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Please help me decide which upper cabinet doors to replace/add glass

2 years ago

Hello, I have a kitchen with espresso cabinets and would like to lighten up the kitchen. I am trying to decide which upper cabinet doors to replace/ add glass too. Any suggestions which ones I should change out to glass doors. I am considering both cabinets on either side of the microwave and the two cabinets at the right end of the fridge.


Is there a pattern I need to follow to make it look cohesive. If I change all the cabinets to glass doors (except the one above microwave- it houses the vent which goes outside) will it be too much glass?


thanks in advance, Cooks.





Comments (18)

  • 2 years ago

    I would start with function. The best reasons to use glass are 1) making it easy for everyone to find dishes and glasses; and 2) show off your decorative items (this includes china or serveware you actually use). Most people want solid doors where they store the baking ingredients, cooking oils, pasta collection, etc.


    So, where in the kitchen do you store the dishes and serveware? Is there a set of cabinets that make functional sense for the dishes, and aesthetic logic for glass? My best guess is the cabinets on the DW side of the microwave. You can load dishes there straight out of the dishwasher. Or you could put glass on the cabinets to the right of the wall ovens. That seems like a a good place for serving dishes, or for barware.


  • 2 years ago

    Perhaps you can indicate your budget. I'm not sure adding glass is going to provide the lighter look you want.


    Here are some other ideas to consider. Remove the microwave and cabinet and get a chimney-style vent. That would eliminate one dark cabinet. A stainless hood is not too expensive and would lighten things up.


    Get white counters and white (or light) tile backsplash, which will reflect more light.


    Replace the bulky fridge and cabinet above with a tall, counter depth fridge. That would improve your layout and eliminate (or reduce) another dark cabinet.

  • 2 years ago

    not enough impact on fridge wall...skip it there. I'd consider seeded or frosted glass for all four on other side. [ not clear]

  • 2 years ago

    It looks to me like you have a great amount of natural light coming in. The kitchen isn't dark at all, the cupboards are, so yes removing some of the dark doors will lighten the uppers. What sort of glass are you thinking? If you went with something rather opaque like a bubble or wavy effect you could do all of them. With your configuration I don't see a 'natural'; pattern to work with. Many have them say on a bank of high small cupboards, which you don't have or just one or two where about where your cupboard bend to the right of your ovens, which won't help you really. I think it's an all or nothing in your kitchen.



  • 2 years ago

    What is the interior condition of your cabinets? Usually, when one orders custom cabinets with glass fronts, the interiors are “finished” to match the exterior so they “match.”

  • 2 years ago

    Thank you everyone for your suggestions.


    @mcarroll16 yes you are absolutely correct, I do store my dishes, mugs, bowls in the cabinets opposite the dishwasher, I would like to display those. The two cabinets on the far right next to fridge hold my glassware/barware, which I can display too.


    @latifolia thank you, yes, I was considering to remove the microwave and cabinet and add a chimney style vent. I was worried, whether it would look too boxy or closed in, in between those two cabinets. My cooktop below is 30". Coincidentally, I am also looking into white quartz counters and a backsplash to brighten things up.


    @arcy_gw I was thinking of going clear, as I would like to display the items.


    Cooks.

  • 2 years ago

    If it's a mix of clear and wood doors, I would probably do the cabinets behind the DW, OR the ones next to the oven, not both. If you want lots of glass though, maybe it would work to do clear glass doors in both of those locations, then frosted or reeded glass on the other cabinets?

  • 2 years ago

    @ptreckel the interiors are the standard light wood shelves. Something like this, seen on the far left side. I will leave the wood shelving (dont want to switch to glass shelves). Not sure if I want to match the same color inside. Something to think about, thanks.




  • 2 years ago

    @ptreckel has a very good point. The contrast of the dark cabinets and the light wood interiors will not be a great effect. You could paint or wallpaper the cabinet interior with a light color. Then your contrast would look designed and intentional

  • PRO
    2 years ago

    First get all the lighting to be LED 4000K . I agree remove that cabionet and MW and get a nice proper vented stainless hood. I like frosted glass for cabinets it hides a bit and still gives that feeling of openness IMO spending a lot of money on dated cabinets never really makes sense to me but IMO all of them or none.

  • 2 years ago

    Thank you everyone, will look at some pics to see what the frosted glass will look like. Will need to also see visually what the clear and frosted glass combo cabinets will look like, not so sure about that. Like the idea of wallpaper inside the cabinets, will look at some pics for inspiration. Thank you once again for the great ideas!

  • 2 years ago

    How would something like a two-tone look only on the upper cabinets, but the opposite trim /frame (lighter trim with darker cabinets).


    White trim/glass doors on espresso cabinets.



    North San Antonio Kitchen Remodel · More Info


  • 2 years ago

    It would be on trend to add white for sure. I find it looks like someone could not make up their mind and it's in progress. I heard you on the clear glass but since the suggestion is all of them...perhaps you need to rethink clear as I doubt you want inside every cupboard viewed. A mix can work. The opaque glass saves you fussing with the inside of the cabinetry.

  • 2 years ago

    Yes, I just looked into the seeded and frosted glass options, I seem to like them, especially those where you can choose how much transparency you want to allow. I like that you can at least see the outlines of things inside and not see anything at all.


    Cooks

  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    Before you replace the doors, try painting a front white and see how that looks.

    I like the white walls, but the uppers are too dark against the white.

    Use the same white as the walls, but do a semi-gloss finish.



  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    Just an update, this is what I have decided so far, any thoughts?



    Vent hood, leaning towards black stainless, lets see, I might change my mind to silver stainless steel too.









    Thanks, Cooks

  • 2 years ago

    Good point thank you! Didnt think of that.


    Cooks.

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