"Excellent work! Done professionally and quickly. Will definitely continue to use Northern Oakes!!!"

Working throughout New England, we specialize in customized home renovation and new construction from framing to finishing. Whether the project is a complete home renovation, a kitchen remodel, or a garden shed, we try to keep the project flexible and help clients realize the best version of their vision. Based out of our workshop in Vermont, we offer a range of services including framing, flooring, tile, finish carpentry, and more.

"Hello, My name is Phil Carr-Jones, I am reviewing my experience of working with and building my own kitchen, using cabinets and doors from Arkansas Wood Door. While I am an Episcopal Priest, it turns out I get to do a lot of things they don't teach you in seminary. Over the years, I have had to get fairly skilled in all the trades, including, no surprise, carpentry. But I am by no means an expert. For instance, I employed a retired carpenter to help out with the crown molding and other trim. Apart from that though, this is all my and my wife's work. So let me state up front, Arkansas Wood Doors is the go to place for the DIY’er who is thinking of remodeling their own kitchen. Here's why: I searched the web for months, literally doing comparisons and research on flat pack rta cabinets. I went to the big box store for a design and pricing in their three lines of cabinets, and I went in for a consult with a small custom shop in my area. Here's what I found. 99 outof 100 rta cabinet companies have their product made in china which means the standards for formaldehyde are going to be as fishy as they smell, plus you can only get cabinets in fixed sizes so if you looking to eeck out every last inch of space you're going to lose a lot and you'll be using a lot of filler strips wasting what could have been useful storage. If you want to go custom, then you only have less than a handful of online options, companies that will make to order in any dimension. For instance, I only wanted an 8 inches deep spice cabinet to allow for greater working room over the counter. My wife and I are pretty serious about cooking from pastries to mains and sides. We want a very serious kitchen. Plus, I'll tall so I needed the room. In any case, if you want something custom your choices online are limited. The big box stores don't really do custom and are just as limited in their options as are the online rta places. Most online rtas offer far cheaply made boxes with construction methods less sturdy. I have found that if I buy cheap, I shouldnt expect my kitchen to hold up past a few years. The finish will fade. The drawers will warp. The joints will open up. The big box stores basically offer the same thing, too. When I go to a big box store to buy something, I do it knowing I probably willl get a year out of it, whether that’s a lawn chair of a power tool. I mean when was the last time you regretting spending too much money on a better grade of power tool? So if you want quality, a better and safer grade building material and much wider choices in sizing then your basically down to three or four options. I went with Arkansas Wood Door and am completely pleased and impressed by the experience. Now I could have spent twice what I did and gone to a small custom shop and gotten the same thing, but I am in to saving money and frankly I enjoy the challenge. AWD worked with me directly. Working up the order and getting the plan for each box just right. If you have never designed and built a kitchen before, there are plenty of tips and guidance on the web and I recommend you heartily research all of the aspects and complications involved. I hit a couple of unexpected bumps. But more about that below. So do your research. For instance you can save a lot of money by building the plinths yourself and only order squared off boxes without the toe kick. By making the platform on which you place the lower cabinets first, you can get that plumb and level, so throwing up the boxes is a breeze. And again, the cabinets are also less expense, a complete all around win. AWD uses an easy system for matching up box parts so assembly was easy. No special tools required. Given the many parts and I used a mix of frameless and face framed cabinets, there was a moment or two when in amongst all the materials I got nervous about having everything I needed, but low and behold, all was right there in the end. I also recommend the concept from French cooking "mis en place" that is have all your ingredients in place and all your tools where you need them before starting out. Also, it was a lot easier to work with my wife than doing it alone, but I did a few by myself and so if that is your only option than you should have no problem. I've assembled a lot of cheaper Swedish flat packed furniture in my day, and the quality and sturdiness of AWD leaves no doubt about how long these will last. Just rock solid. Great thing about AWD is the cost to quality ratio. Cant beat it. Which also means if you make a mistake the replacement is so reasonable it becomes not big deal. I mis-measured one box and so I needed to order the right size. Worked out fine, but that was because AWD had an incredibly fast turn around. The other few reliable companies are several weeks to months. And these other places are crazy expensive. And in truth, the other companies are a complete rip off on trim and accessories. AWD pricing was so amenable that my mistakes cost me so little in comparison with what I was saving. So there's a built in confidence for the first timer. Also AWD made one mistake on the placement of a hinge in two doors. They immediately and without question remade them and sent them out in under ten days. You just can't get that service anywhere in the custom cabinet world. It was so affordable I upgraded on one side to black walnut. Trying doing that at the other quality shops. The quality of the roll out drawers and top drawer boxes is superb and the hinges and under-mount sliders are top grade excellent. The hardware was the easiest part frankly. Their system, for lining up the hardware is just so easy. Drill driver is all you need as the placement is already leveled for you. SO: high end quality custom built cabinets, superior custom support, fastest turnaround in the marketplace, most affordable pricing out there, excellent hardware, and oh yeah, I almost forget, color choices. They offer complete line of lacquer - just pick a SW color and they'll match it. SO completely and truly custom for a fraction of cost without sacrificing any quality. The Rev. Philip Carr-Jones"

"Replaced front porch flooring, stairs and added a sturdy railing within a week. The final product is attractive and very well built. Blanchard Design/Build will be #1 choice with future projects!"

"Ron from Home Depot was very knowledgeable and professional. He gave me some great tips for future references. He called to confirm he could come out sooner than appt. time . He had thorough answers to all of my questions and the cost was fair. I would highly recommend."

"My wife and I have owned our first home for several years now. The biggest hurdle we have had being a homeowner is finding reliable and/or quality contractors. Having a house is enough of an expense without having to pay for the same project twice. Finding Damian was a blessing in disguise. It is exciting to be a homeowner again as I spend time on my new favorite space, my new deck from Blue Ridge Builders. I had a custom bench idea I threw at him for that space as well, and he built what I had in mind and then some. Even drove up to Burlington to get special paneling for it. Words can not express how much we love the deck, the price, the professionalism, just the whole experience. If you want it done right for a fair price call Blue Ridge."

"Kris has done many projects for us over the years and he does a great job, especially with finish work. He has made custom moulding to trim out a window, installed flooring, siding, doors and windows and has always done a great job."

"Chris is decent, fair, and does good work. I highly recommend him."

Here at LeClair Renovations, you will be very pleased with our services. We are honest and hard working. We focus on eco-friendly building solutions whenever possibe. We strive to maintain a high level of service and quality from start to finish. Projects will be 100% to your satisfaction! Call us today for a free estimate!

We have been doing kitchen installations for the past 20 + years. We service the Albany area Saratoga area and all throughout Vermont. Typical demolitions and reinstallation will be accomplished in a two day time period. We pride ourselves on complete customer satisfaction.