One of the biggest choices you’ll make for your kitchen cabinetry is the door style. The doors present the largest area of the cabinetry’s façade. That said, the doors function within a framework of surrounds and interiors that define the look of your kitchen.
Design Elements in the Glass
With glass-front cabinets, the design focus is usually on the glass. Clear glass is certainly a popular option. With this style, manufacturers often start with the traditional shaker style door, which is essentially a frame of wood with a central insert. In this case, the manufacturers replace the wood insert with glass.
You typically choose the glass yourself. Besides simple clear glass, another popular option is textured glass. These inserts feature a physical texturing that creates visual interest and some opacity. You have many options in the patterning, though you may want to stick with a small, repetitive pattern for such a small area.
Leaded and stained glass inserts are another option. While the two terms are often used interchangeably, leaded glass refers to clear glass divided with metal mutins. The metal comes in many decorative styles. With stained glass, manufacturers add color, though the panes usually feature similar metal mutins as leaded glass. Both styles tend to convey an old-world ambience.
You can also choose glass panes with wooden mutins. Said mutins can be elaborate, such as those featuring Gothic arches. However, you also see doors with standard stiles, which produce regular rectangles in the door.
Modifications to the Doors
Modifications to the doors don’t result in as significant a change to the appearance as your glass choice. However, the framework around the glass does set the stage for the overall look. Color is a big decision. While many glass-fronted cabinets are white or cream, you see naturally stained wood and even some bright colors.
Another modification option is a change to the insert shape. Most often you’ll see some sort of arch added to the top. The arch can be narrow, which gives an almost keyhole look, or wide enough to make the entire panel feel arched.
While not a change to the door itself, the look of the cabinet façade changes according to the trim you add. For instance, traditionally styled glass-front doors are often surrounded with ornate trim. However, if you favor a more modern appearance, you may choose wider door frames and little to no trim since this style conveys the minimalism of the modern aesthetic.
Cabinet Interior Design
One of the points of choosing glass-fronted doors over solid wood ones is that you open the view up to the interior. To that end, you’ll want to ensure you have an interior worth looking at. If your goal is simply to lighten up the visual weight of your cabinetry, consider simple, white interiors.
That said, a common method for adding visual interest with the interior is by painting it a bright color. For example, you could match antique white frames to robin’s egg blue to promote a French country appeal. Conversely, white cabinets with a red or green interior can add a subtle but modern pop of color. Bright interiors work well with patterned or leaded glass.
If you want to add some pattern with clear glass, consider a wall-papered interior. You’ll should choose a bright color with a bold pattern. You want the interior to show up from deep inside your cabinets. You could get a similar, high-end effect with a tiled cabinet interior.
Finally, if light is what you crave, illuminate the interior of your cabinetry. Have lights installed at the top of the cabinet to infuse the interior with a gentle glow. Such a modification works especially well if you’re replacing wood shelving with glass — the overall effect is of a display case.
Choose glass, frame, and interiors that make your kitchen cabinetry a design focal point. Martin Glass Co. can provide for all your kitchen cabinetry needs.