And ignore the colors shown, they are just to illustrate. I am going with that dark blue dividend band alabaster (creamy white) for cabinets.

Alabaster cabinets, dark blue island (ignore the AutoCorrect)

All the base cabs are usually wide drawer units for best function. Show some drawer fronts for these styles.

I don't think #2 and #4 differentiate themselves much from Shaker with just a bevel instead of a square edge. When I did my first Shaker kitchen --28 years ago--, #2 was the version of "Shaker" that the less expensive line of the cabinets I was looking at had, because at that time it was less expensive for the company to produce, maintain, and ship doors without the more square edge of the shaker, because you could use stock with less than perfect edges if you were putting some kind of detail that removed wood from the edges. At least that's what I was told.

Now that Shaker is almost the default door in any kitchen I'm sure that's changed but I always associate the less square edge with a less expensive door.

#1 and #3 are just recessed panel doors. The 1830s -1840 houses I lived in had #3, the ogee edged recessed panel.

If you truly don’t want square-edge Shaker, I would go with the second one for a transitional house. Honestly… the others just look like dated recessed panel doors from the 1980’s and 90’s. The beveled edge Shaker - #2 - doesn’t look too modern to me! Dan1888 is asking a good question, though: What about drawer fronts?

Mine are kind of like #3, i certainly wouldn’t call them shaker. I call them grime-collectors. I sure would like slabs, I may have to weigh what suits the house versus what I want.

I like the second ones - they look like shaker cabinets, but don’t have the dust-catcher horizontal surface. We’ve done something similar (slightly less angled) in our last two kitchens.

Hey simpsonc! I’m helping a friend with their kitchen remodel, and your post totally resonated we’ve been going back and forth on these exact cabinet styles.

They were originally drawn to the beaded edge too it felt sweet and added a little charm. But after thinking it through, they started to worry it might lean a bit too “country” for the transitional look they’re going for. The beveled edge (#2) is now the front-runner. It still feels classic, but has just enough detail to make it interesting without being too modern.

They’re doing alabaster cabinets with a dark blue island (love that combo, by the way!), so the beveled edge adds a nice touch without competing with the colors. And thanks for the reminder about drawer fronts definitely something we’ll keep in mind.

Appreciate everyone’s thoughts here it’s been super helpful!