Framed vs. Frameless Cabinets: What is the Difference?

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Framed vs. Frameless Cabinets: What is the Difference?

Framed vs. Frameless Cabinets: What is the Difference?

If you’re shopping for cabinets or will be in the near future, you might want to consider exploring options for frameless cabinets. Not sure what the difference is from the cabinets you might be used to? We’ve got the information you need to understand your options.

Framed Cabinets: The American Standard

The most familiar cabinet construction style for most Americans is the framed cabinet. This type of cabinet has wooden framing attached to the front of the cabinet box on all four sides and usually a piece of wood framing in the center where the doors meet (called a stile). The door hinges are attached to the front framing instead of the cabinet box itself. The drawers also have framing along the edges of the cabinet box and in between the individual drawers. With framed cabinetry, you can see the wood framing around and between the doors and drawers.

Frameless Cabinets: The European Standard

The cabinet construction style less familiar to many Americans is the frameless cabinet. The frameless cabinet has been the standard in many areas of Europe for decades. With frameless cabinets, there is no framing attached to the front of the cabinet box. Instead, the hinges for doors or tracks for drawers are attached directly to the cabinet box itself. This type of cabinet construction eliminates the center stile and the framing in between and around drawers. The fronts of the doors and drawers are sized to completely cover the opening of the cabinet box in a sleek, streamlined look referred to as “full overlay”. There are no spaces between doors or drawers that show any framing or the cabinet box underneath.

Why Consider Frameless Cabinets?

Frameless cabinets are growing in popularity in America for a number of reasons. The first reason is economy of space. Without the front framing and center stile, frameless cabinets allow you to use every bit of space inside the cabinet box with no extra wood pieces to maneuver around. For example, if you have a large oval platter that you struggle to angle just right and then pivot around the center stile to actually get it into the cabinet, you will quickly see the difference in functionality with the frameless cabinet, where your large oval platter goes right in like any other sized dish.

The second reason frameless cabinets are attracting American buyers is the sleek look. When the cabinet doors and drawers all meet edge to edge without the line being broken with visible framing, the look is one that is streamlined and modern. While Europeans are used to this type of cabinetry, for Americans, frameless cabinets are fresh and stylish.

If you’re shopping for new cabinets, it’s worthwhile to investigate frameless cabinets as one of your options. The extra useable space and the sleek, fresh look might be just right for your kitchen update.