Cabinets 101

This guide below will walk you through the basics of cabinetry along with a detailed free quiz to start a relationship with your local cabinet store. We will discuss the construction and style of cabinets, how much cabinets cost, and areas where you can save money without losing the look.

Let us guide your cabinet design below. Take our quiz.

Cabinet Materials

Cabinets are made from wood and wood products. Particle board (or engineered wood) and MDF are used at the lower end, the standard cabinet is made from plywood, and doors can be made from solid wood.

The 8 most popular wood species used in the United States today for are:

  1. Alder: Alder is a softer wood with a fine grain. It's often chosen for its clear, even surface that accepts stains well, making it a good choice for a custom look.

  2. Cherry: Cherry wood is prized for its rich, deep color that darkens with age. It has a smooth grain and is quite durable, making it a luxurious choice for cabinets.

  3. Hickory: Hickory is very strong and has a dramatic grain pattern with natural color variations. It is often used in rustic or farmhouse-style kitchens.

  4. Maple: Maple is favored for its fine, consistent grain and its ability to take a variety of stains and finishes, which makes it versatile for many kitchen styles.

  5. Walnut: Walnut is chosen for its dark, smooth grain and elegance. Though more costly, it adds a luxurious and sophisticated touch to kitchen cabinetry.

  6. White Oak: White Oak is known for its durability and distinctive grain pattern. It has a lighter color compared to Red Oak and is often selected for its resistance to moisture, making it ideal for more modern and minimalistic designs.

  7. Red Oak: Red Oak is appreciated for its strength and prominent grain patterns. It typically has a warmer tone than White Oak and is commonly used in traditional kitchen styles due to its classic appeal and ability to accept a variety of stains.

  8. Poplar: Poplar wood is a cost-effective choice, known for its light color and straight grain. It is especially popular for painted cabinets due to its smooth surface and excellent paint acceptance, ideal for achieving a sleek, modern finish.

Cabinet Construction

The box construction of cabinets are either face framed or frameless. Doors are attached to the box of the cabinet in one of 4 ways:

  1. Standard Overlay: This is the least expensive option and overlays the cabinet by about half an inch and allows you to see some of the frame of the cabinet.

  2. Full Overlay: This is where the doors and drawers are ordered so that they overlay the cabinet to almost cover up the whole frame of the cabinet, giving off a consistent seamless look.

  3. Inset: This is the most expensive option because it requires a high level of precision for the doors and drawers to fit inside of the frame of the cabinet. This also looks the most luxurious.

  4. Frameless: Since frameless cabinets don’t have a frame, the doors are attached directly to the sides of the cabinet box. This provides a more contemporary look with slightly more accessible interior space, but sacrifices on the sturdiness and quality of the overall construction.

Door Styles

The door style is where your style preference starts to show. There are numerous options to choose from depending on how you want your cabinets to look. You can choose from traditional and transitional to modern and contemporary styles.

Below are some of our favorite door styles and when they might be the right choice for your cabinets:

  1. Shaker (Recessed Panel): A very popular and classic choice. A 5 piece door with 4 sides and then a center recessed panel.

  2. Slim Shaker (Recessed Panel): Like the traditional shaker style but with a very slim width for a modern look.

  3. Raised Panel: The center panel is raised and has decorative elements.

  4. Flat / Slab: A flat panel door.

Color: Paint or Stain

The color and finish of the cabinet is determined by if you choose to have your cabinet painted or stained. Stained cabinets continue to show the grain of the wood (like a texture) where as most paints will cover the grain and will be a flat and clean finish.

Paints Color Choices:

  1. White: The classic. Especially for shaker style doors.

  2. Cream / Neutrals: A more modern and trendy color.

  3. Greens / Blues: Colors that work well in most homes.

  4. Black / Charcoal: A bold contrast color for your kitchen.

Stain Choices (remember: different wood species will have different results with stains):

  1. Clear: Let the wood species and grain speak for themselves.

  2. Natural: Bring out the natural wood, but blend the inconsistencies together for a smooth finish

  3. Golden Oak: A nice medium finish

  4. Special Walnut: A slightly darker but still medium finish

  5. Dark Walnut: Our favorite darker brown finish

** IMPORTANT ** Make sure you have a sample with the wood and the stain applied to that wood, otherwise you might be disappointed with the results.

Hardware

Cabinet Hardware is your pulls and knobs for how you access your doors and drawers. These can be very inexpensive to very expensive. The style can change from farmhouse, to modern, to traditional, all the way to ornate. The length or width and feel of the knobs and pulls can enhance or distract from your cabinets.

Options & Accessories

Make your mark on your cabinets with organizational options and accessories. This is where your unique

Below are some of our favorite door styles and when they might be the right choice for your cabinets:

  1. Soft-Close Doors & Drawers: We

  2. Trash Drawers:

  3. Low drawers for kids: Save yourself a chore and teach your kids where their cups and bowls are, all within reach.

  4. Double silverware drawers: Always feel like you are running out of silverware, use a double silverware drawer for twice the storage.

  5. Cooking utensil drawer:

Budget and Pricing

Cabinets are one of the biggest expenses in any renovation, they also have the highest ROI of any home improvement project with an estimated 83% cost recovery. That doesn’t mean that you don’t have options when it comes to price. Working with a local cabinet supplier can help you tremendous in getting a lot of value out of your cabinet investment. Take a look at the three options below to see the difference between a good, better, and best 18” wide base cabinet.

GOOD

An Engineered wood construction, standard overlay door, no soft close hinges, adjustable shelves, white shaker door.

Price: $XXX

BETTER

A poplar painted cabinet, full overlay door, soft close hinges, three drawers, white shaker doors.

Price: $XXX

BEST

A walnut stained cabinet, inset drawers, soft close hinges, three drawers, slim shaker door.

Price: $XXX

Need some help deciding?

Let our expert in-house designers make the decisions a breeze.