A client told me my cabinet layouts looked like they were designed by a toddler

It was a kitchen remodel in a 1920s bungalow and I had everything measured out perfect on paper. But the guy walked in with his wife and said they couldn't open the dishwasher and the pantry door at the same time. I had put the pantry right next to the dishwasher without checking the swing radius. Had to rip out two days of work and redo the whole layout with a 3 inch gap I didn't plan for. Now I always build a quick cardboard mockup of the door swings before I cut anything. That one comment cost me $400 in materials and 10 hours of labor. Has anyone else had a client point out something that made you feel like an idiot?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_aaron2d ago

My buddy Scott had this happen with a bathroom vanity. He put the sink right where the door would hit it when it swung open. The homeowner walked in and just stood there with the door open and said "guess I'll wash my hands sideways." Had to pull out the whole cabinet and scoot it over 4 inches. Cost him a Saturday and extra drywall work. He still brings it up anytime someone talks about measuring twice. Now he hangs a piece of string from the ceiling to show the door arc before he commits to anything. That customer was surprisingly chill about the whole thing though.

rose_murray2d ago

The thing is, it's not just with building stuff. I feel like half of adult life is just learning the hard way that you can't trust your eyes to see the whole picture. Like parking too close to a cart corral and forgetting your doors swing out wider when you're holding a kid or groceries. Or thinking you have enough space in the fridge for a sheet pan until you try to close the door. That string trick Scott does is genius though. It's basically the same as when people tape outlines on the floor before rearranging furniture. We all just gotta accept that our brains are real bad at imagining movement and space.