Cabinet Doors – Today’s Best Look And Fit
In January, we wrote about the surge in Shaker style cabinets.
Defined as a full overlay or euro-style doors, they’re easy to personalize with a multitude of hardware options yet fit the trend towards simplicity and functionality. But let’s not forget there’re other options. Here we discuss the three major cabinet door mountings with some pros and cons of each.
Cabinet Door Lingo
As far back as the early 1900s, Inset Cabinet Doors were built into most kitchens. Held in place by hinges mounted on (or just inside the cabinet face frame), the door and drawer are on the same plane as the leading edge of the cabinet box. Usually, the hinges are visible when the door is shut.
This style reduces cabinet space inside, and smaller drawers and hardware require extra blocking in the box. Price wise, it costs more than the others. However, this simple, traditional look is over 100 years old. Hardly a fad, Inset Cabinet doors aren’t going away anytime soon.
Modernizing the inset door created Partial Overlay Cabinet Doors. Just as the name suggests, they partially cover the finished face frame. The ability to install more functional hardware allows a little more room for storage space over Inset Cabinet Doors.
The problem is with the overall look. The space between doors and drawers gives the appearance of dotting, rather than defining the entire surface - diminishing their popularity.
Full Overlay or Euro-style Doors are the latest and again, the name defines the style. Doors and drawers completely cover the box surface leaving very small gaps between. They create a consistent, continuous appearance with hinges that allow doors to open without hitting adjacent doors and drawers. By allowing the fullest possible access to the box, they also offer the most storage space of all three.
The only downside is the close proximity of doors and drawers. It’s important to use knowledgeable installers to mount them precisely to prevent collision of doors and drawers, particularly in corners and where knobs and pulls are in place.
What’s Hot Now
With the current trend toward clean, simple and functional, both Inset and Full Overlay doors work. However, Inset doors tend to be less popular due to less storage space and cost. No matter what style you desire, Cornerstone Cabinet Company is your source for quality personal design in cabinetry.