Materials used to make kitchen cabinet fronts
Today, many kitchen fronts are produced: with different colors and patterns, made from ambiguous materials. Even if you don’t find a color, print or texture, or you want to have a front of an unusual size, the manufacturer will make them to order. Materials from which kitchen cabinet fronts are made:
- Tree. For the manufacture of facades, 2 cm thick plates are most often used. The most popular raw materials are: cheaper - pine, spruce, alder, and more expensive - birch, beech, oak, cherry, ash. Due to the high price of some species, such as cherry, lower-cost woods like pine are used, which are often pickled to imitate more expensive natural materials. Wooden doors, especially hardwood (oak, beech), are very durable and have a chic color.
- MDF board. It has a thickness of 1.6-1.9 cm. The plates are made from compressed small wood. The top can be covered with decorative PVC film (imitating steel, wood or any color) or varnish. MDF is cheaper than wood, durable and moisture resistant. It also easily molds to your desired shape, so you can have your kitchen cabinet front curved to suit your personal imagination.
- Chipboard board. A 1.8 cm thick plate is usually used to make facades. The board can be laminated, veneered or painted with matte, semi-matte or shiny varnish. The main advantages of this material are its low price and a large number of laminate structures. However, chipboard is fragile, so facades with simple shapes are made from it, that is, without curves and decorative grooves.
- Veneer. PVC film or laminate is used. The film easily adapts to the shape of the surfaces being glued, so it is usually applied to the door with decorative grooves. On the other hand, laminates cover kitchen fronts on smooth surfaces.
Color options for different interior styles
The color of the kitchen depends on the following factors:
- your preferences;
- selected style;
- depending on which side the windows face.
Red, orange, yellow
Many psychologists and designers claim that color affects a person’s mood and well-being, which is why it is so important to choose it correctly. The listed colors increase appetite and elevate mood, which is especially important in cold seasons. It is better to use these colors in rooms with a lack of sunlight, that is, in those where the windows face north. It is not necessary to choose very bright colors; pastel shades are also suitable.
Photo: amara.com
Green
Green color in the kitchen has been a classic for decades. Shades of green, such as pistachio and mint, have a beneficial effect on digestion. This color will create a light and airy atmosphere, which has a beneficial effect on the nervous system and helps relieve tension.
Photo: elledecor.com
Blue
You need to be careful with this color, as instead of a cozy room it can turn out cold and lifeless. Cool shades dull the appetite and soothe.
Photo: amara.com
Brown
Natural color that is familiar to our perception. Suitable for both small and large rooms due to its versatility. To make the kitchen façade look more organic, add living plants to the room.
Photo: elledecor.com
White, grey, black
Universal and win-win colors that are suitable for any room and stylistic direction. If you suddenly get tired of the classic palette, you can easily transform the interior by adding bright textiles or unusual dishes.
Photo: amara.com
Beige
Beige is one of the few colors that goes well with the entire palette. Part of the kitchen can be finished in beige, and the other in a brighter color, such as mint. This combination will create comfort and a peaceful mood.
Photo: hgtv.com
Basic rules for choosing colors:
- dark colors visually make the room smaller, while light colors, on the contrary, make the room larger;
- if your kitchen windows face north, preference should be given to warm shades, such as beige, yellow, peach;
- if the windows face south, choose cool shades - white, blue, purple.
Photo: amara.com
Colors and patterns of kitchen facades
Today you can order kitchen facades to suit every taste with different combinations of materials. You will see a combination of wood with metal or glass, veneers imitating wood, marble, granite and many other materials in modern kitchen sets. Facades made of wood and MDF can have decorative carvings and ambiguous shapes.
Interesting! From many manufacturers you can not only choose their kitchen cabinets from an extensive catalog, but also, with the help of a professional equipped with a computer, you can design your own, exclusive facades. Such a super-special sketch will be more expensive than a regular one, by about 40%.
Kitchen styles 2022
Minimalism, which is no longer new, but firmly established in design, is becoming stricter and more ascetic. Kitchen modules without visible fittings or decor are lined up into a single, flat canvas, maintaining the cleanliness and volume of space. Functional high-tech, modest scandi, soft loft and luxurious neoclassicism are in agreement with minimalism. The once popular country and Provence are noticeably inferior to the favorites.
Minimalist kitchen fronts without handles
Conciseness in design requires perfect order and high functionality, even in the details. A good way to rid facades of bulky components and protruding fittings is integrated handles. They could be tested at the stands of Kitchen Cook and Makmart. However, manicure lovers are unlikely to like this idea: when opening the doors, there is a possibility of damaging long nails or varnish.
Advice ! In small kitchens it is more convenient to use sliding doors. They do not take up much space and enliven the interior: by moving them to one side, you can open shelves of drawers with bright accessories and dishes.
Fronts with integrated handles from Kitchen Cook
Wooden fronts for kitchen furniture
Wood, as a material, is durable and timeless, making it a popular choice to complete and furnish any interior, including the kitchen. Wood kitchen cabinet fronts can be sleek, ultra-modern panels or styled with a rustic, Provençal or English design. Very often they are only part of the door in the stone or brick structure of lower kitchen cabinets. Country style kitchens use this combination of materials. The advantage of kitchen furniture with wooden fronts is their:
- durability;
- prestigious appearance;
- relatively easy care.
Advice! Additionally, if after many years you are tired of the color of your wood kitchen cabinets, you can remove the top coat of paint or varnish and repaint the fronts in your chosen color.
Wooden facades for kitchen furniture always bring a warm and cozy atmosphere to the interior:
- grained wood is a timeless eco choice;
- The simple, smooth shape of wooden cabinets (no carvings or recesses) is a model that will never go out of style.
Fittings – types of opening of facades
According to the specifics of the facade itself and the compartment hidden behind it, all fittings used for kitchens can be divided into the following groups:
- spring lifts and microlifts: used to lift doors, while the gas lift ensures their smoothest raising and lowering;
- overhead hinges: used for single-door bedside tables, they ensure neat placement of the sash on the end;
- semi-overlay: used for double-leaf cabinets, in which two doors are placed on one end at once;
- double-leaf hinges: simple fittings consisting of two plates connected by a pin;
- transformable hinges: ensure the door swings open 170 degrees;
- secret hinge: consists of two parts (a cylinder or plates with protruding parts), which, when closing the sash, fit into each other, ensuring a tight fit of the door to the end;
- guides: used to pull out drawers; the best models are those with closers that ensure the drawer slides out smoothly.
Special attention should be paid to overhead handles. They can be in the form of a bracket (classic version), a cylinder (rails), a drop, a ring or a button (protrudes above the door). There are also mortise handles, which are recesses in the facade itself.
Samples of laminated kitchen facades
In keeping with the trendy idea of displaying perfectly smooth surfaces, laminate cabinets are one of the most popular kitchen units. The endless possibilities for choosing the color of the laminate, as well as the combination and size of kitchen surfaces, are additionally gaining demand for facades in a glossy design.
Advice! While high quality laminated kitchen cabinets look very impressive, you need to think about the practical side of using them. If you don’t want to spend half your life washing away traces of kitchen use, then consider other facade options.
Base material
A set is basically a set of floor and wall cabinets. These pieces of furniture consist of a body and a facade. And, since it is the latter that is mostly visible, its appearance and quality are the main factors of choice.
The characteristics of facades, in turn, are determined by the material, finishing and design. And each component needs to be given attention so that the chosen set is ideal.
- Solid wood is rarely used for the kitchen. This material is extremely beautiful, durable, noble, but, alas, sensitive to changes in humidity and temperature. Yes, and cleaning wood is far from easy, and in the kitchen dampness, steam, soot and fat evaporation are constant factors.
If the kitchen is combined with the living room and you don’t cook here very often, you can choose this option. The aesthetics of wooden kitchen modules are exceptional. But practicality appears only if the furniture is made of hard wood that is not subject to rotting and moisture - oak, beech, larch, cedar, ebony. The cost of such headsets is very high.
- MDF is a material obtained by gluing sawdust with an organic binder. In terms of durability, MDF is inferior to wood and does not allow the use of a decoration method such as carving. But MDF is not prone to swelling, is resistant to temperature changes, and is insensitive to light. A big plus for modern kitchens: MDF can be bent, so the most luxurious radius facades are made from this material.
- Chipboards are also produced by gluing sawdust, but using a different technology. The material is very cheap, but does not have high user characteristics: it swells under the influence of moisture, shrinks under the influence of temperature, and does not hold fasteners well. On average, a kitchen facade made of chipboard is designed for no more than 5–6 years of operation.
Wooden facades do not need additional finishing: the wood pattern and natural color scheme in themselves are a real masterpiece, but MDF and chipboard never appear “face” to the consumer: the surface of the door is covered with finishing.
Front design for a classic kitchen
Paneled kitchen cabinets with rounded doors, cornices, moldings and glass are an option for English, Victorian and classic kitchens. Sometimes some elements of such facades find their equivalents in Scandinavian or country kitchens. They are characterized by a classic and symmetrical line in wood finish. An extremely charming kitchen in a romantic style, characterized by unpretentiousness and timelessness. Panel fronts for kitchen cabinets are usually made from MDF, which is then coated with a special decorative finish and varnish in the chosen color.
How to care for matte facades
The surface of the matte façade is cleaned using special means. First, wet cleaning, then wiping with a dry cloth or rag to remove moisture and stains. The wood covering is processed by a steam generator.
It is better to remove stains that appear on the coating quickly - over time, the contamination will be absorbed into the porous structure of the facade, and it will be difficult to wash it.
A matte facade made of cheap material is difficult to clean in any case. You shouldn’t skimp on the quality of the façade coating only to have to worry about cleaning it later.
