The majority of our kitchen remodel and refacing clients end up going with a Raised Panel door.  There are no right or wrong answers amongst the doors – it’s all a matter of personal taste.  If you want to stay more ‘inside the box’ design wise – the Raised Panel door is the way to go.

Here’s a common example of a Raised Panel door:

Here’s a great example of a Raised Panel door kitchen:

Coming up next, we’ll take a closer look at your next key descision after your door style – the countertops.

Contact Republic West today for Scottsdale custom cabinet designs and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

After the Slab Door, the next most common door style is the Recessed Panel door.  Simply put, this is a door where the center panel “goes in.”  Here’s a very common example of a recessed panel door – the “Shaker” door:

Depending upon the wood type and hardware you choose, this door style can be used in either a more contemporary look:

Or a more classic oldworld or farmhouse look:

Or, somewhere inbetween:

As you can see, the Recessed Panel door is very versatile and certainly worth considering for your design.  Next, let’s take a look at the most common door by far – the Raised Panel Door.

Contact Republic West today for Phoenix custom cabinet designs and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

Beyond the ‘species’ of wood you choose, the next key step in designing a kitchen remodel or refacing project is the door style.  There are three major categories of doors:  Raised Panel, Recessed Panel and Slab.  We’ll start our design overview with the least common choice – the slab door.

A slab door is simply a flat piece of wood…

Slab doors are typically used in very contemporary or minimalist designs…

Depending upon the room, you can also go for a Bauhaus retro or Scandinavian modern feel.  Slab doors are striking and gorgeous, but not so common in the big picture – definitely an “outside the box” style selection.

Next, let’s take a look at the Recessed Panel door…

Contact Republic West today for AZ custom cabinet designs and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

Oak is the definition of the Craftsman look.  Any really expensive fine furniture you see designed by Frank Lloyd Wright – it’s all done in Oak.  Paradoxically, in the cabinet industry, Oak is now a very rare choice in new designs.  Perhaps because for so many years it was the only choice, people have reacted, and now it’s seldom used.  Here are some common stains in Oak:

Oak is considered to be a “high grain” wood – lots of lines to it.  In a full kitchen, you can see the classic Oak “zebra stripe” of its’ grain:

Look at the back of the island in the “after” picture of this cabinet refacing project we did in North Phoenix (above the “before” picture) and you can see a great example of the Oak grain pattern.

There you have it, the six most common kitchen remodeling and cabinet refacing wood selections… in order of popularity.  Coming up next… Door styles…

Contact Republic West today for oak kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

Hickory is very “high grain” and one of the rarer choices amongst the wood species.  It has a very rustic look – it definitely is not for every kitchen, but done right, it’s gorgeous.  First, let’s take a look at some common stains in Hickory:

Hickory has not just “high grain” but high color variation inside each door.  Take the example of this cabinet refacing project we did in Gilbert.

Notice the swirls and waves from light to dark – that’s the Hickory look.  People looking to get a more “rustic cabin” or southwestern feel for their kitchen remodel or refacing project should consider Hickory.  Also, Hickory is available with “knots” as an option.  Coming up next:  Oak.

Contact Republic West today for hickory kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

In fourth place amongst wood selections is Alder.  Alder has a “medium” grain pattern, very similar to Cherry.  Alder is a rather soft wood, similar to Pine in its “scratchability,” so people with young children or energetic pets should keep this in mind.  The upside to this softness is that stains penetrate to a very deep and gorgeous finish.  Another advantage of Alder kitchen cabinet designs in AZ is that if you’re going for a more rustic look, it has a “knotty” option like this kitchen reface project we did in North Scottsdale:

This kitchen is the perfect balance of rustic charm mixed with clean modern lines – a timeless classic!

Here’s an overview of the most popular stains in Alder:

Like all woods, how “light” or “dark” it looks is really mostly about the stain you select.  The most popular Alder color selections skew toward the middle tones – dark enough to add some character to the wood, but not so dark as to mask its’ beauty.

Coming up next, we’ll take a look at the fifth most popular wood, Hickory.

Contact Republic West today for alder kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

In a close third-place behind Birch in the wood species popularity contest is… Maple.  Maple and Birch have very similar looks, so similar that sometimes it’s hard to tell them apart.  Still, some people see a difference and prefer the look of Maple kitchen cabinet designs in AZ, despite a higher price than Birch.  Here are some examples of the most popular stains in Maple…

You can see that it’s definitely a “low grain” wood – very smooth and clean.  Like Birch, although darker stains are available, the most popular colors are on the lighter side.  Here’s a great example of a maple kitchen cabinet design in AZ…

Wow, look at that “before” photo and the “after” photo – which kitchen would you rather have?  From 70′s brown to so clean and sharp!  Coming up next, the fourth most popular wood, Alder.

Contact Republic West today for maple kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

If Cherry wood isn’t the look you’re going for in your new kitchen or bathroom, the second most popular choice is Birch.  Birch is considered to be a “low grain” wood – it has a smoother and more modern look.  Birch has a very similar look to Maple, which we’ll cover later.  Here’s a quick overview of some popular stains in Birch…

Here’s an example of a common Birch kitchen cabinet designs in AZ…

When people go with Birch, the most popular stain choices tend to be the lighter side, like this Honey reface project we did in North Phoenix.  Coming up next, we’ll cover Maple…

Contact Republic West today for birch kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.

One the most popular woods people choose for their kitchen refaces and remodels is cherry.  I think the reason for it’s popularity is that its’ “grain” (the pattern lines and swirls of a wood, note the photo below) is not the extreme of an oak or hickory and not the very slight of a birch or maple – it’s “just right.”  That said, many people’s first reaction when they think “cherry” is “it’s too dark for my kitchen.”  Which brings us to the question of stain – cherry is actually a quite light colored wood before it’s stained (note the “natural” example at the top left).  As you can see in the stain examples below – it’s really the stain choice that gives a wood its color.  Here’s an overview of the most popular stains in cherry:

While it’s true that there are plenty of “light” choices in cherry – most of our kitchen clients do go for the darker stains.  The most popular selections are “Cordovan” and “Cinnamon” – the looks you’d traditionally think of when you think “cherry.”  Light, dark or somewhere inbetween – it’s a timeless and gorgeous choice.  Next… we’ll take a look at our second most popular wood – Birch.

Contact Republic West today for cherry kitchen cabinet designs in AZ and other home improvement services including window replacement, door replacement, cabinet refacing, kitchen and bath remodeling, and room additions. Call 480-481-9595 for your free consultation.