Kitchen Cabinets
New cabinets can enhance your kitchen’s appearance, add value to your home and improve how your kitchen functions. Selecting your cabinets may seem intimidating at first, given the large number of styles, types, materials and accessories to choose from. This buying guide will help you understand the many factors to consider so you can feel confident you’re selecting the kitchen cabinets that best meet your individual style and storage needs.
First Steps
Explore cabinet style and become familiar with the different types and designs available.
Measure your kitchen and draw up a floor plan so you’ll have an idea of the types of cabinets you’ll need, how many and their approximate dimensions.
Set a budget.
Review your floor plan and budget with a Cabinet maker or Designer who can help you find the perfect cabinets to fit your kitchen, lifestyle and budget.
Your Cabinets at a Glance
Type of Cabinets
Stock – These cabinets offer economical pricing, a wide range of standard sizes, styles and finishes and are often available the same day or within a few days of purchase.
Semi-Custom – These cabinets offer more flexible options for storage, design and style as well as a wider selection of wood and finish choices. They usually require a longer lead time for delivery and are priced in the mid-range.
Custom – These cabinets are constructed by hand to fit your kitchen to your specifications. Custom cabinets make use of all available space and are an ideal solution when non-standard sizes are needed to fit irregular-shaped spaces. Delivery time can take up to nine or more weeks and is most expensive of the three options.
Construction
Framed cabinets, have a frame on the front of the cabinet that makes the box highly stable and helps keep it square. Door hinges attach to the frame.
Frameless cabinets, have no frame around the face of the cabinet box. Thicker side panels lend stability, and drawers and hinges attach directly to the cabinet’s side walls.
Materials
Particleboard – This material is made of wood chips or shavings bonded together with resin and compressed into rigid sheets. An economical alternative to solid wood.
Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) – An engineered wood made from fine wood particles and glue formed into sheets, MDF is often used as a backing material for laminates and other finishes.
Plywood – This engineered wood is composed of layers of veneers stacked and glued together with alternate layers oriented at right angles, providing strength in its length and width.
Wood veneers – thin layers of wood sliced from trees that are adhered to plywood or particleboard and treated with a variety of stains, varnishes and other finishes.
Thermofoil – a flexible vinyl applied to engineered wood to cover cabinet boxes, doors and drawers. It has a smooth to slightly textured easy-care surface that resists chipping better than paint.
Laminates – thin, layered plastic coatings fused to the cabinet material with heat and pressure. They offer a wide range of options for colors, patterns and textures.
Melamine – Similar to laminate and made of a durable plastic applied to cabinet frames, shelves and drawers with heat, pressure and adhesive.
In addition to synthetic laminates and wood veneers, stainless steel and enameled metals are popular choices for cabinets in kitchens with contemporary designs.
Features to Look For
Box – Solid frames constructed of solid wood or furniture-grade plywood offer the highest quality. The box should have a solid back.
Drawers – High-quality drawers have solid wood sides, dovetail joints and plywood or hardwood bottoms set in grooves on all four sides.
Drawer hardware – Drawers that extend to three-quarters or full extension offer easy access to the back of the drawer. Soft-close features keep drawers from slamming shut.
Doors – High-quality doors have a solid wood frame surrounding a solid wood or plywood panel.
Cabinet Types
Base Cabinets rest on the floor and support a countertop. They are typically between 34-1/2”-36” tall and 24”-30” deep and consist of one drawer with doors and shelves below, or three to four stacked drawers. Specialized versions of base cabinets include sink and corner bases.
Wall Cabinets hang on the wall and are 12”-18” deep. Standard heights are 12”, 15”, 18”, 30”, 36” and 42”. Wall cabinets can be installed with or without a wall soffit. They’re typically installed 18” above countertops.
Tall Cabinets are ideal for narrow spaces too small for a cabinet and a counter. They are a popular choice for pantries and provide plenty of convenient space for dry goods, brooms and mops.
Door Styles
Standard overlays, also known as traditional overlays, leave the face of the cabinet box visible around doors and drawers, creating a type of “frame”. Most common type in cabinets and used in traditional design installations.
Full overlays have the cabinet doors mounted so they completely cover the cabinet box with virtually no cabinet frame showing around doors and drawer fronts. Often used in more contemporary design installations.
Inset – The door rests within the frame and is flush with the cabinet box. It is opened using a knob or handle.
Lipped – The door has a groove, called a rabbet, cut completely around the back edge of the door’s perimeter, leaving a lip on the front side.
Wood Types
Each species of wood varies widely in how it absorbs stains and glazes, providing a wide range of options for individual colors and finishes. Most popular choices are Cherry, Maple, Oak, Hickory, Birch and Pine.
Door Design
Slab – Offers a flat, clean canvas for hardware with a streamlined and minimalistic style ideal for contemporary designs.
Recessed Panel – Similar to slab with a minimal style that adds depth and interest. Versatile enough to go with country or modern designs.
Raised Panel – A classic style that blends well with formal classic, traditional looks.
Cape Cod – Reminiscent of bead-board and ideal for a cottage look with a casual, timeless style that blends well with informal kitchens.
Arch – Adds sweeping elegance to most kitchens. Styles include a raised panel topped with an “eyebrow” arch or a “cathedral” arch.
Door designs can be further enhanced by replacing wood panels with decorative glass, turning storage into displays, especially when paired with in-cabinet lighting.
Finishes
Wood Tone – Finishes range from natural to dark, bringing out the natural beauty of wood species by showcasing their individual characteristics.
Color Casts – Adds vivid punch to kitchens with varying shades that include reds, yellows, blues and greens. Casts are typically opaque rather than translucent.
Glazed Finishes – Adds richness, texture and warmth to cabinets, creating soft highlights in corners and recesses.
Heirlooming – Emulates natural wear with selective sanding that exposes underlying layers.
Distressing – Achieves the rustic look of a gently-aged antique with imperfections that emulate dents,
wormholes and chisel marks.
Hardware
Drawer pulls, knobs and hinges are like jewelry for your cabinets—they unify your cabinets’ appearance and define your kitchen’s personality. Complement your cabinet’s architectural style with hardware made of metal, ceramic, crystal and even plastic.
Finishing Touches
Mouldings – Enhance the look of cabinets that run to the ceiling by adding crown mouldings or stamped trim.
Corbels – visual size and weight lend character to cabinets, particularly for shelving in open areas or
countertop overhangs.
Onlays – Add a touch of elegance and an eye-catching focal point to your cabinets.
Columns – Add a stately elegance and handcrafted look to cabinets.
Fillers and Blocks – Fillers “Fill in” cabinet gaps. Decorative blocks and ornaments provide a finished look with classic designs like grapes, pyramids and rosettes.
Feet – Enhance and decorate toe kicks with carved feet that give your cabinets the appearance of handcrafted furniture.
Accessories & Add-Ons
Pull-Out Shelves – Offer the convenience of quick access to everything on the shelf.
Two-tiered Cutlery/Flatware Dividers – Store nearly twice as many utensils and flatware.
Lazy Susans – Make items in corner cabinets accessible with one- and two-tiered spinning shelves.
Pegged Plate Organizers – Slides out for easy access to plates with adjustable pegs for flexible storage.
Countertops
Factors to Consider – Budget, Maintenance & Lifestyle
Materials – Granite, Quartz, Solid Surface, Laminate, Wood, Stainless Steel & Copper
Other Considerations – Corners, Edges & Inlays, Sinks & Faucets, Custom Shape
