THE STORY OF THE TEARDROP TRAILER - PT. 17

 Back again with another installment of the teardrop trailer story.  The next bit of movement on the trailer was hinging the front trunk and strapping it down.  The first pic shows the trunk after it was attached.  At this point, it had been a couple weeks and the boys hadn't been able to do more work because they had other commitments.

This actually completes the outside of the box and really everything that goes on the outside of the trailer.  There were a few things underneath the trailer that needed to be completed, otherwise you're looking at the finished product aesthetically.  

This is a close up pic of the strap buckle.  The boys made these straps from belts.  It was a rather amazing process watching this trailer being built and seeing how they put in all these amazing touches.

As always, it's important to share a link with anyone who admires our workmanship.  Goodwin Mill & Cabinet is a company on the forefront of craftsmanship.  We're constantly trying to be innovative, fresh, exciting and new.  Through our specialty pieces and custom design work, we're always challenging the accepted methods of cabinet making and trying new things.  This teardrop trailer is just an example of the innovation happening in our shop.  

We want to offer our clients the options they want at a good price.  The best way we know how to do that is to continue to learn new ways to manufacture our product, stay open to new designs and create new products to accommodate our customers needs.  Don't hesitate to visit our site and submit your feedback.  We look forward to hearing from you.  Visit us on the web at Http://www.goodwinmillandcabinet.com

BRAND SPANKING NEW CNC ROUTER

 There are lots of exciting things afoot at Goodwin Mill And Cabinet right now.  Back in June, we ordered a new CNC Router for cutting out our boxes and other stuff.  At one point, we were using a beam saw to do all of our cutting.  That came to an abrupt halt when the saw broke down and we couldn't find anyone who could repair it.  It's a cautionary tale of buying an unrepairable item from a company who will only service it if you fly their repairman in from Europe.  It's just not worth it.

 This router is awesome!  It uses a vacuum system to hold the material in place and it's a precision instrument when you look at the intricate cutting it is capable of doing.  Of course we'll mainly use it to cut boxes, so not many complex lines.  It's still cool you can do more with it if you needed or wanted to.

 This is the computer console that runs the machine.  It's actually more advanced than it looks.  This is where we enter the dimensions of the parts we want the sheet of material cut in to.  It looks like something you'd seen in a Godzilla movie.  But it's much nicer and the keyboard is cool.

 Right now, we've been cutting our boxes out on a regular table saw.  Carson Goodwin is the man responsible for doing all the cutting.  And even though he's got it down to a science, it can still take some time to get all the sides cut out.

 Using this router, we can cut that time down significantly.  And I'm not just talking about minutes and hours here.  With this machine running, Carson can cut an entire kitchen in a half a day.  That's faster than we can assemble them. 

We've been studying some lean manufacturing techniques to try and speed up the assembly process.  If we can, we'll be able to match the speed of our router.  That would put us on track to deliver and install four times faster than before.  With that type of installation speed, we can take on more work and more Southern Utah residents can benefit by having Goodwin cabinets.  Now's the time to contact Goodwin Mill And Cabinet.  Let us transform your life and help you realize your dream of the perfect Kitchen or other space through tasteful, stylish cabinetry!

CLIFFS JOB, BETTER VIEW...

 Another wonderful day at Goodwin Mill And Cabinet.  As much as I love these new pics I have of the Cliffs job, I still hope to get in one more time before the job closes.  This blog entry will show you almost everything we did in the home with the exception of the doors (as they are not all hung yet), and some hardware.  We don't always get the chance to show cabinetry in a home after it's decorated; but it would be wonderful if we could showcase all of our jobs.

 The first few pics are of the Casita again.  Here is the main kitchen area.  You've got the small sink on the base vanity, space for a small fridge and some granite for the counter.  The upper has a space for a microwave.  

Originally, these shelves were open, but they owners added the lower cabinets on them.  I think the previous photos showed the shelving without these base cabinets.  The shelves are built right into the wall and they are finished on both sides with the one exposed front.  This set, if you're looking straight ahead, is on the right hand side directly behind the entry door.  The next photo shows the left hand side.  This one sits beside a rather large window and gets lots of natural light.  Because of this, getting a descent shot is kind of hard.  But   I think I got one here.  The window is partly showing and that gives you an idea how big it is on that wall.  It's a nice design.

 This photo is the vanity in the Casita bathroom.  I really love the finished shelf section with the rounded top.  It's not a big unit, but the finished shelving flows into the main room and gives the vanity a unique look.

 This is the specialty door we made specifically for this home.  I've got a contest running to name it right now.  So far, I've got about 6 entries.  6 suggestions for name.  We need to get more in order for this to work.  Please feel free to text me if you have a name suggest.  Remember, you can win a Subway gift card.

 This is the vanity in the guest bathroom in the main house.  Like the Casita bathroom, it has a section of open finished shelves.  The sink is an under-mount and already installed to the granite counter.  They still need to install the faucets.

 This is a head-on view of the vanity.  I think this view with the lighting really shows off the color of the stain.  It looks incredible.  Especially with the softer colors in the tile, counters and wall paint.  The cabinets really pop!

 This job has another couple of features I want to point out and this one is in the master bedroom.  We have two cabinets built into the wall.  Both are smaller units.  I think they are storage space for movies or DVD/Blu-ray player.  They're both simple shelf units.  I've got a photo of the other one.  I'll show it when we get to the Great Room.

 Now here's the master bath.  I took this shot from the tub, (which had not yet been installed).  I climbed in the opening so I could get a wide angle.  I also grabbed pics of the cabinets in sections.  

 This is the first section and as you can see, it has the sink vanity and then a drawer bank.  There is a smaller cabinet attached to the desk.  I'm not sure how the mirrors and lights are laid out, but I'm sure it's going to look amazing.

 Here's the second section. Like the first section, there's the sink vanity and a drawer bank.  The tile on the floor here is much darker.  I think it makes the cabinet color look richer.

 This unique piece is the vanity in the powder room. See the small hole in the middle of the granite counter?  This will be a sink that sits on top of the counter.  They are very cool.  The Brown house in Sky Ranch had one.

 This is the second wall unit.  It's located right next to the fireplace in the great room.  We also did the mantle above the fireplace. I'm not sure what the material is on the door, but it looks cool.

 And here's the Kitchen.  This is an outside shot of the barback.  This is a more complete view of this section of the lower bank.  There will probably be stools or chairs running along here.

 This is the full West wall of the Kitchen.  From left to right you have the glass door uppers, the stove top and range hood, counter space and a place for a microwave and finally a cabinet that will hold the oven.

 The island is a bold space of color in the Kitchen.  It's colored Green Grasses and  also has an under-mount sink.  The shape is another thing to mention because the island was designed to match a pattern in the ceiling.

 This is the East wall of the Kitchen.  From left to right, you have a pantry cabinet.  It's a full length shelf unit.  Then you have the space for the fridge with a small upper.  And finally, a row of glass door uppers and a row of base shelf units. 

 As you come around the corner on the East wall, you have this section.  There's some shelf units up and down with a space for a dishwasher.  That full length pantry cabinet is attached to the one right around the corner.

 Now we're in the laundry room.  This space was large enough to have cabinets on both sides.  This is the West wall.  From left to right, small upper, then two double door shelf uppers.  There's a desk/folding shelf.

 The desk section runs almost the entire length of the wall.  Both the uppers and the desk end with a full length piece.  It's a broom closet.  There are shelves in the upper section, but the lower area is reserved for brooms, mops and vacuums.

 This is the East wall.  From left to right you have a uppers working all the way across.  They are all shelf units.  The base cabinet in the corner is a small vanity and then you have the space for the washer and dryer.

 As you can see, there's another small base vanity.  Directly above it is a small upper with a closet rod mounted.  This is for hanging clothes once they come out of the dryer.

 This pic shows the middle section of the uppers.  These are the cabinets that will sit above the washer and dryer.  I wanted to draw your attention to the crown molding.  We're building the molding prior to installation.  The entire crown for this side of the room is a single piece we now shoot directly in place on the job.  It looks phenomenal and it's helped us save time during installation.  

The final pic shows one of the doors.  I took this one because we didn't have very many doors installed and I wanted to show at least one of the regular doors.  The other one I have posted is the front door and it's a specialty door.

So there you have it.  Newer, more exciting pics of our time at the Cliffs.  As always you can learn more information about our company by going to Goodwin Mill And Cabinet website.  You can also pop into facebook and check us out there.  Facebook is where you can enter to win the Subway gift card.  Just look at the pattern and suggest a name.

MAKING A DOOR

 Have you ever wondered how your cabinets are made?  Well, I thought I'd use this entry to show you the process we use at Goodwin Mill And Cabinet to build the doors and drawer fronts for your cabinets.  They're the most difficult part of the cabinet process and the most time consuming.  It all starts with raw lumber boards like the ones in this photo.  It's hard to believe something like that can become a beautiful door.  The first step in the process is milling the material.

 The boards are run through this saw with a laser guide.  Each board is cut on one side giving it a straight edge.  The board is then flipped and the straight edge is run through against a guard to give you a board that has parallel sides.  What happens next depends on what the wood is going to become.  

This diagram shows the parts of a door.  The panel is the center piece and it's framed by the stiles and the rails.  The stiles are usually longer and the grain of the wood runs the same direction as the panel.  The rails are grooved to hold the panel and the stiles.  They are often shorter and the wood grain runs opposite direction of the panel.

 If the boards are going to be stiles or rails, they are put through a plainer to reach the desired thickness.  In this pic you can see some pieces that will be cut down into stiles or rails going through the plainer.  As the pieces go through, the edges are smoothed down and evened out.

 If the wood is going to be a panel, they are cut down to a rough size of the intended door and glued together.  Here is a panel just glued together in our big clamp.  After the glued boards dry, they are taken out and run through the plainer like the stiles and rail pieces.  They are also cut down to their exact panel size.

 The next step in the process is cutting the tongue and groove joints into the panels, stiles and rails.  This process is also one of the ways the design of the door is created.  In this pic, the panel is be edged.  So far, two of the four sides has been cut.  This particular panel style is known as a "pillowtop".

 Here's a closer view of the edge.  See how the wood on the panel pillows up from the edge?  Part of that edge will be seen once the door is put together, but most of it will be hidden by the stile and rail.

 This machine is like the panel edger.  It helps create the style of the door and also cuts the groove the panel fits into.  First the boards are cut to length and then put through this edger.

 In this pic, you can see a close up of the stile.  It has a groove for that "pillowtop" panel.  It also has a simple design along the edge going into the edge of the door.  The side will also be routed to give a similar edge for the outside of the door.

 Now, the panels and the stiles/rails are put together.  We use wood glue to hold the pieces together, but we also use a nail gun once the door is assembled.  In this pic, you can see this door has the stiles on the panels.  The lower rail is also on, but you can't see it.  All that's left for this door to be complete is the top rail.  In the next pic, the top rail is being attached.  The groove is glued and then the piece is pushed into place by hand as much as possible.  Sometimes you have to use a rubber mallet to get the tongue and groove together tightly.  This door went together rather easily and no mallet was needed.

 Once the door is together, it's clamped in order to let the glue dry and to help the door keep its shape.  While in the clamp, we use a nail gun along the joints to secure the stiles to the rails.

 Even though the wood has been through a plainer, it can still be rough.  There can be patches that have some glue exposure where the panel was glued together.  The next step is the big band sander.  We run the doors through until they reach the desired thickness.  At this point, there's no more give in the thickness of the piece.  Any additional work must occur superficially to refine the parts without compromising the width.

 The doors are then sanded by hand.  We use air sanders and electric vibrating sanders to finish the sanding.  These tools create a smooth to the touch surface all over the door.  They also give the wood a shine of sorts.

 And now the doors are ready for finish work.  This is the part of the process that is really exciting.  You get to watch the door change right before your eyes.  In this pic, stain is being applied to the wood using a sponge.  The sponge lets you get stain into every nook and cranny of the door.  Rags are used afterward to remove the excess stain and leave the wood looking like the color you've just applied.

 The stained doors are then taken into a spray room where they are sealed and sprayed with a protective coat.  This process gives the doors their glossy look and makes them feel slick to the touch.  Here we see two drawer fronts being sprayed with sealer.  After the final coat has been sprayed on, the doors must sit until they dry.

 Now the door is ready to be put on the cabinet.  The assembly crew uses a machine like the one you see pictured here to bore into the door and put a hinge in place. 

 Once that hinge is on, you can go ahead and attach the door to the cabinet.  We use adjustable hinges on our doors.  These hinges allow us to shift the door once the cabinet is installed.  Usually, when we measure an area for cabinets, the walls aren't finished.  Everything from drywall to texture can change the way a cabinet sits in the space it was built for.  As we anchor the cabinet in place, the doors can sometimes shift out of alignment.  That's where the adjustable hinges come into play.  We can use them to put the doors even again.

The end result is something like this piece.  A glossy, beautiful cabinet that looks incredible almost entirely because of the detail in the doors and drawer fronts.  Yeah, the process can take some time and as you can see, there's a lot of work that goes into making your custom cabinetry...  But at Goodwin Mill And Cabinet, we think you want something special in your home.  After all, it can be your greatest investment.  

Although they are used everyday and become something we take for granted, cabinetry can define the beauty of a space in a way unlike anything else.  Exceptional cabinetry can also bring value to your home.  Goodwin Mill And Cabinet is a company who puts in the work to create amazing custom cabinetry.  You can see how much we do to bring your dream kitchen to life.  Call today to set up your appointment with a design specialist and get the door process started for your doors today.  We're ready to order the lumber!