Latest Trends in Kitchen Cabinets

by Paul Bianchina, Inman News

If you’re contemplating remodeling your kitchen, one of the most important aspects to take into consideration is the cabinets. Certain trends are popular right now while certain others have lost a little of their appeal, which can certainly add or subtract from your resale value as well.

Keep in mind that your cabinets, in addition to being a visual focal point for the kitchen, are also a sizable monetary investment. As such, it’s best to stick with styles that have a broader, more timeless appeal and then accessorize around them, rather than opting for the latest wild trend and then facing the expense of changing them a couple of years later.

Which Woods: For natural wood cabinets, there are lots of choices in the type of wood you use. Oak remains a popular choice, with some people opting for an upgraded look by specifying more expensive quarter-sawn white oak, traditionally used in Mission-style furniture, instead of the more common plain-sawn red oak. Cherry remains a popular wood for kitchen cabinets, with a deep, rich color. Maple is also still popular, as is alder. At the higher end, in addition to the quarter-sawn white oak there are woods such as knotty chestnut and red birch. Again for those looking for something more unusual, there is the option of running the grain of the wood horizontally instead of the more traditional vertical orientation.
With any of these woods, popular finishes include natural (no stain added before the final clear coat is applied), and light to medium stains. For the most part, dark stains are not really popular.

A Color Instead: Thinking of painted cabinets instead of natural wood? White is still hanging around to some degree, although it’s definitely diminished in popularity. In its place are softer earth tones, as well as pale green and pale yellow. If you’re looking to make a statement, at the other end of the color spectrum some people are opting for deep blues and reds, and even black.

Keep it Organized: One definite trend in kitchens is that people want the room to be very functional in addition to decorative. Kitchen users want things at their fingertips, and that has led to popularity of some of the many organizational accessories and systems currently available — many of which can easily be added to stock, modular cabinets. Larger storage areas are popular, and some designers are choosing to combine food and dishes in the same cabinet — grab some chips and bowl to put them in at the same time.

More Visible Kitchens: With the popular trend of opening the kitchen up to the rest of the house, cabinets are more on display then ever before. This has had the effect of several design changes in the kitchen. Lighting is more unified with the surrounding rooms, and light fixtures are tending toward the decorative in addition to their functionality. Kitchen flooring is also a major consideration, as it tends to intersect the flooring in other rooms over a much broader area.

As part of that increased visibility, more kitchens are incorporating display cabinets. These are typically upper cabinets with clear or patterned glass doors, often with built-in lighting, that make it easy to display anything from Grandma’s china to your salt and pepper shaker collection.

Stand Up Tall: With the open kitchen trend, there still needs to be some definition of the space between the kitchen and the adjoining rooms. Toward that end, you will find cabinet runs that are being anchored by taller-than-normal lower cabinets at one end — typically 42 inches instead of 36 — which helps keep the kitchen from looking like it ends in the middle of nowhere. Taller cabinets also offer more storage opportunities and can accommodate elevated dishwashers as well.

Furniture Influences: There is also a definite furniture influence in kitchen cabinets these days. This includes lower cabinets that are mounted on feet (or with toe kick areas that imitate the look of feet), as well as the use of decorative moldings on the cabinets in areas besides just the traditional crown molding.

Easy Personality: If you want a distinctive look in your kitchen without resorting to blue or black cabinets, you can easily dress up any kitchen to reflect your individuality simply through the knobs you choose. Options abound, from tiny silverware to brightly colored balls to elegant stainless steel shapes. And you can always change the knobs later for a quick makeover that won’t break the bank.

Remodeling and repair questions? E-mail Paul at paul2887@ykwc.net.

What’s your opinion? Leave your comments below or send a letter to the editor. To contact the writer, click the byline at the top of the story.

Copyright 2008 Inman News

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 23rd, 2008 at 7:53 am and is filed under AAOA Forum. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

1. Kitchen Cabinets and Doors said at June 24th, 2008 at 4:37 pm

   Very interesting.

2. AAOA - American Apartment Owners Association » Homeowner Makes Lemons into Lemonade by Recycling Cabinet Doors said at July 17th, 2008 at 8:58 am

   […] Homeowner Makes Lemons into Lemonade by Recycling Cabinet Doors Kitchen Cabinets Make Great French Doors   by Bill and Kevin Burnett, Inman News   Q: I removed my old kitchen cabinet doors and bought new ones — natural maple, RTF — via the Internet. I am happy with them, but I mistakenly bought two extra doors that are much too big and two doors that are barely too small. I can’t return them.   So here’s what I want to do: 1. I plan to have one of the big doors cut in half and wish to have each half bored with two hidden hinges. I will use them as French doors in a spot where I forgot to order a door. I don’t know how to use power tools other than a drill and electric screwdriver. Is there someplace where I can take the door to be sliced in half? Where or how can I drill the proper size circle for the hidden hinge, just like the other doors’? Is this something I can do myself with the proper drill bit? 2. I am considering cutting one of the smaller doors down so that I can make a lazy Susan set for a corner below my counter. I would require only one hidden hinge for this. Each panel of the lazy Susan would be about 5 1/2 inches high by 11 inches wide. Is this too narrow to create a small lazy Susan with one hidden hinge?By the way, I painted all the boxes myself, a nice red color that my family likes. I think I did a pretty good job. A: Congratulations on entering the world of home renovation. The last line of your e-mail tells us you got a good deal of satisfaction from doing the job. For us, that’s what it’s all about. We’re sure the kudos from your family felt good too. True, you made a mistake in ordering some of the doors, but stuff happens. More important, you’ve got a plan to fix it. Making lemonade from lemons is great fun. If your plan doesn’t work out, just reorder the correct doors and all you’ll be out is the cost of the replacements. Finding a place that will slice the doors should be easy. Any lumberyard should be happy to do it. However, we suggest that you take the folks at Home Depot at their word. Their slogan, “You can do it, we can help,” is made for your situation. From experience, we know they cut sheets of 4-by-8 plywood into more manageable pieces on request. There’s no reason they could not use the same saw to halve your doors. There may be a small cutting charge, $1 or so, but a manager can waive that if you ask. This is especially true if you purchase the tools and material you’ll need for the rest of the project at the store. Drilling the holes for the European-style hinges is something we encourage you to do yourself. The drill and screwdriver you already own are most of the tools you’ll need. You’ll just have to buy the proper-size Forstner bit. A Forstner bit produces a round hole with a flat bottom and a very shallow pilot hole. For a definition and more than you probably want to know go to links.sfgate.com/ZPV. The hinges you buy will include installation instructions specifying the correct-size bit. If you use the hinges provided with the door, measure the diameter at the base of the insert of the hinge. That’s the size you’ll need. You must set the depth of the bit so you don’t drill through the front of the door. To avoid this, measure the depth of the hinge. It should be about 3/4 inch. Transfer that measurement to the drill bit by placing a piece of tape around the Forstner bit. Blue painters’ masking tape works well for this. When drilling the new hole, go no deeper into the door stile than the bottom of the tape. To locate the hole on the door stile, use the paper template included with the hinges. If you already have hinges, remove an existing hinge from one of the doors and measure from the side and top of the door to the center of the hole. Transfer these measurements to the stile to be drilled. Finally, install the Forstner bit and drill the holes. Make sure to keep the drill bit perpendicular to the stile surface. Install the hinges, hang and adjust the door. We encourage you to use two hinges on the proposed lazy Susan. Maple is a heavy wood, and one-hinged doors, regardless of the size, can easily get out of balance with use. What’s your opinion? Leave your comments below or send a letter to the editor.  To contact the writer, click the byline at the top of the story.Copyright 2008 Bill and Kevin Burnett   For info on the latest trends in kitchen cabinetry, click here. […]

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