As kitchen buyers, we now have an unprecedented choice of materials and finishes for our cabinets. In fact, homeowners with a taste for the contemporary are more and more often choosing to go with lacquer or laminate cabinets to achieve a sleek look.
Wood Kitchen Cabinets: Beautiful AND Functional
When it comes to elegance and beauty, nothing beats wood. There is something really special about the texture and subtle variety that a living material like wood can bring to an interior. Plus, wood has the extraordinary ability to make a space look modern and edgy while giving it much-needed warmth.
But that’s not all. Wood is also durable and resistant, and, thanks to today’s manufacturing technologies, wood kitchen cabinets can be a very practical solution. Let’s look at two popular types of wood cabinet doors and their characteristics.
Wood Veneer Cabinet Doors
Wood veneer doors are composed of a core in solid wood or particle board, which is then covered with veneer – thin sheets of wood treated to guarantee surface protection and produce beautiful aesthetic effects. The result is a door that looks like 100 percent solid wood but is even better than that because:
– The veneer treatment gives the ability to eliminate odd-looking defects in the wood.
– It is more economic and uses less wood overall.
– It is resistant to chipping and deformation.
– It is easy to clean using a soft wet cloth (with or without a non-abrasive detergent), and wiping it dry is enough.
Melamine Wood Cabinet Doors
Melamine wood cabinet doors are another elegant and cost-effective option. Melamine doors can have a core in solid wood with support in particle panel covered with a sheet of smooth melamine. The melamine finish can be chosen to produce the desired effect, including wood.
Melamine wood doors have very functional characteristics as they are:
– hard, compact and homogeneous
– non-porous and hygienic
– resistant to scratches, humidity, chipping, stains and wear
– resistant to light and regular heat
– flammable only if coming in direct contact with fire
Cleaning melamine doors is also very practical. Regular cleaning can be done with a soft cloth and a non-abrasive surface cleaner. When the door gets dirtier, you can use a glass cleaner with soft sponge or brush, making sure to dry up the liquid well to avoid leaving halos or other marks. Limestone residues can be removed with a wet cloth, and vinegar ink stains can go away by rubbing them gently with an alcohol-soaked cloth.
No matter what you like, chances are a kitchen with wood cabinets is going to have the right mix of character, variety and functionality to statisfy you – and then some!
– By Amy Biller, Kitchen Trends Expert, Snaidero USA
