Kitchen cabinet design offers many options ensuring that every one doing a renovation can find the perfect cabinets for their kitchen. Understanding the basic components of design will help you narrow the variety of options and simplify the decision. Some of these components are construction quality issues and others are related to kitchen style and personal taste.

The first two components we will consider are construction quality matters. The other two relate to kitchen style, dcor and individual preferences.

1. The materials used to build your cabinets. Material will determine much about the appearance of your cabinets. Because of the great range in design, you have several choices:

- Metal can be both expensive and heavy. Some metals - especially the ones used in our parents’ or grandparents’ kitchens - were subject to rust. Metal can leak chemicals into food stored in the cabinets and make the food unhealthy. Metal cabinets also show dents and scratches. Metal can have color baked on or it can be painted. It is not a popular choice today in kitchen cabinet design. If metal cabinets are used, they are most suited to a contemporary style kitchen.

- Wood combinations. Some cabinet makers use less expensive wood, such as plywood or pine, to build the cabinet case and then use doors and exterior panels of better or more expensive wood. Some also use particle board or other composite materials. Any wood cabinets can be painted in the color of your choice. You can use a glossy finish or a matte finish for your perfect cabinet.

- Solid wood cabinets are built completely of finished, high-quality wood, such as hickory, oak, maple or more expensive woods like walnut or mahogany. Traditional and country style kitchens might use a dark wood, such as cherry, mahogany, walnut or ebony. Contemporary kitchens tend to use lighter color woods such as birch, alder or maple. You will want to consider the color, the grain of the wood and the finish applied to the wood. Good cabinets are finished with several coats of polyurethane to protect the wood. Wood is the most popular material used.

2. Low quality cabinets are often put together with glue or with nails or staples. This is not a good idea (if you have the choice) because under the heavy use of kitchen cabinets and drawers, they will not last. High quality cabinets will be joined with dove tail construction. This is the most important construction component.

3. Door Style. There are many types and designs in cabinet doors. The door style is the primary determiner. For example, a contemporary kitchen would almost demand a flat panel door design. Raised panel design, on the other hand, is the preferred door style for a traditional style kitchen. Other designs include these door styles: reveal-overlay panel, frame and panel, beaded frame and panel, square raised panel, curved raised panel, bead board panel and cathedral panel.

4. Accessories include knobs and handles, organization gadgets, accessibility options and specialty adaptations. Knobs and handles should match both the style of the kitchen and the other metals visible in the kitchen. Many gadgets and dividers can be installed in drawers and cabinets to organize the contents. Accessibility items include sliding trays, top mounted racks or spinning units to make it easier to reach things in the cabinets. Specialty adaptations are changes made to make cabinets fit over refrigerated drawers or bar refrigerators, and other specialty items.

Understanding these basics of kitchen cabinet design you will be better informed, ask better questions, and limit the number of cabinet styles you consider in order to a choose cabinets for your kitchen renovation.

Scott Dostal is the owner of Kitchen Cabinet Value, LLC, Clinton Township, MI, serving SE Michigan. Get his free report on kitchen cabinet design and how to buy kitchen cabinets that contain the quality and appearance of top of the line custom cabinets at substantially below the retail price.