One of the benefits of working for a custom cabinet shop like Brendan Donovan Furniture & Cabinet Co. is OPTIONS! Many of the projects I work on are combinations of both manufactured and custom cabinets. We can order it. We can make it all (including doors) or we can make the cabinet boxes and order the doors. Speaking of doors, how about these doors?!If you know me you know I’m drawn to anything different, quirky, off the beaten path. I think these cabinet fronts by Maple Craft Doors fit the bill. They’re definitely at the higher end of the price spectrum but consider this: you don’t have to use them for the whole kitchen. In fact because they’re so striking less is actually more.Frank Dyck, Administrator/Sales at Maple Craft had this to say about these uber cool doors (MY COMMENTS INSERTED IN CAPS):

"We have the ability of creating a custom wood pattern that runs from door to door through the entire kitchen. (OK SO I LIED, IT CAN ALSO BE COOL TO GO ALL THE WAY) There are some limitations to how detailed we can go as far as sharp corners and such but the possibilities are endless.

All the customer has to do is send a front view of the cabinet with door/drawer sizes and a rough sketch of their artwork. (JUST THINK, YOUR ART ON YOUR CABINETS!!)

We do the final drawing, send back for confirmation and as soon as we have confirmation, production is about 14 working days.

This is also something that the general public has for the most part not seen." (YOU'VE GOT THAT RIGHT. I WAS HARD PRESSED TO FIND OTHER EXAMPLES)

I did find this leaf-pattern rosewood inlay side board from One King's Lane. I love it and it's perfect if you're going for a Mid-Century vibe. (In fact, I also discovered this treasure trove of cabinet curiosity on Pinterest.)

Another original fun door I spied at Maple Craft Door is the Hilton. Each door and drawer panel is custom programmed. By doing this, they create a random pattern over the whole kitchen.

So what do you think? How crazy are you willing to go in the kitchen? It's beautiful and unique but will you love it in 20 years? I believe this creativity could be timeless.

Don't get excited. Skins are what we sometimes call wood veneers, or super thin sheets of material used to cover cabinet doors or panels instead of using solid wood. As clean lines and contemporary styling continues to increase in popularity, surfaces themselves become the ornamentation and focal interest in a kitchen. The use of interesting wood grain veneers which are both beautiful and unique, is an excellent way to make a simple slab door stand out.
Many of my clients are surprised to learn that this is can actually be a more expensive option compared to a solid wood door. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that these veneers, or skins, are often made from exotic wood and secondly this can be a labor intensive process, thus the increased cost. The advantage being you can "control" the wood grain, so to speak, creating patterns that match up with each other. So if the unexpected randomness of natural wood grain makes your pits sweat this could be a good alternative for you.Another option if exotic wood veneers are too rich for your blood is something called "engineered wood veneers". These are man made skins that replicate the exotics using not-so-exotic woods. The material cost is a lot less and in many cases it's hard to tell the difference.If you still love more traditional styling, veneers can still be useful for you. A traditional 5 piece door benenfits greatly from a center panel that is veneer rather than solid wood. The reason is that the veneer is applied to a dense MDF substrate that will not expand and contract the way solid wood does, thus the center panel will not ever swell cracking open the seams or shrink resulting in a lose rattling center panel.One of my favorite traditional doors made here at Brendan Donovan Furniture & Cabinet Co. is this Sapele Mahogany door with a Rosewood veneer center panel.Another way to get the look without blowing your budget is to mix it up. Just use the veneer on, for example, your upper cabinet doors. The more intricate the graining the stronger the statement. In other words, a little goes a long way. Too much and it becomes busy and you lose the concept of focal point.

If your kitchen design involves round radius shapes it's going to involve wood veneer which can be bent and moulded to conform as needed. Another beautiful effect can be achieved through the use of marketry, or inlay. In researching this post I came across the amazing work of Juli Morsella. Talk about adding a little art to your kitchen! In addition, Juli is committed to using reclaimed woods, eco-friendly materials and she donates 10% of her earnings to environmental causes.

If you're interested in using wood veneers (or not) for your kitchen I would love to hear from you! Congrats to Amy Parrag of Eye See Pretty. She is the winner of the Orgaline drawer organizer giveaway!

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