Flush fronts in a shared face frame
In full-inset cabinets, the doors and drawer fronts fit inside the face-frame openings and sit flush with the frame when closed. The solid-wood frame remains visible around each front. Without a bead, the inside edge of each opening is plain.
We build one shared face frame across a section of cabinet boxes, rather than a separate frame for every box. The frame has 1½-inch-wide stiles and rails and attaches to the boxes with the Lamello system.
A beaded detail inside the face frame
Beaded full-inset cabinets use the same shared solid-wood face frame, with the doors and drawer fronts sitting flush inside its openings. A ⅜-inch-wide bead runs along the inside of each opening, adding a narrow outline around the door or drawer front.
The bead is part of the face frame, not a profile on the door. The frame has 1½-inch-wide stiles and rails and spans multiple cabinet boxes, using the same Lamello attachment as our inset cabinets without a bead.
Overlay fronts with no face frame
In frameless full-overlay cabinets, the doors and drawer fronts cover nearly the entire front of the cabinet boxes, leaving only narrow gaps between adjacent fronts. There is no solid-wood face frame. Exposed cabinet-box edges are edge banded to coordinate with the door finish, whether painted, stained, or wood.
This construction is commonly used for contemporary and European-style cabinetry. On double-door cabinets, there is no center face-frame stile between the doors, leaving the full cabinet opening accessible for larger items.
Inset fronts with visible cabinet-box edges
In frameless inset cabinets, the doors and drawer fronts fit inside the cabinet-box openings and sit flush with the box’s front edges when closed. There is no solid-wood face frame added to the front of the box.
The cabinet-box edges remain visible around each inset front. This gives the flush front position of inset cabinetry without the wider face-frame stiles and rails used in our shared-frame inset types.
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Classic proportions, solid-wood frame
Our standard Shaker cabinet doors are ¾ inch thick, with 2¼-inch-wide solid-wood stiles and rails surrounding a recessed flat center panel. The rails and stiles meet in cope-and-stick joints, giving the frame its clean, square-cornered outline.
For painted doors, we use maple stiles and rails with an MDF center panel; stained or clear-coated flat panels use wood veneer over MDF. We can add mullion or muntin detailing, and on a 6¼-inch-high top drawer front we use 1½-inch top and bottom rails.
A slimmer solid-wood frame
Our Slim Shaker cabinet doors are ⅞ inch thick, with solid-wood stiles and rails available in ⅝-inch or 1-inch widths. Mitered corners form a narrow, continuous frame around the recessed center panel.
Also called skinny or micro Shaker, this modern variation of the five-piece door sits visually between classic Shaker and a flat slab front. Its linear detail is clear up close but subtle across the room, giving custom kitchen cabinets a quieter, more architectural look.
A clean, uninterrupted cabinet front
Slab cabinet doors present one uninterrupted face without a surrounding stile-and-rail frame or recessed center panel. This flat-front design makes the selected wood grain or finish the main visual feature of the cabinet.
Choose slab doors when you want custom kitchen cabinets with simpler lines and fewer visible details. Pair them with slab drawer fronts, selecting horizontal or vertical grain on the drawer face to shape the overall appearance.
Glass within a solid-wood Shaker frame
Our Shaker glass cabinet doors use a solid-wood stile-and-rail frame at least 2 inches wide around the glass opening. The frame keeps familiar Shaker proportions while allowing selected cabinets to display dishes or glassware.
Choose a single glass opening or add mullions or muntins for a divided appearance. We have a few glass options on display in our showroom, so you can compare them in person before selecting one for your kitchen cabinets.
Metal framing with a glass center
Aluminum-framed glass cabinet doors place a metal border around the glass instead of a wood frame. The contrast between metal and glass gives selected kitchen cabinets a sharper, more contemporary accent.
Frame profiles, finishes, and glass choices allow this door style to coordinate with the overall cabinetry design. Available pairings vary, so we review the exact frame and glass combination for each project rather than assuming every option works together.
Shaker doors for sloped openings
Angled-top Shaker cabinet doors keep the recessed panel and framed look of a Shaker door while changing the outside top edge to a slope. That sloped line can follow an angled ceiling or another architectural feature.
Each door is shaped for its cabinet opening, allowing the diagonal line to continue across the finished front. This lets custom kitchen cabinetry keep a consistent Shaker look where a standard rectangular door would not fit the layout.
Added detailing for Shaker and Shaker glass doors, plus combined glass-and-wood panel designs.
Maple, oak, walnut, cherry, alder, hickory, beech, birch, fir, and sapele, plus paint-grade options.
Curved-arch and cathedral-arch panel openings, plus equal, unequal, or side-by-side panel layouts.
Square, rounded, beveled, cove, ogee, beaded, and stepped details.
Slab or five-piece designs, with horizontal or vertical grain.
Raised and reverse-raised panels, with plain, beaded, or V-groove options.
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E1 · CS1 · P101
Rift White Oak
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Compare cabinet door woods by color, grain, grade, and cut.
Explore woods & grain Hide wood guideHardwood · Fine grain
Alder is a relatively soft hardwood with fine, usually straight grain and warm tan to reddish-brown color. Its understated grain can create a gentle, even appearance, while knotty selections bring more visible character. It dents more readily than hard maple or oak, and stain can absorb unevenly, so a finished sample is useful before choosing a color.
Hardwood · Open grain
Ash is a strong hardwood with a pronounced, open grain. Pale sapwood can sit beside deeper brown heartwood, creating noticeable variation between boards. Its relatively coarse texture gives cabinet fronts a more visible grain pattern than fine-grained woods such as maple. A sample showing several boards is useful when assessing the overall color range.
Hardwood · Close grain
Beech is a hard hardwood with fine, close grain. Color depends on the species: European beech often appears pale and pinkish, while American beech can include deeper reddish-brown heartwood and more variation. Small ray markings contribute to its characteristic texture. Identify the species when comparing samples rather than assuming every beech sample will have the same tone.
Hardwood · Fine grain
Birch gives cabinet doors a fine, even grain and a smooth appearance. Its pale sapwood contrasts with warmer, reddish-brown heartwood, so the amount of color variation depends on how boards are selected. Yellow birch is a hard, strong hardwood; other birch species differ in hardness. Birch can absorb stain unevenly, making a finished sample especially helpful when choosing a color.
Hardwood · Fine grain
Cherry is a hardwood with fine grain and warm reddish-brown heartwood, often contrasted by creamy sapwood. Its color deepens with exposure to light, so a new sample may look different from an older cabinet. Small gum streaks and pin knots can be natural features. Cherry is softer than hard maple and oak; its appeal is often the warm color and restrained grain.
Softwood · Directional grain
Douglas fir is a softwood with warm yellow-tan to light-brown heartwood and lighter sapwood. Vertical-grain material emphasizes long, straight lines, while other cuts can show broader patterns. The color changes with light exposure. Its clear, directional grain is a useful visual distinction when comparing it with the more curved patterns of flat-sawn woods.
Hardwood · Strong color contrast
Hickory is a very hard hardwood with a strong contrast between light sapwood and brown heartwood. Grain is often straight but can be irregular, and natural mineral markings add to the variation. Even a selection with fewer knots can retain a lively mix of tones. Consider the overall arrangement of light and dark boards as well as the individual sample.
Hardwood · Fine grain
Maple is a fine-grained hardwood that often appears creamy white, with darker reddish-brown heartwood possible. Hard maple is relatively resistant to indentation; soft maple is still a hardwood but generally has lower impact hardness. Color selection and species both matter when comparing samples. Maple can absorb stain unevenly, so evaluate the intended finish rather than relying on unfinished wood alone.
Hardwood · Open grain
Oak has a bold, open grain and a relatively coarse texture. Red oak often carries warmer pinkish or reddish-brown tones, while white oak ranges from pale tan to deeper brown. The cut also changes the pattern: flat-sawn wood can show broad arches, quartered wood emphasizes ray flecks, and rift-cut wood favors straighter lines with less prominent flecking.
Softwood · Species-dependent grain
Pine is a softwood family whose color and hardness vary by species. Western white pine has a light appearance, straight grain and relatively low weight. Knotty selections create a more pronounced pattern, while clearer selections give a quieter surface. Pine can absorb stain unevenly; identify the species and compare a finished sample when choosing its color.
Hardwood · Fine to medium texture
Yellow poplar, also called tulipwood, is a relatively soft hardwood with fine to medium texture and usually straight grain. Cream-colored sapwood may contrast with yellow, brown or greenish heartwood; some colors change with light exposure. Its grain is less pronounced than oak or ash, but its natural color range can be considerable. A single pale sample may not represent the full variation.
Hardwood · Interlocked grain
Sapele is an African hardwood with reddish-brown color and interlocked grain. Quarter-cut surfaces often show alternating ribbon-like bands, giving the wood a more directional appearance. Plain-sliced and figured material can look quite different. Compare the cut as well as the color when considering sapele for cabinet fronts.
Hardwood · Rich brown tones
American black walnut is a hardwood with brown to deep chocolate heartwood and much lighter sapwood. Its grain is often straight but can show curves or waves. Quartered selections tend toward a more linear pattern. The amount of light sapwood and the way boards are matched can change the overall look as much as the shade of the darker wood.
This guide describes wood in general; availability varies by project and supplier. Grade names and permitted characteristics differ between suppliers. Natural color and grain vary from piece to piece.
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