If I would have studied it long enough and also installed their kitchen design software which I think is a requirement if you are trying to figure this out yourself (and the software isn't trivial, I"m told by some here), I might have figured it out.

But instead I paid $200 for their design services which included having someone to my house for 3 to 4 hours to measure and then put the cabinets descriptions/product numbers in the software database under an account in my name and a day or so later, send me a file that has a list of all the cabinets as well as pictures top down of what my kitchen would be and also sideways (called elevations). It really made it clear what I was getting and what my kitchen would look like.

But... I had done a huge amount of work with information from this site regarding the layout beforehand, many months worth. She wouldn't have helped me that much other than to probably put something in the software that would have been fairly unimaginative if I hadn't had my own sketches.

The person that came to my house was designing straight from the VERY detailed drawings I already had. And even then, when I changed my mind after she left, she was very nice but only then, later did she really contribute anything that was "design worthy". In fairness, it took her 2 -3 hours on the day she was here just to enter my diagrams into the Ikea software. Not much time for creative brainstorming if she had wanted to.

And now after some iterations back and forth in the subsequent days because I had changed my mind about some things (such as where/how the microwave oven was going to be installed), she has come up with a final detailed file that lists all the cabinets and hardware and panels including appliances I want from Ikea (I am purchasing cooktop and one of their ovens as well as cabinets). I will use this list to order from Ikea in time to take advantage of their current 20% off sale.

She hasn't yet sent me a bid from her company to do the actual installation. All I have are a list of materials. She said they are swamped but I am expecting the bid sometime this coming week. The installation bid will be $99 per cabinet plus labor for other stuff. Not sure but if it is going to be what I think it will be, I am hiring them. On the day of the installation, they will open all boxes and document any damage and/or missing parts that were ordered but aren't in the "stack". They will notify Ikea immediately and because they aren't just any old homeowner but are a company who has a business relationship with Ikea, Ikea will deliver as quickly as possible to the jobsite, the missing or damage pieces. Etc. Etc.

Well worth the cost IMO. Of course I am lucky and there is an IKEA in my city. I really don't know how they handle it for those who are several hours away. I'm wondering that for those people, they should get their sketches together and fax to some of the Ikea design websites I've seen on the web. I suspect the process would be similar except for installation. Once you had the boxes of cabinets in your garage, I think you would need to hire some local contractor but I'm just guessing.

I have a couple of links to these Ikea design services online if you are interested. I have no affiliation other than I had thought about using them. The problem I see is how to deal with the common probem (apparently) of when a cabinet is damaged or missing. Probably going to take a lot longer. Also, an independent contractor wouldn't quite have the hours of experience in putting together Ikea cabinets but still definitely within the realm of possibility, especially if that is the only way you're going to be able to have an Ikea kitchen. I got a bid from Ikea just for the cabinets and a bid from Home Depot for Innermost cabinets and Home depot was twice as expensive.

Good luck. (I hope this post is readable. I am a bit tired and am not going to proof read to the extent I should. Let me know if something isn't clear.)

Try ikeafans.com, which is not an actual Ikea site, but a site full of customers. They have lots of great advice about how to use the planner, downloadable assembly instructions, really helpful information.

I did my kitchen using the Ikea design tool, but at that time it only worked on a pc, not a Mac, so it wasn't terribly convenient for me, having to borrow a pc. However, once up and running, it's very effective.

The confusing part of the website is that it shows cabinets with doors already costed in: check in the 'frames' section and each frame will have a drop down menu with the dimensions available. Then price the doors and drawer fronts to go with them. Ikea themselves have a leaflet with all this information but you may need to go to a store to pick it up.

I found the kitchen dept. people in my local store to be very helpful - if they have time to spend with you. I went on a Monday morning, when the place was deserted. Take time off work if necessary. They went through my design and order, and talked me through what was and wasn't included (hinges etc) and what to order in addition. They also showed me that anything not used can be returned for a full refund within 90 days, which I did, having ordered an extra cabinet and various extra fittings 'just in case'.
The ikeafans website is a great resource: many people here at GW used them, so you may find some familiar names there.

When you are on their web site, the boxes are priced with the cheapest door (I think), so to change to a different door or drawer, you click on the cabinet you want and then choose the door style from the drop down menu. There's a feature to add it to your "list."
When you use their online kitchen planner, all you have to do is click on the left bottom link, Your selected Items, and you can print out a list of all items.

It really helps to have some idea what sorts/styles cabinets/drawers you need and, not just the overall room dimensions, but also spaces between fixed elements.

For example, I knew that I wanted a 30" sink base not farmhouse, a corner base cabinet, and a 21" pantry. I also knew that I would not be moving the plumbing and I would have 25" from the wall to the sink base, and 98" from the other side of the sink base to the next wall.

From there I could play with the available cabinets to get a layout. I found the Ikea planner to be very easy to download onto my laptop and moderately easy to use. I didn't have an unusual shape to my kitchen which helped. And yes, as I placed cabinets into the design, they were added automatically to a list that I could print off.

To just price cabinets, you can go to this page:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/kitchen/11471/
from here you can choose from the menu across the top (when you arrive at the page it shows base cabinets by default) to look at base, wall, pantries ("high cabinets") etc. To quickly see all the door styles, click on 'drawers and fronts'.

Say you are on the base cab page, and you want to price a sink base. Scroll down the page until you see "base cb f sink". There are 2 styles to choose from--which are 2 size ranges. Click the one that you want. Be patient, this next page is somewhat slow to load to fully functional.

Now on the right you will see 3 dropdown categories where you can choose the color of the cabinet (only 2 choices here), the style and color of the door (Adel off-white and Ramsjo white are the most shaker- ish styles) and the cabinet size. Again, it can be a little slow. Once you make your choices the page will update to show the price, and you can save it to a list.

Another option is, back at that base cabinet starting page, click on one of the color choices and the page will change to show you every iteration of a base cabinet.

Just be patient and explore the site. It is not the most well-designed site, so it can take time to find everything you might want. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Ikea kitchen cabinets

Ok, thanks guys.
I finally got the planner working on a Mac using bootcamp.
Pretty slow. It seems the same technology as the Lowes kitchen planner app. Lowes is faster fwiw.

Anyway, I didn't realize Ikea was Thermofoil.

Thanks for all the helpful replies.

You should not have to use bootcamp at all. It was the previous version of the planner (about three or four years ago now) that required windows. The current one should be equally unsatisfactory on either platform.

Not all ikea white is thermofoil, only the Adel White. Ramjso is stained wood, stat, lidi and applad are a polyester paint.

"The current one should be equally unsatisfactory on either platform."

LOL.....

Writer's Block, thank you for posting about the Ikea cabinets to educate us: "Not all ikea white is thermofoil, only the Adel White. Ramjso is stained wood, stat, lidi and applad are a polyester paint."

Elphaba, thank you for sharing how you designed your kitchen and your plans. Which cabinet style and color are you using for your new kitchen?

lynn - thanks for asking:

Given no further changes (which will be remarkable given how many versions of my design I've done using Google Sketchup - I think maybe 1000):

1. Most of perimeter of kitchen - base cabinets will be Sofielund light gray, 4 horizontal upper cabinets with Rubrik doors and one std upper cabinet will be Abstrakt High Gloss white

2. Wall of high cabinets - 2 for pantry and 1 for brooms will be high gloss white

3. Island - base cabinets will be high gloss gray with butcher block counter (Ikea design company doesn't do curves so will get counter from a separate contractor)

p.s. I don't use Windows or Mac but Linux/Ubuntu instead so didn't have patience to investigate if Ikea software worked with that. Had enough struggle with Google Sketchup and Ubuntu but works enough for me to get everything entered and modified a jillion times. Made a huge difference in my being able to end up with a design I like. Hopefully will have new kitchen before the end of the year. Crossing fingers.

Wow, elphaba--ubuntu AND sketchup? It makes my head hurt just thinking about it.

Oh, I forgot Abstrakt in my previous post. Yes, abstrakt is a foil finish, but a really yummy one, not what most folks think of when they hear "thermofoil".

In case it hasn't been mentioned, the website doesn't indicate it, but almost all parts can be purchased separately, or in packages of 2 or something. That goes for doors, although drawer stacks are sold as one set of 2, 3 or 4.

Also, if you do the Ikea kitchen planner (and you really should, it'll help a lot), there is a keystroke combo that will "glue" a piece in place where YOU want it, not where the planner insists on putting it. It's a major help and aggravation-avoider. I don't remember, but someone at Ikeafans will tell you what that it is.