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The first time I was ever blown away by kitchen cabinets was the first time I stepped in my new home. My wife and I have been searching for 2 years now to find a house (great timing, of course).
We’ve seen well over 100 different homes across 4 cities in our region and have never been blown away by a house we could afford.
The entire house spoke to my wife and I in a way the previous 5 Million (100 in reality) homes we’ve seen in our long 2 year search. Once we stepped inside the kitchen we both knew this was the house we wanted. For me, it was the flow of the kitchen and the custom white shaker kitchen cabinets.
There are more types and styles of kitchen cabinets to ever list in one blog. However, my goal today is to show you a few of the most popular kitchen cabinet types and ideas used today.
The types of kitchen cabinets that I’ll be writing about are; Farmhouse, Shaker, and Metal. Each of these types of cabinets offer different levels of customization, price points, and aesthetics.
As you look through each style of cabinet, make sure you choose one that speaks to you in the same way my Farmhouse Kitchen cabinets spoke to my wife and I.
I really like the design of a farmhouse kitchen because it’s meant to show humility, elegance, and creativity, all in a large kitchen designed to feed a family.
If it helps to think about a farmhouse kitchen, think about how many kids farmers would try to have to help run a family farm. They needed to feed large families in one room with enough space to move around without running into each other.
Farmhouse kitchens use light colors that are designed to bring in light from the sunrise and brighten the kitchen without the use of electricity.
Farmhouse cabinets can be made from recycled wood found on the farm, custom hand carved hardwood from trees, such as Cherry, Mahogany, Oak, Walnut, and Maple. There are a variety of stains to brighten colors or darken them to highlight the wood.
Farmhouse cabinets like the ones in my house are Shaker cabinets that are sleek, humble, and give our kitchen a “clean” feel that instantly brings people in.
Most Shaker cabinets are painted in light colors, such as white, ocean blue, and olive green. The easiest way to tell a Shaker cabinet from another is based on the combination of 5 key features.
Shaker Kitchen cabinets are so special because you can tell from the very beginning that they’re made with great care and respect for the art of a carpenter.
Shaker cabinets normally have very tall paneled doors, normally having some unique square or rectangle trimming that is perfectly symmetrical.
The entire cabinets are normally made from very few pieces of hardwood that are hand cut and measured out to a custom size.
One of the easiest ways to figure out if a cabinet is a Shaker Cabinet, is to look for the mortise and tenon joint in the cabinet.
Mortise (hole-open end) and tenon joints (tongue or rail) have its roots grounded in carpenters and architects for well over a thousand years. The reason it found its way from the Ancient Egyptians to the Western Europeans that crafted the first Shaker cabinets, is the stability, strength, and beauty in craftsmanship.
The reason mortise & tenon cabinets are so expensive is because it must be cut to exact measurements to fit correctly. As you can imagine, it takes either a million dollar machine or a master carpenter to make precision cuts.
The best part for our customers is Monumental Contractors have master carpenters with the ability to give you a Shaker cabinet with beautiful mortise and tenon joints.
The other way most traditional Shaker cabinets have been built is with a Dovetail Joint. Dovetail joints are what I have in my cabinets because they’re the strongest joint technique you can build cabinets with.
The Dovetail is so strong because of the tensile strength the tails and pins provide, especially against pressure. Dovetail joints have been used in everything from the tombs of Egyptian Pharaohs, to the first Catholic churches a thousand years ago.
The level of precision for a Dovetail joint is one of the only designs that machines have a tough time producing. You need a skilled carpenter that knows the specific angles to use to generate the extreme friction.
Think of the Dovetail joint like a finger-trap toy we used to get as kids; the harder you try to pull, the tighter it gets. If it were me buying a kitchen cabinet, I’m going with the Dovetail joint design every time.
Shaker cabinets can cost around $100 sq foot for minimal design work and limited color options. On the high-end, you could expect around $1,200 per square foot for a top of the line Cherry or Maple Shaker cabinet with dovetail joints.
For me, I think if you go Shaker, go all in and make sure you get the flush mounting for drawers and cabinets. When you speak to one of our carpenters, he/she will ask if you want the “flush mounts.”
Flush mounts could cost up to 20-30% more for the whole remodel, but the feel of the kitchen is completely changed and feels like added kitchen space.
I compare the top of the line Shaker cabinets to a Macbook Pro. They’re both silky smooth in aesthetics, and yet minimalistic in design. Their beauty is in practicality and performance and I think most of us could use a bit of both.
The newest products that are hitting the contracting world are using recycled metals to build cabinets. One of the reasons why I wanted to write about this was the mutual appreciation for recycling and reusing discarded material for future use.
Metal cabinets are normally made from recyclable stainless steel for the added durability. Metal cabinets can be very expensive, but incredibly beautiful with the right craftsman.
Stainless steel cabinets can be one of the most expensive, and hardest materials to find. The average stainless steel cabinets cost as low $20,000 for a full renovation and as much as $40,000. The design and finishings seem like afterthoughts in price, but they can be very expensive the more custom you want them done.
Metal cabinets are expensive and hard to find, but can be very rewarding for those who can afford to be environmentally friendly.
Stainless Steel Cabinets are the strongest, most durable, and longest lasting cabinets that you buy. Just think about the applications that use stainless steel and you’ll see why these cabinets can last forever.
The average cost for a full remodel would cost as low as $100 per cabinet for a small kitchen (70 Square feet or smaller). A large kitchen is classified as any kitchen larger than 200 sq ft. A large kitchen is going to cost up to 5x the amount of a small kitchen cabinet.
Expect to see around $400-$600 per cabinet if you go with the beautiful Modern Farmhouse Shaker cabinets that you truly want. Home Advisor suggest, you spend up to 29% of your overall budget on cabinets, which is much larger than any other category in your kitchen (flooring, countertops, lighting, appliances).
We don’t know their mode of measurement, but seeing the kitchen cabinets in my new home sold me pretty quickly. I know that I’ve never been that excited and drawn to any other feature in the kitchen like what incredible cabinets can do for your kitchen.
One of the many great features we could offer you as a new client is the large network of contractors that are constantly finding the best building materials and bringing them to your new home.
Monumental Contractors will put you in touch with the professionals that specialize in your type of remodel.
For example, if you’re looking for a clean, sleek, and modern feel to your kitchen we can have you speak with master carpenters. You want a Dovetail joint Shaker painted in light blue? Our team can help find the best deal, most accurate deadline, and quote.
Monumental Contractors prides themselves on being as honest and transparent as possible. Nobody likes a “gotcha!” bill after the renovation is complete and that’s not how we do business. If you agree to a quote with us, we hold to that quote and always conduct ourselves with respect and empathy.
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