Storage Cabinets

Archive for February, 2010

The U.S. Kitchen Cabinets & Countertops Manufacturing industry recently released its 2009 Trendology report, which conducts a trend analysis in kitchen cabinets and kitchen countertops. So what are some the trends home owners can expect to see in the kitchen cabinets and countertops manufacturing sphere this upcoming year? The answer depends on who you ask.

With spending down and Americans worrying so much about the state of the economy, frivolous is out and functionality seems to be in. It is, however, possible to get the best of both worlds. Home and Garden television (HGTV) predicts that kitchen cabinet trends will marry style with function. The producer of the show “The Best in Kitchens and Baths,” HGTV says, “Furniture-grade materials and custom add-ons create cabinets that perform beautifully without sacrificing style. “

Because kitchen cabinets are often the most prized component of the room, “their design and aesthetics can make or break the entire room’s overall appearance.” Therefore, it’s important not to sacrifice quality for the sake of price. At the same time, kitchen cabinets don’t have to break the bank. Indeed, quality, built-to-order cabinetry can be had for every budget.

Look for a kitchen cabinet manufacturer that offers a wide selection of door styles, optional storage solutions and decorative enhancements. That way you can customize the kitchen cabinets that fit within the needs of both your family and your budget. Wood species, finish, storage solutions and moldings will all factor into the overall cost of your kitchen cabinets, so selecting a kitchen cabinet manufacturer with a wide array of options is your best bet.

Another kitchen cabinet trend HGTV sees taking a firm hold in the marketplace is an overall one “toward furniture-grade cabinets.” This one is a direct offshoot of the function over style one. “Now consumers are turning their attention toward more particular aspects, such as pull-out waste cans, slide-out towel bars and pull-down shelves. This … points to an overall customization movement that puts as much emphasis on function as it does on form.”

A leading kitchen cabinet manufacturer will afford homeowners a unique and eclectic array of storage solutions. Sink base door storage units, Contempo floor mount wastebasket cabinets, stainless utensil trays, sliding towel bars, sink base door storage units, base wastebasket top mounts, paper towel holders, base wastebasket cabinets, sink base door storage units and top mount wastebaskets are just some of the kitchen cabinet add-on features that are appealing to today’s homeowners.

According to a 2002 survey conducted by the National Kitchen and Bath Association, “Wood-finished cabinets are still the style of choice,” representing about 80 percent of all cabinets purchased. But as a final trend, HGTV points out that homeowners “are opting for a more casual appearance overall. Many of these have multi-step finishes and glazes to make them look like antiques that have weathered generations of use.” If this trend describes you, look for a leading kitchen cabinet manufacturer that offers a wide range of kitchen cabinet wood species, kitchen cabinet door shapes and kitchen cabinet wood finishes. Standard and premium finishes and glazes complement any design style.

Carmen Fontana
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/kitchen-cabinet-trends-for-2009-706860.html

Setting up a home office can be a tremendous challenge.  How do you separate your work life from your home life when they occupy the same space?  Here are 10 tips to create a home office designed for maximum productivity.

1. Know yourself.

Think about your perfect working conditions.  Short of a lounge chair at the edge of the ocean on a warm sunny day, what do you see?  Do you have a large conference table and plenty of room to spread out?  Do you have a large recliner and a laptop desk?  What are your ideal working conditions?  Don’t just think about comfort.  What conditions do you work best in?  Is there music playing?  Is there a phone in your office?  What is on your desk?  In and out boxes? Is there a place for everything or are you more of a scattered creative type? Do you have pictures?  Plants?  A fountain?  The key is to envision your perfect productive space, not what you think should be your perfect productive space.

2. Don’t forget wall space.

What is on the walls of your office space right now?  Are they blank?  Are they covered with family photos?  What about inspirational prints with motivational sayings?  Do you have a large writing surface on your wall or a cork board?  Planning boards are fantastic if you’re a visual person.  You can use a whiteboard to draft the navigation of your website or create long range plans and a timeline.  Corkboards are excellent for posting notes, tasks, and ideas you don’t want to lose.

What about shelving?  Use your vertical space, your wall space, to optimize your home office.  Shelves are an excellent way to store items you frequently need while saving space on your desk and conserving valuable floor space.  An office that feels roomy and clutter free is often much more productive than an office that feels cluttered and disorganized.

3. Let there be light.

Natural light is best for productivity and feelings of well being.  However, natural light isn’t always an option.  Quite often home offices are built into the center of a home or worse…the basement.  Uniform ambient light is better for productivity than task lighting and it is better on your eyes.  For an expensive uniform lighting set up, consider natural spectrum fluorescent bulbs.  They last a long time and are good for your mood and the environment.

In addition to natural light, it is helpful to have a bit of ventilation. If you can open a window from time to time and get some fresh air, by all means do!  If there are no windows available in your home office, consider air purifiers, fans or some sort of ventilation system.

4. Don’t sit at the kitchen table!

Placing yourself right in the middle of the house and all of its activity is a certain time stealer.  How can you avoid distractions from chores, people, pets, and folks knocking at your door trying to sell you magazines or financial services?  While the kitchen table is great because it enables you to spread out and work in a comfortable location – there are probably plenty of windows and sunlight there too – there are no doors to keep out the distractions.

5. How much memory do you think you’ll need?

 The basic rule of thumb when setting up a home office is to buy as large of a computer as you can afford.  You might be surprised at how quickly your memory and storage will be used up.  If you don’t buy a big enough computer, you’ll end up having to buy a new one anyway.  If you already have a computer and a larger capacity computer isn’t in your budget, consider an external storage drive.

6. Backup regularly.

Speaking of external storage drives…it is imperative that you back your equipment up regularly.  I know that backing up takes time, sometimes it feels like it takes forever; however it is critical to the future of your business and your sanity that you back up.  Stop for a moment and consider what would happen if everything on your computer suddenly vanished.

For many, it might mean the end of their business, which is why it is critical that you not only back up regularly – weekly isn’t too frequent – you will also want to make sure your backup is working.  Backup and then go through the process of retrieving your information to make sure your backup is working the way it is supposed to.

7. Set up your office to function smoothly.

This means comfortable equipment, and processes that make sense for you.  Is your chair comfortable?  How about your keyboard and your desk positioning?  The more comfortable you are in your office, the more productive you’ll be.  If your wrist is hurting and your back is stiff, you’re going to work slower and chances are you’re going to be distracted.

What about the system you have set up.  Is everything you use frequently within easy reach?  Is your phone close by?  What about your files? Take a minute and look around your home office.  Is it set up optimally for you?

8. Organization and storage.

 Do you have a place for everything?  Storage and organization is extremely important when creating your home office.  If you skip this step you’ll spend much of your time trying to find things instead of getting them done.  Create a paper organization and storage system – file cabinet.  Also create an effective storage system on your computer.  For paper files, it is recommended that you have a file for every bank account, taxes, receipts, expenses, payables, receivables, marketing and sub folders for each marketing project.

Also consider keeping your copywriting ideas in a file.  On your computer the system will work much the same way. You’ll likely have major folders for each category and sub folders contained within.  For example you might have a category labeled Marketing, and sub categories labeled SEO, PPC, Direct Mail etc…

9. Do you need an address?

When you have a home address, it is tempting to have your business address be the same.  However, take a moment and step back.  There are distinct advantages to having a separate business address.  You are able to keep your home address private.  You are able to separate your work from your home legally.  Having a business address looks a little more professional than 1015 Butternut Circle on your business correspondence.  Additionally, having to go pick up the mail gets you out of your house on a regular basis!

10. Modems, and phones, and faxes oh my.

Do you need all of these fixtures cluttering your office?  There are numerous electronic devices available now like e-fax, wireless internet, and 800 numbers that are economical and can be forwarded to your cell phone eliminating the need for a separate office phone and line.

In fact, there are automated attendants that will answer your phone for you during your off hours, send them into your ‘business’ voice mail and actually email the message to you or forward it to your personal voice mail system.  All for less than $20 a month.

When it comes to working out of a home office, you make the rules.  What works for the masses in terms of organization, hours, processes and so on are not necessarily what will work for you. Develop a system that works for you and stick to it.  When you design a system and space that work for you, and stick to it, your productivity will increase ten fold and so will your profits.

Jeremy Gislason
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-business-articles/setting-up-a-home-office-10-tips-to-getting-it-done-right-the-first-time-688817.html

TV Cabinets, or Armoires, are fast becoming the norm in American homes.  Coming in all shapes and sizes, these pieces of furniture are popular ways to store television sets and related video and sound equipment.

Getting exactly what you want may be difficult though, since manufacturers only make a set amount of models; you need to shop around extensively for just the right one.  What if even then you can’t find a setup you like?

Custom TV cabinets are another option.  These tend to be on the pricey side, and can cost several thousand dollars.  It is possible though, with creative use of kitchen cabinetry, to create a customized tv cabinet at a price you can live with.

There are no rules anywhere stating that a wall cabinet must go on the kitchen wall, or that kitchen cabinets need to go in the kitchen at all.  What prevents you from putting them in a living room and using them as a tv stand?  Nothing!  Have at it, we say.

We’ve come up with a pretty simple example as a test, one that allows for a fairly good sized television and provides ample space for sound equipment and CD/DVD storage.  Everything in the design depends on what you have for equipment; it’s easy enough to change though since it’s not one gigantic piece of furniture.  Using kitchen cabinets means that it’s modular and customizable.

On either side of the television are stacked wall cabinets, 30″H x 24″W x 18″D, each with two adjustable shelves. On the floor in between them is a subwoofer with a block to either side.  These blocks can be more cabinets, or some sort of framed in piece strong enough to hold up the television.

Above these is the television itself, and above that is another wall cabinet.  We used a 12″H x 42″W x 12″D, which you’d have to bump out a bit to be flush with the rest of the cabinets, but you could get a cabinet with the same depth of 18″ and figure out which height will look best.  Certain cabinet companies might have the exact size you need here.

The idea is that you can get a totally customized television cabinet with kitchen cabinets for a fraction of what you would pay someone to build a comparable piece of furniture.  We priced this one in Birch in a higher-end semi-custom cabinet company.  With solid doors, it weighs in around $1900.  With the glass pictured the price is in the $2500 range.  Again though, this could change easily, depending on what you need.

Remember too that tv cabinets are not the only application for kitchen cabinets.  Using similar ideas, it’s possible to make office desks, board room multimedia presentation centers, computer armoires, and many more.

For more information about using kitchen cabinets as tv cabinets, visit
www.thecabinetfolks.com.  To see the 3D rendering of the design mentioned here, just follow the articles link from our home page.

 

Craig Parker
http://www.articlesbase.com/furniture-articles/use-kitchen-cabinets-as-tv-cabinet-or-computer-armoire-without-custom-cabinet-prices-701437.html