Choose the Right Kitchen Cabinets
What are the choices for kitchen cabinet styles, hardware, colours, finishes and more?
Vanessa Brunner
1 October 2017
Houzz Contributor
The right kitchen cabinetry can make or break your kitchen’s functionality and style — not to mention your budget. No pressure, right? Don’t stress yet – Houzz’s kitchen stories can walk you through the layout, material nitty gritty, design options and trends.
Door Styles
Shaker, flat or inset? Your cabinet door style is important – it may be your biggest kitchen expense, after all – but choosing it doesn’t have to be stressful. See which of these popular cabinet doors fit with your home’s style.
Do this first: Houzz Quiz: What Style of Kitchen Should You Have?
Shaker, flat or inset? Your cabinet door style is important – it may be your biggest kitchen expense, after all – but choosing it doesn’t have to be stressful. See which of these popular cabinet doors fit with your home’s style.
Do this first: Houzz Quiz: What Style of Kitchen Should You Have?
Who says cabinets have to be wood? Put your best dishes on display and open up your kitchen to light and space with glass cabinets.
Get the guide: In the Clear: Why See-Through Kitchen Cabinets Make Sense
Get the guide: In the Clear: Why See-Through Kitchen Cabinets Make Sense
Go beyond the standard swinging door in your new kitchen. Flip-up doors, pocket doors and corner drawers can make your cabinets more functional and your life easier.
Get the guide: 8 Cabinet Door and Drawer Types for an Exceptional Kitchen
Get the guide: 8 Cabinet Door and Drawer Types for an Exceptional Kitchen
If you’d rather stick with something more traditional for your cabinets, then the timeless Shaker style is a sure bet. Learn how to make this look work with different counter, hardware and backsplash materials.
Get the guide: 12 Ways to Trod the Traditional-Style Kitchen Look
Get the guide: 12 Ways to Trod the Traditional-Style Kitchen Look
Open shelving feels as much at home in modern kitchens as it does in traditional ones. See how to make this simple, clean storage style work in your home.
Get the guide: 10 Tips When Designing Open Shelving for Your Kitchen
Get the guide: 10 Tips When Designing Open Shelving for Your Kitchen
Using eco-friendly materials isn’t rare anymore – it’s easy to choose kitchen cabinetry that contributes to a healthy home and family, as long as you know what to look for.
Get the guide: Ecofriendly Kitchen: Healthier Kitchen Cabinets
Get the guide: Ecofriendly Kitchen: Healthier Kitchen Cabinets
Can’t decide between two different styles? Mix and match – two different cabinet styles can make an even bigger impact.
Get the guide:
Mix-and-Match Kitchen Cabinetry Sets the Tone
Get the guide:
Mix-and-Match Kitchen Cabinetry Sets the Tone
Hardware Styles
Of course, once you have your cabinets chosen, you have a whole other task ahead of you: choosing hardware. Even if you’ve got simple Shaker cabinets like these, your choice of drawer pulls and knobs makes a big difference in your finished look.
Get the guide: Kitchen Guide: Where to Place Your Cabinetry Hardware
Of course, once you have your cabinets chosen, you have a whole other task ahead of you: choosing hardware. Even if you’ve got simple Shaker cabinets like these, your choice of drawer pulls and knobs makes a big difference in your finished look.
Get the guide: Kitchen Guide: Where to Place Your Cabinetry Hardware
Or you could forego handles and pulls altogether and go for a streamlined handle-free look.
Get the guide: Look Ma, No Hands: Tips to Designing a Handleless Kitchen
Get the guide: Look Ma, No Hands: Tips to Designing a Handleless Kitchen
Colours and Finishes
Colourful kitchen cabinetry has made a big comeback. Try pretty palettes to give your kitchen flair.
Get the guide: Food-Inspired Colours for the Kitchen
Colourful kitchen cabinetry has made a big comeback. Try pretty palettes to give your kitchen flair.
Get the guide: Food-Inspired Colours for the Kitchen
Scared to go too bold? You can still go all-white with cabinets and add pops of colour in other ways.
Get the guide: 10 Bright Ideas for Inserting Colour Into a White Kitchen
Get the guide: 10 Bright Ideas for Inserting Colour Into a White Kitchen
Stains are a great way to get colour on your kitchen cabinetry without covering up the wood’s beauty. From greens to blues to browns, stain colours can really enhance your new kitchen.
Get the guide:
Kitchen Confidential: Painted vs Stained Cabinets
Get the guide:
Kitchen Confidential: Painted vs Stained Cabinets
Sometimes all you want to change are the appliances but how do you pick a finish that goes with your existing appliances?
Get the guide: Which of these 5 Appliance Finishes Goes With Your Kitchen?
Get the guide: Which of these 5 Appliance Finishes Goes With Your Kitchen?
Whether you’re building a new kitchen or updating an existing one, it’s important to keep universal design in mind. Clever accessories will make your kitchen comfortable and accessible for everyone who uses it.
Get the guide:
5 Pantry Solutions for Kitchens
TELL US
What is your dream kitchen? Share in the Comments below.
Get the guide:
5 Pantry Solutions for Kitchens
TELL US
What is your dream kitchen? Share in the Comments below.
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This article had some great information about how to choose cabinetry for any project. As a Pacific Northwest fully custom cabinet shop, I think this article highlights some very important choices to create the desired look and style for cabinets. I would also add, however, the importance of cabinet overlay construction. Whether it is a face frame construction (traditional, full overlay, or flush inset) or a European frameless construction; the construction method goes a long way in setting the tone for your cabinets.
This is some really helpful information for anyone looking to renovate their kitchen. I never thought about how many different aspects there are to think about when it came to kitchen cabinets. Between styles, colors, finishes, pulls and handles, and molding, there is an awful lot that should go into the decision. But organizing your thoughts into simple categories like this is one of the best ways to make sure the final product is one you love. Thanks so much for writing!
http://www.customcabinets.ca/
As I sit and watch yet another cooking show, I look behind the cook and see yet another kitchen in shaker style.
Its the go-to choice for homeowners these day. A classic that will never go out of style and lasts forever. A safe bet, if you will.
Once you jump off the fence and take that leap, you really don't want to choose a style that is trendy -- stick with what you like too.
Shaker style is synonymous with classic goes with most colors and materials. cherry, white, maple, gray, black, distressed, you name it. It always works! We've designed this kitchen to it's area--New England. Over 100 years old, the home already has a rich and classic style, it was a the kitchen they always envisioned and now it's a reality.
The island is ideal and the space handles many cooks. It also has the 'work triangle' that makes it super functional. The lighting placed strategically for prep areas by the 2 'cooks of the house'. Ideal for dinner parties and holiday gatherings too. Guests can simply walk up and socialize with the cook or join in the prep work and have a glass of wine while nibbling on appetizers.
Make your kitchen that 'classic beauty' that you've always dreamed of and the decision to remodel your kitchen will be less daunting. Come on, you've been dreaming all these years, you know you love Shaker! Go for it!