Consumer confidence means kitchens get their time to shine

Confident that their jobs are less in jeopardy, homeowners are once again taking a leap of faith and renovating their kitchens and bathrooms, according to Jeff Pike, president and owner of ARA Cabinets 4U of Wheeling.

"From 2008 until last summer, our customers were doing smaller facelifts and concentrating on their bathrooms because they didn't want to invest too much money in their homes. But for about the past year, we have seen more coming in and wanting to do major projects like totally gutting their kitchens. We have a good outlook for 2016 and beyond," Pike explained.

How they are choosing to renovate depends on the customer. Baby boomers generally want simple and elegant cabinetry, similar to what they have enjoyed in the past. Younger customers, on the other hand, want the sleek new trends. For instance, the grays that have become so popular on walls and furniture in the last few years have now made it into kitchens and baths.

"The most popular cabinets in both kitchens and baths are simple without much detail and are painted white or gray. When it comes to stained wood cabinets, many are choosing a gray stain that is absorbed into tightly grained woods like alder, cherry and poplar for an absolutely beautiful look," he said. "They go well with stainless, white or even black appliances."

Furniture-look cabinets with feet instead of a solid cabinet that extends to the floor are still popular, but mainly for kitchen islands and powder room vanities, according to Pike.

Granite countertops are still the most-requested countertops since they are less expensive than quartz and the natural stone has more 'movement' and interest. But the man-made quartz does not need to be sealed and is less likely to become contaminated by bacteria from chicken and other foods, so that will probably change if quartz prices come down, he added. Incidentally, the majority of homeowners are opting to forego the 3- or 4-inch granite backsplash in favor of tile that goes all the way to the countertop. The most popular backsplash tile is glass and applied with a subway look in horizontal stripes, Pike said.

When it comes to floors, wood and porcelain tile are "king" in kitchens. In bathrooms, wood is generally only used in powder rooms where homeowners need not worry about showers and tubs and lots of humidity. Interestingly, Pike said, they are primarily seeing homeowners choose wood that is stained either very light or very dark. Medium stains are not currently popular.

Today's porcelain tile floors use large and irregularly shaped tiles with thin grout lines in seemingly random patterns, mixing large squares with large rectangles of differing sizes, challenging the tile layers to be puzzle experts.

"In one of my displays in the showroom I even have 18-by-36-inch tiles," Pike said.

ARA Cabinets 4U has a 10,000-square-foot, two-story showroom located at 39 S. Milwaukee Ave. in Wheeling.

"We show frequently updated displays of kitchens, baths, countertops and plumbing fixtures and offer samples to help buyers make their choices," Pike explained. "Most of our customers bring in photos of their current bathroom or kitchen on their phones, so we understand what they are talking about and they usually also bring some preliminary measurements. We go from there."

"Ours is a one-stop shop. We provide people with a turnkey kitchen or bathroom experience, providing them with everything from flooring to lighting to cabinets and all of the installation labor. The only thing we don't sell is kitchen appliances," he continued. "We offer free design services and in-home measuring once they place an order, but we want people to use our showroom. We are not an in-home sales company."

In fact, if a homeowner chooses ARA Cabinets 4 U for an entire project, including the installation, ARA will pay their sales tax and if they are renovating their entire kitchen, ARA will give them the granite countertop of their choice at cost, Pike said.

It is also worth noting that Pike recently added a "to go" center on ARA's second floor where homeowners can purchase vanities, granite countertops and other items at greatly reduced prices and take them home the same day.

"We are catering to people who want to do the work themselves or to people whose contractors tell them to 'go get your vanity' and they aren't sure where to go," Pike explained. "We don't have any competition in this area because you usually have to order a vanity, which takes several weeks, and because we buy them in large quantities, we can also save them hundreds of dollars. We also cater to all budgets."

Pike founded ARA Cabinets 4U in 1992 after working in cabinet sales and design for another company for 11 years.

For more information, call (847) 215-1700 or visit www.aracabinets4U.com.