Parts of a Cabinet: Everything You Need to Know

At first glance a cabinet seems like a simple object: just a box that holds your everyday kitchen and bathroom necessities. However, on closer examination, cabinets are more complex, containing numerous intricate parts that must work in harmony to provide function and aesthetic appeal. Of course, it’s not important for homeowners to know the intricacies of their cabinets. But, if you’re planning to hire a professional to provide a service, such as cabinet refacing or refinishing, knowing the different parts of your cabinets will enable you to ask the right questions and find a contractor that you can trust. In this brief primer, we’ll explore the different parts of a cabinet, providing you with everything you need to know.

Parts of a Cabinet Box

This is the part of the cabinet that is mounted to the wall and is where items are placed. It is the largest component of the cabinet and consists of:

Back, Side, Top & Floor Panels

These panels make up the basic structure of the cabinet box. The top, side, and floor panels are connected to create the box, and they are all connected to a single back panel to ensure structural stability. It is critical that these components are attached correctly from durable materials to ensure the cabinet will remain secure and stable over the long term.

Face Frame

The face frame is affixed to the front of the cabinet box, providing a decorative element that obscures the box’s edges. It’s important to note that simpler cabinet styles often don’t have this component. This is called a “frameless cabinet.”

Parts of a Cabinet Door & Drawer Front

Cabinet doors and drawer fronts range from extremely simple to complex. For example, slab cabinet doors are made up of a single slab of wood, providing a minimalistic appearance. However, more ornate doors are often composed of framing around a central panel. Parts can include:

• Stiles – The vertical parts of the door or drawer frame to the left and right of the central panel
• Rails – The horizontal parts of the door or drawer frame to the top and bottom of the central panel
• Frame beading – An optional, decorative inside edge of the door or drawer frame.
• Panel – The central part of the door or drawer front that is surrounded by the stile and rail framing

Hardware

Cabinet hardware is another component that varies can widely in terms of style and functionality. Most cabinets will include:

• Door and drawer pulls – These often-decorative components are mounted to the front of the cabinet doors and drawers to make them easy to open and close.
• Drawer slides – A slide is made of two parts. One is mounted to the outside of the drawer box and the other on the inside of the cabinet box, and they connect so drawers can slide open and closed easily.
• Hinges – Hinges are used to hang the cabinet doors. At least two are used for each door with one part of the hinge being connected to the back inner edge of the cabinet door and the other part connected to the front inner edge of the cabinet box.

Whether you’re a DIY enthusiast planning to work on your cabinetry yourself, or you’d simply like to communicate effectively with a professional you’ve hired to update your cabinetry, getting to know the anatomy of your cabinets is a critical step to ensuring you get results that you love.

Hire Home Solutions by Kurtis to Upgrade Your Cabinets

At Home Solutions by Kurtis, we are experts in all things cabinetry and specialize in providing updates that are affordable alternatives to full-scale replacement. For example, our cabinet refacing service involves replacing the doors and drawer fronts of your cabinetry with custom-crafted components and applying a veneer to the boxes, completely transforming their style. We also offer a 7-point refinishing service, which restores every part of your cabinets to the former glory. Our detail-oriented solutions address all visible parts of the cabinet, making them look and function like new. Contact us today to learn more.