinetry can look cold, it is important mix up a variety of complementary shades of white in the paint, backsplashes, countertops, tile, flooring and cabinet stains. This can truly warm up a room and avoid a sterile feeling.
Warm Up a Kitchen
Another way to warm up a white kitchen is to add wood accents, on an island, or countertops, for instance. You can also add stainless steel pulls and appliances to a white kitchen to break up the white in the room, and hardwood flooring does a tremendous amount to warm up the space.
White can be made to fit into any design aesthetic – whether traditional, transitional, contemporary or modern. Cabinetry with full overlay doors can achieve a contemporary feel, while flat-panel inset doors, beadboard and rustic feeling knobs and accessories can give a kitchen a rustic farmhouse feel.
Over the years, we have created many beautiful white kitchens – like the beautiful white cabinets. This includes our slide show below designed by our friends at Stonington Designs in Madison, NJ and True North Cabinets in New Caanan, CT. With a wide variety of options available your custom white kitchen can have your own unique look and feel. You can also check out our Houzz projects for additional examples of white kitchens we love.
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Cabinet Style Primer
By / April 6, 2016 March 8, 2023Kountry Kraft cabinetry is truly custom, and each one of our projects look completely different from the next when you combine our vast offering of door styles, overlays, edge profiles, framing beads, wood type, paints and finishes. It can be hard to determine which of our cabinet styles to choose, but the best way to start is by selecting the cabinet styles that fit your design from our five most popular cabinet style options:
Beaded Inset
Beaded inset cabinetry features a bead around the edge for a decorative effect. This allows the door and drawer style you select to stand out in your design. It is not available with a door overlay. It is most popular in traditional and transitional style kitchens, and you can configure it with any edge profile, bead, hinge and drawer style.
Penn Line
Penn Line features a 3/8” inset-lipped door overlay. There is no framing bead or raise available with this style of cabinetry. It is most popular in transitional and contemporary designs. One common combination is to pair this cabinet style with our CRP door style
3001
This cabinet style features a full overlay, to allow the door style to take center stage. In this style of cabinetry, the cabinet does not show through – it is fully covered by the door and drawer. It can feature a bead and a raise and is most popular in contemporary and modern style designs. It typically pairs with the purity door style and full door overlay.
Cambridge
The Cambridge cabinet style does not feature a door overlay. It can be used with any of our framing beads and edge profiles. It is most popular in traditional and transitional designs and most often pairs with the CRP10, CRP10161 and CRP10797 door styles.
Inset/No Bead
In this style of custom cabinetry, doors are inset with no overlay. Because there is no door overlay, the door lays flush with the cabinetry. It can also be with any of our edge profiles, framing beads and raises, and is most popular in traditional and transition style design. This cabinet style typically pairs with the Amesbury and CRP10 door styles, but can be with any of our styles.
Kountry Kraft offers other cabinet styles in addition to these, and one of our talented kitchen designers can help you determine which of our cabinet styles is right for your next custom cabinetry project. Overall, they will show you visual examples of each style paired with our wood options, door styles and beads, and will work with you to narrow down the options to accomplish all of your design goals.
Dealer Profile – James Kershaw Associates
By / March 23, 2016 February 24, 2023A talented kitchen designer can help you design the kitchen of your dreams. The Kountry Kraft team is thrilled to work with a network of talented dealers and kitchen designers who create incredible custom cabinetry projects using our products. This month I am happy to profile our friends at James Kershaw and Associates, kitchen designer North Haledon, NJ.
James Kershaw began drawing and designing in High School. Soon thereafter, he was hired as an industrial draftsman. His fascination for architecture carried him through college where at night, he began working for a local kitchen dealer. After college, he began a long teaching career while continuing his passion for kitchen design.
In 1981, Jim received his accreditation as a “Certified Kitchen Designer”. He started his own business, James Kershaw Associates, specializing in interior planning, kitchen design, bath design, home theaters & media cabinetry, closets & specialized storage, custom furniture, and libraries & offices.
Jim’s daughter discovered her own love of kitchen design after taking a high school drafting course. She attended drafting school and then joined her father’s firm to learn design from the best. Patty became a partner in James Kershaw Associates in 2009. With almost 25 years experience working in the kitchen business, she gives much attention to design detail and engineering. She enjoys working with clients to make each kitchen special and personal. Patty believes “A satisfied client is the biggest reward.”
Jim and Patty also work with designer Bill Troncone, Bill studied interior design at Berkeley College of Business. He has focused on kitchen and bath design since 1998, and is committed to providing creative design solutions that meet a client’s needs while staying within their budget. Together the team at James Kershaw and Associates work to create designs that get the very best out of every space.
We are pleased to display several James Kershaw and Associates projects in the web gallery on our website. For more information and to see more of their work, check out the slide show of some of their projects below, and visit their website to see more of their designs at www.jameskershaw.com.
A Visit from Woodshop News
By / March 16, 2016 February 25, 2023
Around the holidays last year we shared with you the inspirational story of how our company began when my mother, Helen Hurst purchased a Sears Table Saw for my father Elvin back in 1958. We love that story – and around the time we shared it with you we also sent it out to a few magazines. We were thrilled when Woodshop News magazine reporter Jennifer Hicks called us to let us know they read the story and she was interested in coming for an interview and a shop tour.
Woodshop News
Woodshop News has been in print for 30 years. The publication is a favorite among woodshop owners and woodworkers with small to mid-sized woodshops, and has a readership of 70,000. They cover news, business trends, advice and new products for professional woodworkers. Their typical reader builds cabinetry, furniture, architectural millwork and remodeling projects. Our own staff are Woodshop News readers, so we were thrilled to have them stop by for a tour of our facility last week and meet my parents, Elvin Jr and myself.
Jennifer spent a good deal of time with my parents, hearing stories from the early days of Kountry Kraft, and learning how we grew from a staff of 2 to nearly 100 in the past 50+ years. It certainly wasn’t easy for my father to quit his job with a 14 month old and a 3 week old baby at home to launch our company. The path from a 28’ x 58’ shop to our current 90,000 square foot shop wasn’t always smooth, but our commitment to the Germanic principles of practical hard work and our strong sales philosophy of giving people what they want so they will come back for more still guide every decision we make today. Our path is a great example for other shops who start small with big dreams for the future.
I don’t want to scoop Jennifer and our friends at Woodshop News, but watch for a story in the May or June issue this year. Visit woodshopnews.com for some great content for woodworkers, and consider a subscription to encourage the woodworker in your life – you never know what might become of it 🙂
Custom Kitchen Designer Profile True North Cabinets, LLC
By / February 17, 2016 December 19, 2022Each month I am pleased to have the opportunity to highlight one of the talented designers in our dealer network who work with us to create beautiful cabinetry projects in homes all around the country. This month’s custom kitchen designer focus is True North Cabinets in New Canaan, CT.
True North truly offers “exceptional designs for your lifestyle.” Their award-winning family owned business is managed by Ken and Louise Pascal, and their beautiful designs have been featured in many national publications and in many prominent homes
True North provides custom kitchen remodeling and full kitchen design services, including cabinetry, stone work, back splash, wall color, fixtures, flooring and more. Their high-quality, custom made kitchen solutions are among some of the best designs we produce, and we always enjoy the opportunity to create new and exciting cabinetry projects in collaboration with the True North team.
In the above photos we are pleased to highlight this traditional style kitchen in New Canaan, CT, which you will also see featured on the Kountry Kraft home page. This kitchen features beautiful white beaded inset cabinets crafted of Hard Maple wood. The doors are complete with the Schaub 706-PN hardware. The drawers feature the Schaub 732-PN hardware. The door design is TW10 with an ogee framing bead, and the color is real brushed stroke VM-81680 finish.
In addition to creating beautiful kitchens, Ken and Louise continuously look to give back to their community. They have made charitable donations to 25+ organizations to date such as New Canaan Cares, Salvation Army and United Way to name a few. Being part of their community is incredibly important to them.
If you live in New Canaan and the surrounding area, consider True North for your cabinetry needs. For more information visit their website or call them at (203)972-3921. Let them know I sent you!
Distressed Cabinetry
By / February 10, 2016 February 9, 2016
Building cabinetry, in and of itself, requires a great deal of skill. Learning to make quality cabinetry requires years training and experience, guided by master craftsman. It truly is an art – which is why woodworkers are called artisans. At Kountry Kraft our master craftsman have more than 1500 combined years of experience. 1500 years of experience – that is a staggering number! It is this basis of skill that our quality is built upon, and it is why we are capable of building truly high quality cabinetry customized for our customers needs.
One of our most technically advanced products is distressed cabinetry. Hours of skilled labor go into the distressing process in order to create a sophisticated distressed finish that looks realistic. Distressing wood gives it an aged appearance, making it look worn and weathered. The process for creating distressed cabinetry actually involves first finishing the wood to achieve one finished effect, and then intentionally “unfinishing” it in places by damaging the finish. Craftsmen use sandpaper and strippers in some sections of the finished piece to give it that distressed feeling. There is a very specific technique required in choosing how to distress the wood to achieve the proper effect. Without the skill to know how much area to distress, what product to use, and how much pressure to apply, distressing can go very wrong, ruining the finished product.
Distressed finishes are the hallmark of rustic and vintage designs, and distressed cabinetry is in high demand with our kitchen designers. The skilled artisans at Kountry Kraft have perfected hundreds of distressing options utilizing a combination of our finishes, paints and glazes, and our network of skilled designers can help guide you to the distressed finish that is suits your personal style and needs. Contact a skilled Kountry Kraft designer today, and explore our many projects on Houzz for examples of our finishing options.
Custom Cabinets for Small Spaces
By / February 3, 2016 March 20, 2023Many people believe that custom cabinetry is only useful in large spaces where there is plenty of room to expand. Or they mistakenly believe they must have a big area to do a renovation that involves custom cabinetry. But the truth is, custom cabinetry is ideal for small spaces where you need to use every inch of space effectively to create a functional room. Custom Cabinets for Small Spaces, with accessories designed to maximize your space, can truly make a difference in a home.
At Kountry Kraft we have the ability to truly customize cabinetry to the homeowners exact needs. Working with one of our talented designers, you can analyze your lifestyle, map your space, and build custom cabinets that fit exactly within the space you have available. If you have a small space with high ceilings, you can add floor to ceiling cabinetry to maximize your space. If you have an odd corner where stock cabinetry cannot fit, our skilled designers can make that a usable space. If countertop space is a challenge, we can build an appliance garage that takes small appliances off the counter and tucks them away neatly for future use. Custom cabinetry for small spaces can make the most out of the existing space in your room.
We also offer a wide variety of accessories that can maximize your space. Our base pull-out storage cabinets, wooden spice racks, pantries with food file racks, double level cutlery drawers and pull out cutting boards are just a few items that can provide maximum impact within a minimal space. The images above demonstrate a few of ideas for custom cabinetry for small spaces. Many other options are available – and special accessories can be built especially to suit your needs.
If you have a small space, it is worthwhile to speak to a skilled kitchen designer for an estimate on adding custom cabinetry for small spaces to your home. Why choose stock cabinetry when it won’t effectively use the space you have available? Visit our dealer locator to find a Kountry Kraft dealer near you, and check out some of our Houzz projects for design inspirations.
Custom Kitchen Designer – Stonington Cabinetry & Designs
By / January 27, 2016 March 18, 2023At Kountry Kraft we are proud to associate with an amazing custom kitchen designer network who are responsible for creating amazing designs with our cabinetry. We are happy to feature one of those designers today – Stonington Cabinetry & Designs in Madison, NJ. Like Kountry Kraft, Stonington has a strong family heritage, and was by four members of the family; parents Karen and Robert and sons, Justin and Tyler Sachs. Firstly, the company creates revolutionary home renovations and beautiful custom cabinetry work in homes throughout the northern New Jersey area. Above all, they are craftsmen who stand by their commitment to building quality one-of-a-kind constructions that are an accurate expression of their customer – a philosophy which is very similar to our own. They have been in business for more than 30 years.
Stonington Cabinetry
Over the years, Stonington has created some beautiful projects with our cabinetry, and we are pleased to highlight this beautiful kitchen and butler’s pantry designed by Justin Sachs for a home in Madison, NJ. For example, this traditional style kitchen features cabinets with a White Dove painted finish. The kitchen island cabinets have a contrasting English Walnut stain. The Door Panel Style is TW10. The butler’s pantry adds additional storage for small appliances and food preparation space. We just love the clean look, open space, and warm feel of this design.
Overall, Stonington can create custom designs for all areas of your home, and has many satisfied customers. You can view more of their projects and read reviews on their Houzz page, or visit their website for more information. They are a member of the NKBA, have earned many Houzz badges for customer service and design, and are remarkable partners.
Finally, Kountry Kraft is proud to have a great custom kitchen designer network including the team at Stonington, and we welcome you to search our dealer locator to find one near you for your next project.
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