Design Education: CABINETS
Today we’re breaking down types of cabinets by how they’re made, as well as budget and my personal preferences. So lets get started!
There are three main types of cabinetry based on how they're made. Let’s break them down.
Partial Overlay is when part of the cabinet door sits on top the cabinet face frame. Some portion of the frame is visible in any time of partial overlay. We also refer to this as a standard overlay, but there are different types which are differentiated by how much is showing of the frame.
This is the standard cabinet you see around. It’s cheapest to make and usually what is done by homebuilders, etc. It’s the cheapest because there’s more room for error than the other two types.
The next type is a full overlay. With this type it sits on top of the cabinet frame completely, so there is no reveal. This is middle of the road I’d say. It’s not the standard, but not as expensive as the last option. To me it is the next best option to inset cabinets if that’s not in your budget.
Inset cabinets are when the cabinet door is flush against the cabinet face frame, it’s seamless and the entire frame is exposed. This is by far my favorite option, however it is also the most expensive. It leaves no room for error whatsoever, making it more tedious to produce. It’s typically done in higher-end projects. It’s almost my favorite because it’s typical of what you see in old homes and antiques. I think it has more character and looks richer than overlay cabinets of any kind.
Other things that are going to affect the price of your cabinets are whether they are stain-grade or paint grade. Paint grade is typically MDF and not solid wood, making it cheaper, but also the standard. You probably don’t even realize most of the cabinet you see are mdf. In order to be able to stain cabinets or anything for that matter you need to use wood with particular grains and colors like walnut, oak, etc. The price will vary based on what type of wood you use to get your desired look but it will always be more than paint-grade wood.
The other major factors that go into the price of cabinets are the detail around the face frame if you do inset. There are various other details you can add such as beading etc. As well as the internal parts of the cabinet. Of course it will be more to have dividers inside your drawer built in, or intenal customizations like that. The other option that can up the price considerably are the types of hinges. Soft close hinges are pricey compared to standard hinges.
So that’s the breakdown on cabinets for now. It’s a good into in to cabinetry and maybe we’ll dig deeper another time!