Photo by Sage E. Imagery I’d like to think I’m an opportunist. But sometimes when an opportunity presents itself, I feel like a deer in headlights- just staring at the good thing until it runs me over. Thankfully, in the spring of 2021, when a golden opportunity showed up in my inbox, I only hesitated briefly. I got an Instagram message from an influencer in Minneapolis (I’ve followed for a long time) asking if we’d like to collaborate on a project for her dining room. First I froze. Then the action I took was to screen-shot the message and send it to everyone I know (duh). I kind of wondered ..read more

Two of the most exciting phases of a project— the beginning and the end— are happening here at the shop. We’re nearing completion on a master bath and a kitchen, while starting on two new kitchens. The excitement of starting fuels us as we steadily plod toward the glorious finish: a happy homeowner and the satisfaction of a job well done. It’s really fun working with clients who have unique vision, presenting challenges and pushing our boarders. The process is not only a creative endeavor, but one of mathematics and engineering, drawing out the talent and skill of each person on our team. Min ..read more

The office discussion today- where did the term/style Shaker come from in reference to furniture? Megan suggested it originated with the Christian religious group, Quakers. SHE WAS THISCLOSE. It was in fact a group that broke away from the Quakers to form a more charismatic sect, known as the Shaking Quakers. I digress. What is Shaker furniture? A snippet from our friends at Wikipedia: Shaker furniture is a distinctive style of furniture developed by the… Shakers, a religious sect that had guiding principles of simplicity, utility and honesty. Their beliefs were reflected in the well-made fur ..read more

So much has happened since the last blog update!...considering it's been an entire year, that's not super surprising I guess. The children are growing. The guys at TC are busy bees working away on two kitchens right now, along with a couple smaller projects. But the biggest news right now- we're hiring!  The expansion of Traditional Cabinetry is exciting, as it holds great promise.  Andrew and I spend hours talking about the possibilities for growth and direction, often the ideas are outrageous in themselves, but when reigned in and honed, the opportunities for creative develop ..read more

The kitchen is the heart of the home, a place for entertaining, making memories, and cooking meals for you and your loved ones. As one of the most used rooms in a home, the kitchen plays a crucial role in day-to-day life – from the first cup of coffee in the morning to creating a dish that brings everyone together at the end of the day. It’s no wonder why a modernized kitchen is a must-have for homeowners. No matter where you live, perhaps Minneapolis, MN or Brainerd, MN remodeling a kitchen will not only improve lifestyle and convenience for current homeowners, it will also ad ..read more

As I shared last January, we Toftnesses named 2020 the year to do hard things (…oops). And that declaration was invoked more often than I could’ve imagined. Between Shepherd and the pandemic, 2020 changed the trajectory of our family. Recap of Jan-Mar ‘20: the kids started public school after being homeschooled their whole lives. It was beautiful. Then roughly 2 months after they started, everyone was sent home. Once home we had a couple weeks of rogue learning in which Moe Willems made (temporary and abstract) artists out of every one of us- including Andrew! After 2 weeks of official Distan ..read more

Hi it’s Liz, the newest member of the Traditional Cabinetry team. I’m not new to the company— you may know me as the wife of Andrew, the guy who started TC with a dream and a hope 13 years ago— but I have a new role in it. After being at home/home schooling as long as Andrew has been spinning saws here, I’ve handed over my children’s education to the professionals at our local public schools. We had our first baby, Oliver, the same month and year that Traditional Cabinetry was established. We have 4 children (Oliver, Georgianna, Margot, Winston), with a 5th coming in April. It seemed like a su ..read more

It's me, Liz, wife of Andrew the cabinet maker.  I've been assigned the title Head Blogger...which is why the 'blog' icon on traditional-cabinetry.com has brought you nowhere for the past year of its existence.   When I'm not writing (ha!), I'm managing a household made up of a husband, 4 kids, and a dog named Hector.  I love to encourage creativity through example and brain storming.    Let's start with the role each member of the family plays in the workings of TC, then next time we'll move on to the actual interesting stuff, such as employees and their fine craftsma ..read more