The choice of cabinet style is an integral part of creating a modern look in the kitchen.
The cabinet doors and overlay style, hardware choices, finish, materials, and even the color all require specific directions a modern kitchen cabinet must take in order to be considered “modern.” The look associated with modern is flat, sleek, and unadorned with plenty of lines running along a horizontal axis. The grain of natural wood and the look of veneer are often the only texture and ornamentation to be found in a modern space. Many modern kitchens showcase beautiful cabinets that become the centerpiece of the room.
Natural wood finishes, flat-panel doors , and simple hardware pulls are all elements that work together to create the look of modern cabinets in this Case Design kitchen remodel. Frameless cabinets with flat panel doors, sleek hardware, horizontal lines, and ornamentation through natural materials are the main aesthetic points to look for in modern cabinets for kitchen remodels. Color choices can help support the look of a modern kitchen as well.
1. Frameless cabinets with flat-panel doors
Frameless cabinets have minimal framing on the inside face so that cabinet doors overlay the outer frame to create a flat, continuous look. The design is more economical because it doesn’t waste space with framing and it makes cabinet boxes look and feel bigger.
Flat panel doors work hand-in-hand with the frameless design of a modern cabinet, by helping create a sleek and continuous look. The frosted glass panels on the wall cabinets contrast the composite wood veneer panels underneath, a common style element in modern kitchens.
2. Sleek hardware
Modern cabinets tend to have little to no hardware and simple, sleek pulls when applicable. Flat or tubular pulls, C and J-channel pulls, recessed pulls, and tab pulls are all common hardware styles found on modern kitchen cabinets.
It’s common for the pulls on modern cabinets to extend the horizontal length of the cabinet parallel to the wood grain.
3. Horizontal lines
The cabinet layout and fine lines visible between flat-paneled cabinet doors are often the strongest horizontal elements found in a modern kitchen. Modern kitchen layouts tend to be long rather than tall when it comes to cabinetry and appliances, and the cabinet pulls are often laid horizontally as well to support the aesthetic and eliminate the horizontal-vertical axis.
How many horizontal elements can you find in this kitchen? The island, cabinets, and inlaid cook station all support the horizontal theme of this modern kitchen by Thirdstone Inc.
4. Ornamentation through natural materials
From the floors to the cabinets and even the countertops, you’ll find a lot of natural wood grains in a variety of light to dark finishes in modern kitchens. The patterns and visual textures of the wood allow some adornment to creep into modern kitchen design elements, providing that hint of decoration every space demands.
Wood floor and cabinet finishes often contrast one another in a modern kitchen design, although the horizontal lines are consistent in both. The rift-cut wood of the cabinetry is a common element in modern kitchens as well, adding visual interest to the flat surfaces.
The wood grain and pattern becomes the aesthetic focal point and element of color in this otherwise stark white modern kitchen. The fine veins in the marble countertops and backsplash are another element of natural beauty common in modern kitchens.
5. Color
As you may have noticed in many of the images above, modern kitchen designs seem to lack color. The colorless aesthetic helps maintain the sleek, clean, and simple look of modern kitchen cabinetry while allowing the beauty of natural materials to shine through as the room’s focal point. But not all modern spaces integrate nature’s patterns and textures into the aesthetic, and this is where color can take center stage.
Turquoise paint and a lacquer finish support the sleek look of modern and make these cabinets the kitchen’s aesthetic centerpiece.
This modern kitchen explodes with color and contains no natural elements whatsoever, even though a simple white finish was chosen for the cabinetry.
