Guides · Updated November 2026
Front door and cabinet guides
What should I know before buying a custom wood front door?
Front doors
Front door guide
What does a custom wood front door cost?
Published price ranges for stock and custom wood doors, what drives the number, and why quotes for one opening differ so much.
Read the guideFront door guide
What is the best wood for a front door in Colorado?
Six exterior species compared on hardness, decay resistance and movement, with Colorado's dry air and strong sun in mind.
Read the guideFront door guide
How do I measure for a new front door?
Measuring the slab or the rough opening, jamb depth, handing and swing, overhang, and the photos to send a door maker.
Read the guideFront door guide
How often does a wood front door need refinishing?
Finish types and how long they last in sun, the six-sides rule, overhangs, cleaning, seasonal movement and weatherstrip.
Read the guideAlso see front door questions, answered and how a custom front door gets built.
Cabinets
Cabinet guide
How much do custom cabinets cost in Colorado?
Price per linear foot, what a typical kitchen costs, and what drives the number up or down.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Custom vs. semi-custom vs. stock cabinets
What actually changes between the three tiers: sizing, materials, lead time and price.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Frameless vs. face-frame cabinets
How the two construction styles differ in storage, look, hinges, cost and durability.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Filler strips on stock cabinets: what are your options?
Why stock cabinets need fillers, which fillers a custom kitchen still needs, and how re-planning, semi-custom and custom compare.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Is CNC cabinetry better than traditional shop work?
What a CNC router does, what it improves, what it can’t fix, and how to judge any cabinet shop.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Custom cabinets vs. Home Depot cabinets
Sizing, box material, price per foot, lead time and who measures and installs: a small Longmont CNC shop against big-box in-stock and special-order cabinets.
Read the guideCabinet guide
Matching cabinets for the kitchen, bathroom and mudroom
What has to match, what changes from room to room, ordering together or later, and what it costs.
Read the guideAlso see custom cabinet questions, answered and how our cabinet process works.
How are these guides kept accurate?
Every outside number links to the page it came from, and each guide shows the date it was last updated. A guide is updated when its sources change. Anything that describes how Spindle Woodworks builds is stated as our own approach, not as an industry rule.
Ready to talk about your own project? Start with custom wood front doors or custom cabinets, or request a quote.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Which front door guide should I read first?
Start with the cost guide if you are still setting a budget. Then read the wood guide, which compares exterior species for Colorado's dry air and strong sun, and the measuring guide before you ask anyone for a quote.
Where do the numbers in these guides come from?
From published sources we opened and checked: cost guides, door manufacturers' instructions and warranties, the Wood Database and the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Wood Handbook. Each guide lists its sources with the month they were checked.
Are these guides only about Spindle Woodworks?
No. Most of each guide explains how doors and cabinets work in general, so you can compare quotes from any maker. Where a guide describes how we build, it says so plainly.
Do the guides apply outside Colorado?
The construction, measuring and care advice applies anywhere. The climate notes are written for Colorado's Front Range, and cost ranges are national or Colorado figures, so prices in other markets can differ.
Spindle Woodworks
Tell us about your project
Send a few details and rough measurements. Sam replies within one business day with next steps and a ballpark range.