Kitchen cabinets are the backbone of a modern kitchen which is why they demand a lot of attention when renovating your cooking space.
They can be pricey or reasonable. Thankfully, furniture stores often offer good discounts on them.
Before you start shopping, decide on the basic layout of your kitchen and settle on the focus areas for your kitchen cabinets. Consult a qualified interior designer or contact a cabinetry store for ideas that will maximize your space utilization and minimize costs.
Here, we discuss the three broad categories of kitchen cabinets and their sub-types.
Different Types of Kitchen Cabinets Categories and Styles
There are three categories of kitchen cabinets:
1. Base Kitchen Cabinets
Base kitchen cabinets are positioned on the floor to support the countertop from below. You can use them for installing the sink, dishwasher, microwave, and other appliances.
The drawers of these cabinets are versatile. You can go for pull-out drawers, lazy Susans, shelved cabinets, et cetera. Their main purpose is storage, so you can put away a whole gamut of items into them. Thus, of all types of cabinets, these are a big part of your kitchen. They also define the layout of your kitchen floor, and all of these factors make base cabinets the most expensive type.
There are several types of base kitchen cabinets and these are a few commonly-used varieties.
- Easy-Access Cabinets: They have a middle shelf with small racks attached to the inside door for storing things you need easy access to.
- Pull-Out Cabinets: These come in handy for storing items you need frequently. They are open shelves with racks that prevent items from falling when you pull out the shelf.
- Two-Drawer Cabinets: You don’t want to dig deep into shelves to find something you need with a two-drawer base cabinet.
- Open Cabinets: As the name suggests, open cabinets don’t have doors and can store things you want on display.
- Corner Cabinet: These cabinets make use of hard-to-use corners. You can include a built-in lazy Susan cabinet to make the most of that unused corner.
- Super Cabinets: Sounds good, right? These are the overachievers among base cabinets. They are available in many varieties and have adjustable pullout shelves. They also have generous door storage and pull-out wire racks.
2. Wall Kitchen Cabinets
The name says it all. These cabinets are hung on the wall with screws. If executed well, they add a unique charm to your kitchen. You can extend it up to the ceiling to store things you don’t use often. Their main purpose is to store kitchen accessories, food items, and not-so-bulky appliances. There are a few different types of wall cabinets you might want to pick from.
- Pull-Down Spice Rack: With these, you never have to reach to the back of your cabinet blindly searching for spices. You just pull down the rack and everything is in sight.
- Appliance Holder: This is a stylish way to hide appliances when not in use.
- Easy-Access Cabinets: These cabinets come with three shelves, with a wire rack inside their door, making them ideal for storing large and small items.
- Lazy Susan Wall Cabinet: As we said, a corner is hard to manage, but not with a lazy Susan wall cabinet. It comes with a rotating base, so everything is easily within reach.
- Electronic Cabinet: Just touch the door to open and close. It is easy to access and operate.
3. Tall Kitchen Cabinets
These are also called pantry or utility cabinets. You can have them fixed from floor to ceiling or use them as free-standing pieces. They are extremely functional, and you will never have a storage shortage if you have them around. Every kitchen has certain items that are needed regularly but are often unmanageable. And with a little technical help, you can even use them to accommodate your microwaves, ovens, et cetera. Their main purpose is to store food supplies in bulk, cleaning items, appliances, and much more. Here are a few types of tall cabinets to consider.
- Utility Cabinets: These vary in design but can have shelves, hooks, and drawers to hold smaller kitchen items. You can also use them in the laundry room, mud room, or bathroom.
- Appliance Cabinets: These come in different configurations and sizes to accommodate appliances of various sizes.
- Pantry Pullout: With this type of cabinet, you can keep your cooking essentials within easy reach. They have narrow shelves with racks on both sides.
- Pantry Super Cabinet: The name says it all. This one is an ultimate pantry organizer and storing solution for your kitchen.
Every kitchen cabinet serves a different purpose. So, before you contact a kitchen design store, decide your cabinets’ purpose and where you want to place them. This will make your job easier.