Kitchen cabinets with glass doors are pretty tricky. You either love them or you hate them. It’s easy to dismiss the option based on nothing but an association with a style that you don’t like but don’t generalize the look.

Glass kitchen cabinet doors are more versatile and adaptable than you think plus they also have a practical side. They’re a pretty great compromise between solid cabinetry and open shelving, allowing you to organize everything neatly inside a unit and to have it put on display at the same time.

There are, of course, lots of variations based on the type of glass you choose for your cabinets.

Transparent glass is the most common and versatile of all. It suits allstyles and all kitchen types, some better than others. Simple, transparent glass for kitchen cabinet doors is the classic and safe choice in the sense that it would always look nice regardless of the latest trends.

However, there are a few things to consider in this case. Even though transparent glass is the most widely available, it shows smudges and fingerprints so you have to keep the cabinet doors clean and sparkling at all times.

Also, since the glass is transparent, it doesn’t really hide anything so everything inside the cabinets will be on display for everyone to see.

Glass cabinet fronts aren’t only for wall-mounted furniture. Your lower units can have this feature too

If you want a type of glass that at least gives the impression of hiding the contents of your kitchen cabinet, consider frosted glass.

This is a type of glass that’s blasted with sand or grit and which has a cool and sleek look, being suitable for modern decors and settings.

Keep in mind that frosted doesn’t mean opaque so perhaps your guests might not be able to distinguish the little details on the boxes and other things that you keep in your cabinets but they’ll still be able to see their silhouettes and to figure out that your cabinets are a mess when that’s actually true.

A cool thing about frosted glass, however, is the fact that it can be etched with custom patterns and designs.

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A great thing about glass cabinet doors and open shelves is that they give the room an airy and spacious feelThis is a nicely balanced design: a solid and compact unit with glass door fronts for the upper modulesYou can alternate between solid kitchen cabinets and modules with glass insertsCertain types of glass let you hide the contents of the cabinets but not completelyUse glass cabinet inserts to brighten up your kitchen and to give it an open and fresh lookTransparent glass doesn’t hide anything so think of your kitchen cabinets as display casesUse accent backlights to give your kitchen cabinets a more dramatic look and to also set a pleasant ambianceKeep in mind that you’ll have to always keep your cabinets clean and organized if you want the glass to be a good ideaIt can be a good aesthetic option to use glass for the cabinet fronts of a large unit that would otherwise look heavy

Another option is textured glass which is molded or embossed to show all sorts of patterns. This technique makes the glass stand out from a visual and tactile point of view.

There are lots of options to choose from:

Rain glass, for instance, is a lovely option but so is the ribbed, pebbled, grooved or beveled glass. Kitchen cabinets with this sort of glass cabinet front don’t usually show stains, marks and fingerprints. They also hide any streaks really well.

However, a downside is a fact that such designs can become outdated quickly.

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A particularly interesting type of glass is seeded glass which has a vintage charm that you simply can’t ignore. This type of glass features tiny bubbles and has a handcrafted look that gives it an old-fashioned appeal that usually defined vintage and cottage decors but which can also look great in traditional settings.

Then there’s alsoleaded glass which has a special type of charm. It looks elegant and it usually looks good in traditional decors, having an artisanal look. It can be stained and it can usually be found in salvage shops, flea markets or through specialty retailers.

A fun thing to do is have your glass cabinet door fronts etched or embossed with custom designs or patternsTextured glass tends to be more resilient and practical when it comes to stains or streaksNot all your kitchen cabinets have to have matching designs. Diversity is often a good thingUse solid doors to safely hide the contents of your kitchen cabinets and glass for those modules that you don’t mind putting on displayAccent lighting used in combination with glass inserts can result in some amazing aesthetic designsIt’s usually the upper, wall-mounted cabinets that make glass inserts look naturalYour dishware can become a decor element if you choose to display it in an interesting fashionGlass can be combined with a variety of other materials to create contrasts and to highlight certain design elementsAn interesting option is to have all the cabinets feature glass panels instead of solid doors, even the lower sectionsTinted glass can look really glamorous, adding a touch of color to a neutral kitchen decorIt’s important to maintain a balanced look throughout the kitchen and to not let a single feature overpower the roomPlay with different types of kitchen cabinets such as glass front ones, open modules and solid door onesBeveled glass or stained glass can look interesting in the kitchen, being particularly suited for traditional decorsSome of the modules can remain open, similar to shelves, with no doors, not even glass ones

There are obviously quite a few options to choose from when it comes to glass kitchen cabinet doors. It’s important to know what you’re looking for and to have a specific purpose in mind so you can pick the best option for you and your kitchen.

For example, if you want to put things on display, opt for transparent glass and turn your kitchen cabinets into display cases but if you’d rather have some privacy, then perhaps you should pick frosted or opaque glass.

This is a great duo of glass cabinet inserts and open shelves. They complement each other wellLight up your glass front cabinets to create a pleasant and cohesive decor and ambianceThe colors, materials and the style of the kitchen cabinets can dictate whether or not glass can be a good additionIt can be nice to add an accent color to a neutral kitchen so consider making it stand outAdd glass to a kitchen to make it look more spacious and more open, a great way to deal with the lack of spaceTexture glass is both aesthetically pleasing and interesting from a tactile point of view

Let’s say you’re quite invested in this type of look and you’d like to adopt it for your own kitchen. You don’t necessarily have to replace your old cabinets with new ones to get the look. You can just give them a makeover or you can use solid cabinets together with glass front cabinets for a contrasting look that has a big visual impact.

U-shaped kitchens, although they have plenty of counter space and are great in terms of functionality, can sometimes feel a bit too enclosed because of the layout. It’s a good idea to avoid emphasizing that with closed upper cabinets. Include a few modules that have glass doors or introduce open shelves to break the pattern and to create a more airy décor. This lovely design by studio Hendley & Co is pretty well-balanced in this sense.

These cabinets look perfectly at home in this beautiful kitchen. They go all the way up taking advantage of the high ceiling but they don’t look too big or bulky. In fact, the space looks quite open and airy and the glass cabinet door have a lot to do with that. It’s also nice that the upper cabinets are white and match the walls while the lower ones stand out more.

It’s understandable to not want to expose the contents of your kitchen cabinets. At the same time, you might also recognize the advantages of glass cabinet doors or you might like the style. Frosted glass is a good compromise in this case. It still gives you that light and open feel in the room but it doesn’t totally expose everything inside. The silhouettes that can be distinguished behind the glass actually add a nice bit of mystery to the décor.

This kitchen features a really nice balance between the open and closed storage spaces. It has a lower cabinet unit with solid doors and drawers followed by a set of wall-mounted cabinets with transparent glass doors and then another enclosed module on top of that. Together with the window placed perfectly at the center of the wall this gives the kitchen asymmetrical look. {found on inhousedesigncompany}.

There are of course lots of different ways to design kitchen cabinets with glass doors and various different styles to guide this process. This one for example has a fairly eclectic look, combining elements of modern and farmhouse styles. We love the dark blue color of the lower cabinets and the clever use of space on the walls. The out studio Heidi Caillier Design for more info.

In the case of this contemporary kitchen created by Woodworks Design the wall-mounted cabinets share certain similarities to the windows. They have glass fronts which mimic the style of the window frames but with different proportions. This helps the kitchen to look very open, giving the impression that it’s surrounded by windows.

Similarly, the kitchen designed by studio Brian Stevenson Construction has these big wall-mounted cabinets placed on either side of the windows and they too have glass panels on the doors. This helps them look more lightweight and helps to visually emphasize the openness of the room and the impacts that the windows have on the décor.

Image from here.

This kitchen features a really big storage unit that covers the entire wall between the door and the windows. It seems the island is large scale as well which adds quite a bit of weight to the design. To avoid making it look too heavy, the designers used glass doors for the entire upper section of the wall unit.

The space in this kitchen designed by Studio Geiger Architecture is used very efficiently. If we look at the furniture, the functionality is maximized by the upper cabinets which add lots of storage space above the backsplash without looking too heavy.

They’re asymmetrical in order to incorporate the range hood and they have transparent glass front panels that go really well with the overall style of this space. The island is designed in the same style and it too makes the most of the limited floor space.