4 Men 1 Lady

a lifestyle blog about the persuit of bringing beauty to a house full of men.

I can’t sleep…

by |

and not because I have a baby that wakes up every 3 hours.
No, it’s the house decisions, Decisions, DECISIONS!
While there are serious problems in the world I’m stressing over chrome or nickel?
White or gray? Marble or granite?
Latest decision on the table: cabinets. To inset or not? While inset cabinets look custom and just plain gorgeous, you loose a slight bit of space (not a huge deal).
Image via VT Interiors.



Image via Houzz.



Image via La Dolce Vita.



Image via Apartment Therapy.



The other cabinet option is this:

Image via Me you and a wiener.

Oh, what do you call this?

When the cabinets all butt up to each other and fit together nicely?
They don’t lay flush to the cabinet but on top of the cabinet.



Image via Moth Design.



Image via My Favorite and My Best.



Image via Pink Wallpaper.



  Thoughts?

Comments

  1. The Moth Design image cabinets look like our Ikea Adel White cabinets – we’ve had them for about three years and I absolutely love them; super functional, solid, affordable and an easy finish to keep clean. Highly recommend. I think this cab style is called “frameless.”

  2. I don’t recall ever hearing a name for them, but I do remember seeing options for ‘reveal’, these have no reveal, some have a 1 inch reveal, and so forth.
    Inset is very interesting, I think I like it, very clean, but I’m assuming (now considering my cabinets) that they probably come with a premium cost.

  3. i believe it’s called a “full overlay” door style.

    have you started pricing these cabinets yet? i haven’t priced them myself, but i’ve heard that the inset door style can be much more expensive.

    i think both look great, and i like your inspiration pictures! we’re starting our own kitchen project soon and i’ve already refered back to your marble look alike post a few times.

  4. oh gosh. It’s all so pretty! I think I like the inset look the best though. Maybe stack the dishes higher?? Anyway, congrats on the new house! So fun to get to redo one! Good luck!

  5. Yup, they are called “full overlay”. There is also such a thing as a partial overlay as well. I much prefer the full overlay look to the partial, but if I had the budget I’d go inset all the way!

  7. Like Katie, we will be making over our kitchen soon and these are some great inspirational photographs. Insert cabinets are close to 3x more expensive then the overlay style. Personally, I would go with the overlay style and use the savings towards fantastic appliances. Congrats on moving to your new home Michelle. Can not wait to see what you decide on! Cheers! xoxo

  8. Personally, I love the inset cabinest, however, I don;t think there’s enough of a difference to justify a huge jump in price. If they are similar cost-wise, go with the inset. If the inset comes at a premium price, go with the other ones and splurge on a great countertop. IMO…

  9. I tend to go for the “full overlay” look. There are fewer lines and I like a very clean look.

    I love all the inspiration photos you are posting. It’ll be exciting to see your kitchen all done. Hope you enjoy the process!

  10. I have some of those cabinets but just not white. Our builder called them “european” because over there, they all look like that…flush, with no gaps in between.

  12. Not sure what you are considering for manufacturers, I work for a custom high end Architectural Woodwork Manufacturer (custom millwork/cabinets) and unless you have $20,000+ for a handmade kitchen you are going to have to choose from ‘pre-manufactured’. Ikea is by far the best.

    Ikea gives you a solid product for a very reasonable price. Also, Ikea cabinets come STANDARD with Blum/Blumotion hinges and drawer slides. These are far superior to any other product. Hettich would be a close second but Accuride (which is what most middle of the road Cabinet manufacturers use) is absolutely cheap and terrible.

    another bonus is that Ikea drawers have ‘concealed slides’ where as most other cabinets (say Kraftmaid etc.) have ‘exposed slides’ – not nice looking or functioning.

    Whatever manufacturer you choose, make sure to spend your money on Blum (or Hettich) hinges and drawer slides you will not be dissapoited. Even though you ‘can not see them’ it will make the most difference everyday/everytime you open and close them 🙂

  13. When they are both well done I think either choice is beautiful. I tend to prefer the inset because my experience with the other type has been the cheaply made type where the cupboard doors don’t fully over the frames….ew.

    If price was no object then I’d prefer the inset style, however, if the price was hugely different and I could get the outer-type done well, then I’d have no problem with them.

    I love all of your kitchen pics, btw!! I share you love of the crisp, white kitchen!! 🙂

  15. I think it depends a lot on budget because I like the look of both, and if they are installed correctly, should both be good options. We did our kitchen a few years ago and priced out a number of different options, including IKEA. I am SO glad that we didn’t go with IKEA for our cabinetry. While I think it’s a great product for a value price, I see how hard my boys are on our cabinets and I’m really glad we invested in an extremely durable and more expensive product. Our cabinets are from Merillat, made in America and I love them. We’ve got “soft close” hinges, full extension drawers and they are awesome.

  18. I just finished (well, it’s almost finished! :)) our kitchen and used frameless cabinets. Thought I like them, I really think the inset ones look more luxe and I wish I would have gone that route. Everyone seems to have the frameless cabinets and they look a bit IKEA after a while. Go for the luxe!

  20. I vote for the full overlay. We have open shelves in our kitchen, and although they are very pretty, they are AWFUL to keep clean…kids, dust, cats, etc. Not the best thing in a kitchen. I would actually like to replace ours with cabinets, but I’d consider open shelving again once we’re empty nesters and actually have time to clean again:)

  21. They are also called “framed” versus “frameless” cabinets. I have frameless cabinets and I personally prefer them because of the extra space. It depends too on construction but some of the framed doors (like the ones beneath a sink) may require a post down the middle for support. I always hate those posts – they get in the way! If you don’t have a preference, I would get the cheaper design and spend the extra money on extras like soft-close doors and drawers, metal pullouts, special compartments for cutting boards, spices etc.

  22. I love the La Dolce Vita kitchen!

    Chrome does show more spots and fingers prints. So it just depends on how much that will or won’t bother you.

    I LOVE the tile on the wall in the Moth Design.

    The fire place is cool too.

    As for the doors, they are so close, you would be probably be happy with either.
    It is more difficult for the cabinet maker to get the doors lined up straight with the inlaid doors. I had several cabinet makers tell me they would not make them for me.

    Breath deep and try not to “run” too fast. It is difficult to make so many “permanent” decisions. We are currently remodeling a house too and sometimes I just feel panicked about all of the decisions and timing of things.

    Hang in there and good luck finding just the right inspiration photos. 🙂

  23. I agree with some of the others. In inlaid are wonderful, which is what I wanted, but sooooo much more expensive. I have the full overlay version and I love it. I still lust after the look of the inlaid, but I think the money is better spent on the function of the cabinets and drawers and the counters, tile, etc.

  24. P.S. I forgot to mention that we easily added crown and other trim to make the full overlay look more custom and less boxy.

  27. Ours are the full-overlay type, and I love that even if an appliance (like my coffee pot) sticks out a little more than I would like, the door still closes all the way and isn’t propped open. You’ve probably already decided by now though 🙂

  28. I believe its called “euro style”
    My husband is building our cabinets, and I had him do them inlay style. I absolutely adore them, and they look different than anything I’ve ever actually experienced IRL. I’ve seen them in lots of photos, but never actually in anyone’s kitchen!

    We’re still in the middle of our remodel, but you can see some snapshots here:

    http://www.theprojectgirl.com/2011/09/08/kitchen-cabinents-are-painted/

    good luck!!

  29. I just was browsing through the comments, and I DO NOT suggest the Ikea cabinets. The particle board they are made of is such poor quality. I’ve looked at A LOT of cabinet brands, and all but the very cheapest cabinets use at least a cabinet-grade plywood. Ikea does not. They use ikea-grade particle board which is worse than even regular particle board to build the boxes out of. We priced out Ikea, but when you take into account the poor quality, the time to assemble and install, you’re really not doing yourselves any favors. I have heard good things about the Martha Stewart cabinets, both price and quality wise.

It is nice to meet you!

Hey there! I’m Michelle; I’m an Passionate DIY’er and in constant pursuit of how to bring beauty to my house full of men (3 boys + 1 hubby). Stick around and see what I’ve got up my hard-working sleaves!

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