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Lower Drawers VS. Cabinets

6 years ago

Hi All, I'm working on my kitchen design with my cabinet maker. I've attached the images. I'd like to make all the lower cabinets drawers, but my cabinet maker is recommending me to keep some cabinets with pull out shelves. Has anyone done lowers with all drawers and had any regrets? I personally don't see the purpose of having cabinets with pull out shelves vs. drawers.


How do you size your drawer height and do any of them have built in organizers?







Comments (59)

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    All but 3 of my lower units are drawers .1 cupboard for the bins ..1 under the sink and 1 to narrow for drawers for my baking sheets and racks ..I love having drawers much easier the cupboards..some of the drawers are deep ..pot's and pans...some have built in organisers one has a very big cutlery drawer slider in the top of a deep drawer

  • 6 years ago

    I moved into a house with 2 cabinets and the rest drawers. And no pantry. Not what I would have designed and took some getting used to. One cabinet is in a corner, so the previous owners had no other choice. That one works well for pots and pans. The other (with pull outs) I use for serving dishes, mixing bowls, and baking pans. It wouldn’t work well for that without the pullouts. And a drawer for such things would make it hard to see/access what’s on the bottom. With those 2 cabinets occupied, I have to use a drawer and an upper cabinet to store dry goods. This took some getting used to, as well as 3 different organization attempts. Had I designed it, I would have put in one more cabinet.

  • 6 years ago

    There are a lot of threads you can search on the subject. The only negative I've read about (other than the expense) is that those who are very tall don't like keeping dishes in drawers compared to upper cabinets, because of bending so far. I would use all drawer bases, but use the ROTS in the tall pantry. Speaking of the pantry, I'd switch it with the fridge. If you're interested in appliance storage, you could use an appliance garage in the corner--I'll add a pic at the end of the post, with various options.

    I drew a landing space between the fridge and oven, to use whatever space is available. Your fridge is drawn flush with the edge of the cabinets, but even a CD fridge will stick out farther (most models need at least 2" air space at the back), so plan for the side panels to come out even with the fridge box, or you could pull all the other cabinets forward, to make the fridge look truly built in (gray lines on plan). If you use the counter idea for landing space, that would also give you a bit more counter at the back, and you can use an extra deep upper (15-18") for added storage space.

    And Hallelujah! Your designer put the DW on the correct side of the sink, out of the prep zone! That will make it much easier for helpers to unload the DW, or gather dishes to set the table, without crossing your prep/cooking path. I moved the DW to the end, and put the trash pull-out on the other corner, where it can be shared with all zones. You'll need a return panel (2" or so) on the side of the DW, so the width of the drawer bases will need to be reduced by that width.


    I K thanked mama goose_gw zn6OH
  • 6 years ago

    I don’t know if you have children, but one week my boys decided to drape their bodies over two separate cabinet doors while they were open and broke two doors. I’m getting all drawers next time for that reason.

  • 6 years ago

    We did all lowers as drawers except for under cooktop (doors with pullouts for pots and pans), under sink, and pullout for trash can. Don’t regret it at all. It’s much easier to access everything. We do have a walk in pantry and store appliances in there.

    I K thanked Melanie Hooks
  • PRO
    6 years ago

    I have all lower drawers except for 2 with pullouts. I think it looks more interesting than having all drawers. Also you may want to have a cabinet with a door for vertical storage of platters, cutting boards, etc.

  • 6 years ago

    I did 95% drawers. Do not regret at all. The cabinet I have a pull out in was faced to look like drawers so everything appears the same

  • 6 years ago

    Previous house had cabinets with pullout drawers. I feel it’s an extra step. This past year we put in a new kitchen and used drawers on lower cabinets. LOVE them!! Good luck!

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I’ve got drawers everywhere, even under the rangetop, for pots, pans, and lids...and, under the main sink. Baking center has a pullout garbage underneath a small sink, and the KA mixer is stored on a pull-up mixer lift, next to the ovens. So, no lower doors anywhere.

    The large drawers under the main sink holds a ton of cleaning supplies, plus extra paper towels, wax paper, parchment paper, tin foil, plastic wrap, and various sizes of plastic bags. So much more convenient than a cavern under the sink. Tilt out drawer holds a supply of new scrubby sponges. Click to enlarge.




    Baking center...mixer lift on left, pull out garbage on right.


    I K thanked darbuka
  • 6 years ago

    Drawers everywhere but the pantry and under the sink. You won’t regret it. Mamagoose did your whole layout for you. Don’t listen to the cabinet maker. (Sexist comment coming...). I doubt he cooks and is the person who spends the most time in the kitchen of his house.
    My only two door cabinets are under the sink and in my island.

    I K thanked RedRyder
  • PRO
    6 years ago

    All drawers and I have all my everyday dishes in drawers and I am tall and it still IMO is better than an upper cabinet. I run a catering biz from my home so the drawers really hold all my pots except for my wok which I keep below my all gas range. I also prefer true pullout pantries to the ones with a door and then pullout shelves.

  • 6 years ago

    I have mostly drawers. Exceptions are under the two sinks, two super susan corner units (which are fantastic for tall and bulky items), and a trash pullout. The tallest drawers were custom sized to fit my cast iron skillets, baking dishes, and cutting boards, all stored vertically and held in place with pegs. I relish never having to rifle through a stack of cast iron to get the 14" one!

  • 6 years ago

    I have had kitchens with both and greatly prefer all drawers. With pull-outs you are essentially opening cabinet doors to then pull out the drawers. Also, sometimes people will not open those doors quite wide enough and the pull-out will nick the inside of the doors. I do have doors under the sinks and a corner with the lazy Susan set-up, as well as the trash/recycling pull-out. I love my spice drawer, with rows of angled shelves and my plate drawers with the peg separators. If I were to build or remodel again I’ll stick with the drawers!

  • PRO
    6 years ago

    Drawers, drawers, drawers! I do prefer my dishes in upper cabinets. The only ones in the drawers are my melamine outdoor dishes and everything that is used on the terrace (napkins, plastic glasses etc.


    I K thanked Anglophilia
  • 6 years ago

    ALL drawers!

    Unless it is a sink cabinet, a super susan or a narrow tray/cookie sheet cabinet.

    No regrets.


    Also having few, but wider drawers is better than having a bunch of narrow drawers, as you are just wasting space with the frames of the drawers. It is very easy to use dividers or baskets to organize large drawers. Most of my current drawers are 30" to 36".

  • 6 years ago

    LK, I am so glad to see you got rid of the corner walk-in pantry in your earlier post. This kitchen layout seems so much easier to work in. :)

  • 6 years ago

    Drawers, drawers, drawers. I’ve had two kitchens now with drawers as base cabinets. I’m not a tall person and asked the cabinet maker to look at an idea I saw in an IKEA cabinet. He ran with it. This was long before it was mainstream but worked so well that our new house we did it again.

  • 6 years ago

    Plan it based on your own kitchenware. We have one basic cabinet, which holds food processer and mixer (and a few smaller things on the shelves). Everything else is drawers or lazy susans.

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    "How do you size your drawer height and do any of them have built in organizers?"

    Ask your cabinet maker for the usable space inside of each drawer and then measure your items and plan accordingly. Rather than having equal sized drawers under our range top I was able to customize the height so that the bottom drawer would fit our tallest stockpots and fry and sauté pans stored vertically in a pan holder.

    Most of our top drawers have organizers along with wooden dividers in a tall pullout for baking sheets and cooling racks and a Rev a Shelf pullout for knives and utensils so that I could get those items off of the counter. It is one of my favorite things. I also added several hidden drawers which help to organize the deep drawers that hold similar items like linens and paper products.

    Other than the drawers and pullouts I like the 13" and 18" deep shelves on the back side of the island for small appliances and oversized serving pieces that I use often.

  • 6 years ago

    I have rollout bottom shelves in my lower door cabinets...it’s almost impossible to get anything out of the back of the cabinet (or even see what’s there) unless the whole shelf rolls out. The “shelves” have a narrow rim and are on full-extension heavy-duty tracks.
    You need just one finger to pull the shelf forward for full access.

  • 6 years ago

    I put a mix of drawers and cabinets with roll outs in my kitchen. Big mistake. I should have done all drawers. Don't listen to the KD and get the drawers!

  • 6 years ago

    we have lowers with drawers, lazy susans and slots for cookie sheets etc. toaster oven is on a pull out which functions better than imagined. we cook with cast iron and drawers handle that with ease. hope this helps.

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    @Becky Razak, what you’re showing are not drawers. Those are roll outs behind doors. Even the lowers you show without doors, are not true drawers. Drawers have fronts, with pulls or knobs on them. You cannot see inside a drawer, unless it’s open. The contents are protected from dust, and prying eyes. What you’ve shown, is exactly what the commenters are saying to avoid. Look at the other photos posted, to see the difference.

  • 6 years ago

    Love my drawers ! Even under the stovetop. I have cabs under sink , for trash pullout, and in corner. If I ever have another kitchen I’ll do the same !

    I K thanked mussles
  • 6 years ago

    I have drawers in almost all base cabinets. Went for the widest cabinets 2x36 a 30 and multiple smaller as size dictated. I have dishes, Tupperware, cookware, and bakeware storage. Not looking back.

  • 6 years ago

    Couple more

  • 6 years ago

    Cabinets

  • PRO
    6 years ago

    We did our kitchen with all drawers except for the corner cabinets where we installed Le Mans shelves. We love our kitchen and the drawers work very well (even fir glasses - we don’t have any upper cabinets).

    I K thanked Sharon Brindley Designs
  • 6 years ago

    Here’s a few more pictures

    I K thanked jschlesi
  • 6 years ago

    Thank you all for your feedback, I can't thank you all enough for your feedback. My kitchen design would never have come this far without your feedback. I asked my cabinet maker for more drawers and he recommended some 2 drawer cabinets. Do you think 2 drawers may be too deep? Should I keep them all 3 drawers? I've attached some updated recommendations


    .

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    The only place I have two large drawers, is under the rangetop. That’s where I store my pots, pans, and lids. Very convenient.


    Well, I also have two large doors...under a tilt out drawer (for extra scrubby sponges), under the main sink. They hold all my cleaning supplies, extra paper towels, plus wax paper, parchment paper, tin foil, and assorted plastic bags. So much better than a cavern under the sink.

    Oops! I just noticed I posted these pics earlier. Anyway, unless you have large items to store, three, and four drawer stacks are more useful.

  • 6 years ago

    Except for the 2 deep pot drawers under the range, I asked for four drawers in the rest of the sections. Most of the things you put in drawers are shallow (likely cutlery and cooking utensils) and the more drawers the better. Kitchen guys all start out with three, because it is easier and cheaper.

  • 6 years ago

    Our kitchen cabinet people made the top three drawers even size and the lowest one slightly larger

  • PRO
    6 years ago

    When deciding the layout and size of your cabinets, you need to first assess exactly what you want to store in them. Take an inventory of all your items and determine where they will go, and then figure out the drawer size to accommodate them. When I renovated my kitchen a few years ago, I did a preliminary layout of the major appliances, and then asked myself what items should be stored close by for ease of access. Then I decided what size drawer was necessary, keeping in mind that smaller items would be stored in the top drawers, and larger in the bottom ones.

    It's also a good time to cull through all your "stuff" and get rid of anything you don't use.

  • 6 years ago

    Most of my lowers are drawers, and the rest of my lowers have roll-out bottom shelves with a small lip for one-finger access, and full-extension heavy-duty glides for heavier pots and casseroles.

  • 6 years ago

    I love the ease and functionality of drawers. We have pretty much all drawers, except for two lower cabinets with pull outs. I like the look of some variation between doors and drawers and it helped a tiny bit on the budget. We like the added height it gives us to store our InstantPot and mixer (not shown bc it is currently on the counter). These would not have fit in drawers. I have basement storage, but I did not want to go down there to get these things all the time. So, it depends on what you want to store. Drawers are awesome and given a bigger kitchen I would have more of them, but I also like a couple cabinets with doors to give you some flexibility for height. We use our drawers for most of our everyday items...pots and pans, food storage, and I've even converted to keeping our daily dishes and bowls in drawers.




  • 6 years ago

    In my last house I did 2 cabs with pullouts, the rest drawers. This kit has all 3 drawers, graduate heights.

  • 6 years ago

    I K, If you decide that you want a chef's drawer it will work best in a two drawer base so that you can store your tallest bottles. A three-tier shelf makes it easy to see the labels on the shorter bottles. I like a four-drawer base for spices, small prep bowls, cutting mats, graters, mixing bowls, sieves, and colanders. Another tip I learned on here is to put pullouts under the sink. If you have a disposal it is easiest to do this with a sink that has an offset drain.



  • PRO
    6 years ago

    Check the measurements on your appliances. I can fit every Cuisinart, toaster, Air Fryer etc in my drawers. I only see the necessity for a slide-out shelf if perhaps a Kitchen Aid Mixer will not fit.

  • 6 years ago

    I have mostly drawers, except under my sink and one double cabinet with sliding drawers. I love all the extra functionality drawers afford. Easier on the back and better use of space.

    The double cabinet rolling shelves works fine for me and I am glad the designer added them. She didn't want the look of all drawers. For me I find that they are very functional and they are adjustable, which drawers are not. I store all my odds and ends, my dog's food and on the bottom shelf infrequently used bake ware. I say they have their place.

  • 6 years ago

    I would want a two drawer base for keeping my flour bin in the top one in what would be my baking area. Open lid and use the flour right from its storage location.

  • 6 years ago

    You could make the bottom drawer much deeper than the top drawer and visible but before you do, consider what you usually keep in your kitchen... what would YOU put in the drawers you are considering? Size your cabinets/drawers to meet your storage needs. What items do you now have in a place you consider awkward?

    Do remember that you could add a "drawer" or two behind a cabinet door -- a deep box on drawer rails on the bottom (shelf) of a cabinet equals a drawer ... just one that you don't see -- and it can be as deep as you like. A shallow shelf above could hold baking/cookie sheets, pizza pans, trays.

  • 6 years ago

    Do also consider vertical drawers as an option; they could even by refrigerator height -- a pantry by a wall or refrigerator.

  • 6 years ago

    If your objective is cost saving and/or symmetry, you could put one drawer at the top of all cabinets -- make each of them deep enough to hold all your cooking utensils (deeper than for just holding knives/forks/spoons for eating) then put cabinet doors below and then build bottom drawers hidden inside some of the cabinets (located where you will find them most useful) but leaving the middle of the cabinet a shelf -- one you can see and reach into without getting down on your knees.

  • 6 years ago

    Drawers

  • PRO
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I agree with mostly drawers on the bottom. I am not a fan of putting my dishes in a drawer. I still like them behind my upper cabinet doors. I don't like the idea of only 2 drawers on the base mixed with 3 drawers. I think it looks odd. I'd keep mostly 3 drawer bases (smaller top drawer and 2 deeper below) and then add 1 or two base cabinets to store your kitchen aid mixer and other heavy things that may be a bit awkward for the drawers. So in your pictures above, I'd make cabinets 3 and 6, both look like the ones besides them with 3 drawers and leave the other base cabinets the way you have them.

  • 6 years ago

    I've never had a 2-drawer base, so it seems odd -- all our bakeware and storage stuff fit in one of the large drawers in a 3-drawer base. However, we have pans in a lazy susan, so don't need the deeper storage for saucepans, and we have all our bottles in an upper lazy susan or in the pantry, so again, not using the deeper stuff -- if you want those things in drawers too, then at least one bank of 2 might be good; base the decision on functionality, not symmetry.




  • 6 years ago

    Consider use and then let define the space. I went with 36” wide because I wanted all silverware and dishes to fit into one cabinet.

  • 5 years ago

    I agree.. all drawers.. even under the sink. That looks awesome!.
    I went with some ROT but they make the cabinet smaller. Next go around all drawers!!!

    I have my dishes in drawers and love it. I used the pegs to divide. Much easier looking down than up.

    good luck

  • 5 years ago

    What did you end up doing in your kitchen?