Kitchen Cabinet Ideas
Kitchen Cabinet Design Ideas
Cabinets are the backbones of kitchens. They play a very crucial role in the overall look of the space and serve as the design canvas of the room. When you are renovating your kitchen, cabinets are the single biggest investment you’ll make.
A disorganized and cluttered kitchen might be a nightmare. Besides the visual beauty, kitchen cabinets also provide storage spaces and bring everything together. From open shelves to drawer inserts, there is plenty of ways to organize cabinetry that can turn the cluttered kitchen into a functional workspace. Here are some design tips and tricks for how to work with the cabinets.
1. Kitchen Cabinet Styles
Whether your choice is a sleek modern look or a more traditional one, functional tips aside, cabinets will make a big impact on your kitchen. They help you to spice up your kitchen and define the overall design and it is important to choose the right cabinet style for your design. From shaker to flat-panel, glass-front to louvered there’s a cabinet style to suit any design. Scroll down and find more detail about the cabinet styles.
2. Kitchen Cabinets Price-Cost
You might think why cabinet prices vary so widely but there are so many things that affect the final cost of kitchen cabinetry. It depends on the materials, quality, construction, modification options, and even where you live.
Due to the wide-ranging differences in materials and quality, the kitchen cabinet costs from $160 to $1,200 per linear foot. For an average cost of stock kitchen cabinets, homeowners spending between $3,200 to $8,500 for installation and materials. For high-end custom cabinetry, this price goes up more to $12,500 to $24.000.
3. Kitchen Cabinet Styles
Shaker, flat-panel, glass-fronted, and more. When it comes to choosing a cabinet style, you might get a little bit confused. So, which cabinets are right for your home? Here are the most popular six cabinet styles you need to consider before you decide.
Shaker Style
Shaker-style cabinets are the most popular design trend of cabinet doors, thanks to their sleek and elegant look. Shaker cabinets are characterized by five pieces of wood; four pieces as a frame and a recessed panel in the middle. This minimalistic yet elegant style offers a classic and simple look that never goes out of style.
Also, shaker cabinets work with any style of kitchen. You can add a concrete countertop to create a more industrial look or reclaimed wood textures to achieve a rustic atmosphere. Whether your style is modern or traditional, rustic or farmhouse, shaker cabinets will always provide a charming look for your kitchen.
Flat Panel
Flat-panel doors also called slab doors, looks exactly how it sounds. They consist of a single, smooth piece of wood, plywood, or MDF. This basic and simple look provides to creates a clean and fresh aesthetic in kitchens. Because they have a minimal aesthetic, they are generally used in modern and contemporary style kitchens.
From glossy white to matte black, colored lacquer to natural wood, flat-panel cabinets come in a wide range of finishes and colors. Also, flat-panel doors look stunning both with or without hardware. You can get more creative on hardware or go with handless cabinets to create a sleek backdrop for the kitchen. Another big advantage of this style is they are easier to clean or refinish than one with a flat front. Compared to the other cabinets that have trim work, this one takes less time and materials to build, so, they are less expensive than others.
Glass Front
Glass-front cabinets always seem a little more special and customized. They are a great way to display beautiful dishware or glass collection but a more protective way than the open shelves. Also, they provide a more airy and open feeling rather than the other styles.
For a more impactful look, you can add some design elements like beadboards or backlit lights into the cabinets. Yes, the glass-fronted cabinets look beautiful but you need to keep always them neat and tidy. But if you don’t want to think and still want to incorporate glass, you can choose frosted glass, for some opacity. Another disadvantage of these cabinets is they are more expensive than the others but if it is fit for your budget, you can create a unique and eye-catching overall look for your kitchen!
Beadboard
This classic and timeless style is the best choice to enhance the farmhouse of cottage vibe. Beadboard cabinets consist of vertical slats that are fitted into each other which look like a pinstripe pattern. Although beadboards have detailed and textured surfaces, they provide a sleek and minimal look.
Beadboard panels are generally used on wainscoting in traditional houses, but they look perfect also as a kitchen cabinet. Beadboards are mainly applied on cabinet doors but also you can add them into the glass-fronted cabinets
Open Shelving
Open shelf is an overall leaning towards simplicity. It can look insanely chic and contained if done right. Open kitchen shelving gives you plenty of storage space even while turning it into a chic and elegant display without trying too hard.
Open shelves offer an open and airy look between the cabinets. The shelf material can be reclaimed or rough-cut wood, glass, wood boards, or a modern and smooth surface. Whether you place shelves between the cabinets or line up only shelves, they are a beautiful way to display your kitchenware or glass collection. Also, you can pop up the shelves with different backsplash materials, eye-catching appliances even recipe books.
Raised Panel
Raised panel cabinets are one of the more formal designs, generally used in traditional kitchens. Recessed panel doors have a raised center panel and an overlay which is generally grooved and sometimes have a decorative edge on the interior and exterior. With their beautiful and detailed look, these cabinets elevate the sophistication in kitchens.
The raised-panel doors bring dimension and depth to the cabinets. Different from the shaker cabinet doors, raised panel doors have a central panel that is slightly higher than the outer frame. Because these cabinets have a more detailed and formal appearance, shaker styles can fit into more modern kitchens, while raised panel ones are the more suitable choice for traditional kitchens.
4. Kitchen Cabinet Materials
When you are designing your kitchen, the cabinets will be among the most prominent features. So, if you want both stylish and durable cabinets, it is important to choose the cabinet surfacing wisely. From budget to high-end, there are plenty of options available.
Solid Wood
Wood is the most common material used on kitchen cabinets. Thanks to its diverse range of grains, colors, and textures, the solid wood cabinets offer distinctive appeal to kitchens. Whether you are creating a contemporary or traditional, modern or rustic, solid wood cabinets provide flexibility for your kitchen style. You can varnish the surface or paint it according to your taste and style.
Besides their visual beauty, solid wood cabinets are extremely durable and will take on repeatedly stress very well. However, you need to buy the right wood otherwise it can break your design.
Wood Veneers
Wood veneers are a slice of solid wood. They are super thin and usually glued and pressed to particleboard or fiberboard, creating flat panels. These sheets are then polished and stained to achieve a desired color and texture.
Thanks to their beautiful textures and natural grain patterns, wood veneers look like real wood and create a rich and unique appearance for kitchens. Compare to wood, veneers are more economical materials and unlike the laminate cabinets, these are made from a renewable resource and they are sustainable. Also, veneered cabinets allow for beautiful finishes like high gloss, matte and semi-gloss.
Laminate
Laminates are one of the most popular choices for kitchens because they are extremely durable and waterproof for water spills. That is why they are the perfect candidates for cabinet surfaces. Laminates are thin sheets sandwiched together under high pressure.
The laminate cabinets provide flexibility in color, design, and styling and come in a wide range of colors and finishes which allows you to work with different styles. As the wood cabinets, laminate ones can be purchased prefabricated, semi-custom, or custom which depending on your budget. After its durability, one of the biggest advantages of laminate cabinets is easy maintenance. You can easily clean them with a swab.
Aluminum & Stainless Steel
A bit industrial, a bit luxe, totally sleek! The stainless-steel and aluminum kitchen cabinets celebrate form and function. Besides their visual beauty metal cabinets are very strong and durable and are unaffected by heat and humidity.
You might think metal cabinets are suitable for commercial kitchens, but there’s another side to it. The unique look of this shiny material offers a stand-out appearance. Also, metal cabinets are not just about industrial style. You can adapt many metal options to your style. You can easily reach the kitchen style you want to achieve with different types of materials such as wood and glass. Besides all these pros, stainless steel or aluminum cabinets are more expensive than other materials.
5. Kitchen Cabinet Colors
Kitchen cabinetry can set the aesthetic tone of an entire kitchen and when it comes to cabinetry the colors play a huge role. The color choice can make or break your kitchen easily. You may be lost in a lot of color options, but this choice will determine the overall look of your kitchen. Here are the best and popular kitchen cabinet colors to get inspiration.
White Cabinets
When it comes to crafting a timeless, modern design scheme, you can never go wrong with white color, especially on cabinetry. Whether you go with modern cabinets with clean lines or a more traditional look with shaker cabinets, white kitchen cabinets are the perfect option for creating a timeless look in a bright and spacious atmosphere.
If you want to add personality to your white cabinets, using wood or strong color flashes such as sophisticated blacks, warm grays will add vitality to the look. Since white cabinets can complement many materials, you can combine them also with shiny hardware, bold lighting fixtures, or eye-catching backsplash tile to create a more impactful look.
Black Cabinets
Usually, black isn’t the first color that comes to mind when designing a kitchen. But the new decade brings with a new trend: black kitchen cabinets. So, what about going out of your safe white kitchen zone and create a bold and elegant overall kitchen look?
Black is the subtle shade of elegance and sophistication. Whether you’ve got your mindset on a full black kitchen design or mixed-up black with other neutral colors and natural materials, black is one of the best colors that elevate kitchen cabinets. Another good side of this color is it can work well with different styled kitchens. From modern to traditional, contemporary to transitional, you can incorporate black cabinets into your kitchen. If you are planning your kitchen and need some ideas, you can check out our black kitchen cabinets gallery to find more inspiration.
Blue Cabinets
We know that blue suits perfectly for bathrooms, nurseries, and bedrooms but what about kitchens? The answer is definitely yes! The blue color triggers feelings of calmness, relaxation, and tranquility. That is why blue cabinets getting more popular among the kitchen colors.
Aside from these, with its wide range of shades, the color blue gives an eye-catching appearance and brings personality to the kitchen cabinets. You can go with bold navy-blue cabinets to create a sophisticated look or use more soft shades like pastel blue to provide a brighter and more fresh atmosphere. Whether you choose navy or royal, azure or aqua, they offer the flexibility to deliver plenty of personalities. When we think of the blue, the beach or coastal style comes to our minds first. But it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use it in different styles. Traditional, modern, farmhouse, and more, blue cabinets can work well with different styles.
Gray Cabinets
Gray color provides a perfect balance between warmth and neutrality. Appearing on furniture and decor, this neutral color is a popular choice for kitchen cabinetry. Whatever their styles, gray cabinets lend a sophisticated air to a kitchen. Also, thanks to the variety of shades, gray can be used both in small or large kitchens.
Gray will pair with just about anything, making it the perfect shade to add to any kitchen that looks needs a touch of cool. With a variety of different tones, gray kitchen cabinets can skew either warm or cold, making it easy to pair with a variety of backsplash designs, countertop materials, and appliance finishes. Whether you are working on a modern kitchen or a more classic traditional one, gray works with nearly all kitchen styles and cabinet designs.
Red Cabinets
If you are bored of classic black, gray, and white colors, it is time to give these red kitchen cabinets a try. From cherry red to rustic crimson, moody merlot to bright ruby, there are plenty of red shades that make a strong case for switching to the bold hue.
We love the neutral color schemes as much as everyone but something is charming about the vibrant colors especially the red. Red is an exciting and powerful color and incorporating this color on cabinetry brings vibrant energy into the kitchens. Whether you have a sleek contemporary kitchen or cozy farmhouse-inspired design, red kitchen cabinets work with a wide variety of styles and designs.
Green Cabinets
Crisps whites, sophisticated blacks calm blues but what about incorporating the green color into your cabinets. We know green may seem an unusual color for cabinets but if you want to be a little adventurous, green cabinets might be your solution.
The idea of reconnecting with nature becoming popular today and using green on furniture is the best way to catch up with this trend. From light mint to bold forest green, or warm olive to pastel green, this color has a wide range of shades that can suit your kitchen whatever the style is. Also, if you consider using green cabinets, they work well with all the wooden shelves, brass accents, and marble countertops.