I believe it was appliances connection.com I was looking at not long ago. If I remember they were authorized dealers for the things I wanted. I just happened to hit a company store sale so didnt buy at that time. When I am ready to make all my purchases in about 3-4 weeks, if their prices are good I'm going for it. I figure if they're an authorized dealer I have a good chance of getting problems fixed. I noticed that some places do not honor warranties if not purchased from an authorized dealer, which really put a crimp in my plans. Check out the manufacturers you are looking at before deciding where to buy.

Other than that, not too far into purchasing things yet, though people here mention several sites. They escape me at the moment.

That's exactly my question. I don't want to get a good deal only to void the warranty because I didn't buy it at an authorized dealer. How did you find out that appliancesconnection was authorized?

Since I live down the street from Home Depot most of my items were purchased there. I just thought it would be easier if I had to return anything! I have a very difficult time committing to just one thing. I did bite the bullet and purchased my knobs and pulls on Overstock.com based off of the positive reviews. I also purchased a Kraus stainless steel sink for $400 from Amazon. I was very nervous buying sight unseen and then have to worry about returns or restocking fees. However, I was very pleased with my purchases and decided to keep everything. If I had a designer, I would let her make all the decisions and purchases for me!

I have dealt mostly with FaucetDirect.com and am very happy with them. Even in the past when I have had something missing in the box... they were quick to replace it... and no arguments. They are helpful over the phone, in describing differences between different products and if other parts are needed for install. And they have matched prices I find elsewhere. I have now dealt with them on two bathroom remodels and now my kitchen remodel.

I got lighting, bathroom vanity, and kitchen/bar sinks and faucets from lighting/faucet/living direct.com and have been very pleased. Good prices and good customer service. I searched everywhere local for a vanity and lighting, and just couldn't find what I wanted.

Also very happy with Faucet Direct, although I got a great deal on a steam shower from Overstock.

I was underwhelmed by the offerings at the big box stores, and live somewhere without a lot of physical kitchen/plumbing stores, so had to resort to online purchases.

Great personal experiences with:
Plumbing Supply.com (kitchen faucets, plumbing odds & ends)

Mac the Antique Plumber (shower and bathroom fixtures)

Blue Bath (fireclay sink)

Amazon.com is also a good resource; decent return policy with no questions asked, and you can often get free shipping, which can be a big deal with heavier items like toilets or sinks.

I purchased my Silgranit II sink from Amazon. Saved quite a bit rather than buying locally. Purchased Hansgrohe faucet & soap dispenser from Quality Baths. Easy website, great prices & fast shipping. Had best price on the Internet.

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I also having nothing but kudos to say about Amazon. I am an Amazon Prime member and order quite a lot from them. I send things to my children in other states all with 2 day free shipping on most things.

They have a good return policy, just be sure you are ordering from Amazon and not the Amazon marketplace vendors which can have varying shipping and return policies.

Ordered my Grohe Lady lux faucets from Amazon for quite a savings even compared to most online places.

Just went thru a major reno to our home w/ 3 bathrooms and one kitchen. Bought practically everything online from cheapeast vendors I could find for the specific items I needed (4 sinks, 4 faucets, pot filler, shower heads, etc) Used AJ madison for shaws sink and bartered as I was also purchasing a refrigertor and microwave and got the cheapest price w/ great service. Used plumber supply and had no problems. Used Amazon w/out difficulty. I checked reviews online before buying from the more obscure websites...I did not have a single bad experience from any online purchase and saved a lot of money over buying from individually owned plumbing or kitchen design stores. I found home depot and Lowes did not have the selection I wanted which was readily available online. Google shopping quickly found me the lowest price on line.Overstock was amazing for everything from tile for the laundry room to faucets!
You will pay much more if the kitchen designer does it "for you" ! but it did take a lot of time to find the best deal... your computer will get tired!

Here is a link that might be useful: WHERE to buy stuff? Sink? Faucet?

When you are in the individual product page (after you click on the product you want in the search results list) at the bottom of the page, on the left, I think, will be a badge stating they are a "(brand x) authorized dealer". Some company pages will also have a place where they list which sites are authorized dealers.

That said, I buy a lot on amazon and other places too. Just depends on what it is. I'm planning on getting my $200 faucet on amazon, easy to replace if needed and I don't think I'll have any issues with Kohker. My silgranite sink will probably be appliancesconnection since I want an authorized dealer. Sinks are hard to replace, and I don't want any hastle if I get one of the rare ones that crack, especially after paying >$400 for a sink.

Bought my hood from build.com. Buying tile from builderelements.com. If they seem reputable, and you use a cc or Paypal, you should have some recourse through your payment method if there are problems with the transaction of defective merchandise that won't be exchanged.

Have your designer price your selections first. You may be pleasantly surprised at the prices. It all depends on if she's a member of a buying group or not what type of pricing she can get. If the prices are higher than you've found online, you can ask for a price match. It never hurts to ask! Some companies volume buy so much that their margins are super low and you can't beat them. And that's why I always suggest looking to see if something a box store has would work for you first of all,especially if you are on a budget. They volume buy and sell at low margins. If nothing is appealing there, then branching out with your designer's help may be for you.

I would also suggest avoiding Chinese manufactured products such as HD's Glacier Bay lines. Many of the popular products enthused about on these forums are also Chinese sourced. I would NEVER put one of those faucets in my home, ever. A stainless sink, well, it depends. IF the kitchen were done properly so as to allow the removal of the undermount sink at a later time, then probably, a knockoff stainless sink would be fine. I'd just want the opportunity to change it out if it proved inferior and began to rust, etc. That means making sure that you don't skimp on your sink base and use a 36" base for a 33" sink as recommended by most cabinet companies and sink manufacturers.

I found Amazon Warehouse to be by the cheapest source for faucets by a good margin.

I recently had to return a bathroom faucet to FaucetDirect.com because it was too large for my sink. They provided excellent customer service and did not charge me the restocking fee. I did have to pay for shipping. If you can see the item in person but then buy it on line you'll typically get a better price. I needed a specific toilet and bought my toto through nationalbuildersupply for a great price and it arrived quickly. good luck!

I got my sink, faucet, etc, from a local plumbing supply place. The price they quoted was less than retail, and it was not far off the online places. It was great when the then-new Moen pull-down faucets were hard to find, and they held one for me.

I did get my hood from Ventingdirect.com because there was no local dealer, and they were fine to deal with. I think all the "Xdirect.com's" are related, aren't they?

So it sounds like you all felt totally safe in buying from any of those places, with no warnings of "steer clear from so-and-so". And no concerns about returns or warranties or anything. Thanks everyone.

Only caveat... I bought from so many different online stores so I ALWAYS looked up reviews on what it was like to buy from the company on google before buying and always called them to make sure they would tell me personally about their business, any restocking fees (which i always asked to be waived) and free delivery which I also always requested. I DID find some that i refused to buy from if they did not pass the above tests.. you could tell the shady companies right away (price was too good to be true no phone number, if it was there they rarely picked up, lots of bad reviews on a google search of reviews for the company ,etc).. Unfortunately I don't remember the specific names of the ones I didn't order from,but most of the companies listed above,I am familiar w/ and found them to be fine.... ..

I just ordered my Shaw Sink from Quality Bath and it was delivered to my cabinet maker today! They are a certified dealer for Rohl, so the warranty is in place for the sink. The price was better than anywhere else. Others here have posted about this site and the results were positive.