About Cabinet Doors

Shapes of Cabinet Door

Basically there are 3 types of cabinet doors; Radius (curved doors), Mullioned and Glass doors.

Radius or Curved Doors: These doors are both concave and convex shaped and cost more than the standard ones. Their elegance is unmatched by any other door style.

Mullion Doors: These doors use glass in place of typical solid center panel and are similar to window panes. The glass used in these doors is detachable so that they can be cleaned easily without any hassle. There are 3 types of glasses that are used in mullion doors; annealed (not a safety glass), tempered or laminated glass.

Glass Insert Doors: Frames of this style are available in all sizes as they are without panels. Most of the doors that range from 12 to 42 inches high can be routed on the back of the frame in order to hold or support the glass. Moreover, molding is not furnished for the back of the frame.

Cabinet Doors Styles

Cabinet doors can be shaped in 3 different styles to meet your taste and choice. They are:

Slab Cabinet Doors: Neither raised nor recessed, slab cabinet doors are flat shaped. They are made from wood and usually joined by several pieces of solid stock lumber fixed with adhesive and adjusted according to the size. The edges of the slab door styles are plain or detailed.

Recessed Panel Doors: These doors look like a picture frame with miter or mortise or tenon joints. Panels can be grooved or decorated.

Raised Panel Doors: The raised panel is usually constructed of several pieces of solid stock lumber joined with adhesive, cut dimensionally and then shaped with the desired edge. Raised panels also consist of wood veneers adhered to plywood.

Moreover, medium density fiberboard or other material is shaped to create the appearance of raised or recessed panels and then painted or covered with the manufacturer's choice of laminate. Variations can be made according to the customer’s choice too.

Cabinet Door Types

The type of cabinet door is determined by how the door fits the front of cabinet box. There are 5 types of cabinet doors. They are described as below:

Inset Door
Lipped Door
Traditional Overlay Door
Full Overlay Door
Tambour Door

Insert Door: It fits within the cabinet frame and is at level with the front edges of the cabinet box. It gives a formal colonial or rustic look to the kitchen. Door knobs are required to open and close the doors while hinges remain exposed. It comes with a constructed frame whereas the same look can be given without frames using vertical pilasters.

Lipped Door: This type of door has a groove along with a cut that goes all the way around the door on the back edge. The cut allows free movement of the door as the door sits tight in the frame and a door pull or knob is needed to open and close the door. You can recognize a lipped door only when it is opened.

Traditional Overlay Door: It is the most commonly used type of cabinet door. The door front is mounted so that it can rest against the frame and completely covers it; the hinges are concealed too. Overlay means the amount of front frame covered by the door.

Full Overlay Door: A full overlay door is mounted in such a way that it covers the front frame entirely. A door knob is also mandatory in this category to open and close the door comfortably. It is also used on frameless cabinets. In order to know if the cabinet is framed or frameless, open the door and check for rails and stiles.

Tambour Door: This door is made up of many individual pieces attached to a flexible back sheet, installed in a track that allows it to slide and/or roll up like a shade. This type of cabinet door is ideal for garage or any other cabinet were you want the door to remain open, without swinging and closing by itself.

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