Cabico Cabinets Will Give Custom Look to MRM Kitchen

When Mark and Mina Fies began planning the kitchen for the Model ReModel, they knew they wanted a contemporary sensibility that would fit with the rest of their renovation plans. 

Working with Synergy Lead Designer Emily Bickl, UDCP, they turned to manufacturer Cabico’s Unique cabinetry line to create the look and functionality that they sought in the main kitchen. 

“To achieve our modern look, we didn’t want to use traditional wall cabinets,” Bickl explains. “Cabico's lift-up, bi-fold doors provided a distinctive feature that involves long, horizontal doors that open upwards to reveal completely unhindered access to a large wall cabinet interior.”

One spot where those doors weren’t feasible was at the sink, where the wall cabinet’s greater height would have made “a top-hinge door difficult to use,” Bickl says. “ On this cabinet we added a Servo-Drive feature, which automatically opens the cabinet with a slight push to the corner of the door. An internal button is used to close the door again when it is raised. The feature is both practical and appropriately innovative for a modern kitchen.”

Another challenge--a dropped beam in the middle of the kitchen--was a little tougher to address. “We solved the problem by locating the tall cabinets to one side of the beam and the rest of the wall and base cabinets of the kitchen on the other side, so it looked like a purposeful division,” Bickl says. “Underneath the beam, we used a wide filler box the same width as the beam to create a ‘wall’ which matched the cabinetry between the two areas. The filler also acts as a side panel for the refrigerator, giving it a built-in look.”

The last problem to solve? Fitting the horizontal Touchstone electric fireplace into the island. But the Synergy team figured it out. “Using waterfall countertop sides on both ends, we provided the perfect surround for a slim-profile electric model,” Bickl says. “Fillers on the front and back of the island, with decorative panels to disguise them, provide the necessary space to accommodate the fireplace in the island cabinetry design. On the backside of the island, the filler box is mirrored on the opposite end, creating a symmetrical seating area with a roomy countertop overhang.”

Cabico and Cabinets

Such custom looks are, well, customary, for Cabico&co, a North American cabinetry company with dealers in the U.S. and Canada. This year, business has been booming, with orders up 40 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to last year, and 66 percent over last year at the end of May.

The firm, which restructured its brand architecture this spring, currently offers two cabinet brands: Elmwood and Cabico. Elmwood, which is high-end and fully customizable, also offers environmentally friendly options for sustainably minded remodelers or homeowners, including LEED-certified and Forest Stewardship Council-certified cabinetry. 

The Cabico brand incorporates the fully custom Unique Series and the semi-custom Essence Series, which can be a more cost-effective choice due to its more limited offerings. “Essence has many of the most popular Unique options, so a lot of people use Essence for the secondary rooms like bars, bathrooms, or laundry rooms in their house,” Jessica Smalley, Cabico's national sales trainer, explains.

 Like the Model ReModel’s kitchen, this kitchen uses Cabico’s Unique cabinets in door style #90. Courtesy Cabico&co

Love kitchen and bath design inspiration? Check out what the MRM team has in store for the primary bathroom!