Why the dropped beams in the kitchen and you do not mention how high the ceiling is in the kitchen where th wall cbinets go and why crown molding is needed . IMO agap above cabinets is just a dust collector and a 9" soffit is just ugly but if the beams need to stay then that soffit needs to be an extensin of the beam work so whatever size the beams are is the size and style of the soffit.

Soffits faced with cherry and trimmed with crown molding, so they look like part of the cabinets. As Patricia Colwell said, a gap is just something you have to clean.

@Patricia Colwell Consulting I added the ceiling heights to the question. Ceiling height is 8'-7". Dropped beam is at ~7'-9". Crown molding on the wall is not needed, but ties it together with the styling of the home. I think the true question is for the structural engineer why a dropped beam is needed. I tend to agree it just needs to match the styling of the dropped beam.

@mcarroll16 If the soffits are faced with cherry, then I think they will conflict with the beam and also make a heavy looking framing around the sink and hood by having cherry above it. I don't think we like that look.

Thanks for your thoughts!

Agree on the heaviness--I wouldn't place a soffit across the sink or across the hood. I would just build boxes above each cabinet, only as deep as the cabinet, and returning to the wall at the sink and hood area. If you do that and face with cherry, it will very finished and seamless. But drywall and paint is fine, and much better than a narrow gap at the top.

How to handle things above the fridge is still a tricky question. Are you running that wider soffit all the way across the living room?

I would take the cabinets all the way to the ceiling and have the crown continue from walls to cabinets to look seamless. It appears that the dropped beam would intersect the cabinet in the space between the refrigerator and the other cabinets, so it could "end" there and look sort of like it was intended to be there. What we did in our kitchen is have the double crown above the cabinets = the height of the beam, so the beams only intersect with the crown and don't go down into the cabinets. I couldn't get our beam to line up with the edge of the cabinet (moving it would have thrown off all the light spacing, other beams, etc.)

Here are a couple of Houzz pictures I found when I was trying to figure out how to handle our dropped beam (ours runs across the middle of the fridge). Not necessarily recommending these particular treatments. Just putting them up as options. The first picture is how I would handle the window and hood areas, if you do use soffits.

Wellborn Cabinet · More Info

Colonial Williamsburg Inspired Kitchen Remodel · More Info

Cross-posting at the same time as BW_TX. What a beautiful way to handle beam and cabinet intersection!

We have 11 foot ceilings. I agree with @BW_TX to go to the ceiling eith cabinetry. that is what we are doing because I absolutely hate the dust collecting gap above cabinetry and dislike the look of soffits.

Obviously, the complicating factor is that the refrigerator and double ovens are on the other side of the beam and you have two beams. I don't like the look of a huge space of soffit in the living area in option one and the lack of soffit in number two.

I would finish the soffit over the cabinets like cabinets, but not extend beyond the cabinets. The beams can be totally different, maybe rustic, not necessarily matching the cabinets. In fact I would make them different.

I hope my drawing is clear.

@BW_TX and @mcarroll16 A complicating factor is that we want the wall crown to be white and the cabinet crown to be cherry. I have yet to see a photo of a good intersection of cabinet and wall crown of different materials. I think your beam into the crown works because the cabinets match the wall crown and the beam is a similar shading to the crown.

It seems that general opinion is that we should have cabinets to the ceiling (or make soffits covered by cabinet faces). But I guess the result is that we should eliminate the ceiling/wall crown (a feature that we like).

@houssaon yes, that beam is really annoying by going through the floor to ceiling cabinets! The soffit above the ovens is there to work with the fireplace off the screen to the right! Just another complicating factor....

This discussion has been really helpful so far! This evening I might model cabinets to the ceiling.

I'd go with the gap. Get yourself a duster on a pole and the dusting is simple.

I always hear how having space above cabinets is a dust collector but then these same people put lights above their island that are far more of a nightmare to dust than a flat surface on top of a cabinet.

Good luck, i am sure youll figure out something that works that you’ll like. i spent many late nights worring about beam spacing, beam size, intersections, etc but it finally worked out. Our carpenters actually were really helpful in figuring out a solution as they are the ones that would actually have to make it happen.

Too often, cabinets-to-the-ceiling people forget that you've got to have a dead level ceiling. Absolutely if you're doing crown mold.

Ah, 2 colors of crown molding does complicate things. I can see why you are leaning towards soffits in that case.

@vinmarks I'm also not concerned about dust. We have cabinets with a gap above in our condo and I have never cleaned up there and never think about it!

@BW_TX Thanks for the wisdom having gone through this process! With supply chain issues, everything is harder as we need to order cabinets before framing is up!

I spoke with our architect and if we move our HVAC into the attic, we can remove the soffits AND dropped beams in the kitchen! Below is my rough rendering of what that looks like. We think it looks better and also now the ovens are closer to the kitchen and not separated. Still need to figure out cabinet face details, etc, but I think this looks the best.

I would be nice to have some ceiling detail to separate it from the living room like the beam did, but I think that is a nice to have and not really needed.

That looks so much better! If you want a ceiling detail, you could add a false beam that crosses the room at the boundary, w/o intersecting cabinets. Google "box beams." Hollow beams that are lighter weight and cheaper than solid wood beams.

@mcarroll16 Thanks! We would do a hollow beam, but there is not a great spot since the living room space and the end of the oven cabinets don't line up well (see floor plans). We will have to explore other ways to break up the ceiling. Maybe we can do it with lighting, etc. For another day!

@Joseph Corlett, LLC I am opting for cabinets to the ceiling in a kitchen where i know the ceiling is not dead level. i have a flat vertical trim piece that is supposed to vary in reveal so that the crown is flush. I realize if there are small areas of depressions in the ceiling that the crown won’t be perfectly against the celing but i can accept that. It will be new drywall.

is that the wrong apporach?

(Now panicking as I am placing my cabinet order later today. 8.33 ft ceilings with 42” cabinet uppers)

If it's new drywall on the ceiling, there is no excuse for it not being dead level.

@tailer426 that's a great space! Please post pictures when it's finished.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC thanks! I probably shouldn’t post in the middle of the night, lol.

i was thinking about the height difference of ine cor wr of the kitchen from the other, but yes, the new drywall will be a very level surface.

Didn’t mean to hijack this thread. look forward to seeing pics of the finished kitchen!