Cabinets can be a very versatile part of interior design, giving you storage and a flat surface while also looking fancy and offering some added function to your home. They can be a very convenient alternative to larger storage options and are often the missing piece to complete a room that is not quite perfect.
Of course, like any furniture in your home, you want to buy something that looks and feels right. Whether you are thinking of something ornate and fancy or something straightforward and simple, finding the right cabinets is important. But what types of cabinets are there?
Side Tables and Bedside Tables
While a side table is not always going to be a cabinet in the conventional sense, many of them have built-in cabinets or storage areas that can help you to stay organized. A good bedside table, for example, will not only be sturdy and aesthetically pleasing, but it can also include a drawer where you can put your items away safely.
If you are after something that you can keep next to a bed or chair for easy-access storage, as well as a simple but useful flat surface, then these are an ideal choice. They might be simple and usually quite small, but they can work incredibly well for a lot of different rooms.
These tables are ideal as a general-purpose piece of furniture, offering a range of benefits while also being relatively small. They shine when placed near beds and seating, but they can also fit quite nicely into corridors, bathrooms, or even smaller living rooms.
Retro Cabinets
Retro cabinets usually call back to classic styles, meaning things like rounded designs or bright and vivid colors. These can be good options for certain modern retro themes, but you need to consider if this is going to be the right fit for your home. These can be good options for certain modern retro themes, but you need to consider if this is going to be the right fit for your home.
Many retro cabinets still function in the exact same way as modern designs, offering the same benefits with no real downsides other than their older style. Of course, this depends entirely on the design and whether or not the cabinet is actually from that period or just a retro replica.
Genuine older cabinets tend to be made with older materials and might be lacking certain coatings or convenience features that modern high-end cabinets provide. Retro options are usually more in line with modern standards and are simply trying to recreate the older style.
Ornate Cabinets
Some cabinets are all about the visual design, offering an ornate and luxurious look and feel that can suit any high-end space. They can be a great option to spruce up a space with a very fancy design and often have a good amount of storage to offer.
However, not all ornate or unique cabinet designs are going to work as well. Some are designed primarily for looks, sacrificing a lot of storage space in return for a unique design or an interesting overall shape that makes them a highlight of whatever room they are placed in.
A well-designed cabinet can make or break a space depending on how stylish it is, but you also want to make sure that you are choosing one that matches your aesthetic needs. Just buying any nice-looking cabinet will not necessarily give you one that fits with your room’s overall feel and atmosphere.
Glass-Front Cabinets
Some cabinets offer a more contemporary look by adding a glass front. They can make a room look much more modern and sleek and are an ideal choice for displaying collections or memorabilia.
They can work particularly well in living rooms or other common areas, providing a display space for anything that you would like to show off. Most importantly, they provide a way to display things without leaving them exposed to the open air, keeping them away from dust, grime, and children’s curious hands.
The only real problem with glass cabinets is that they show everything off. Cramming too much into them can make them look busy or even outright messy, especially if you have gone for completely clear glass rather than frosted glass. This means that the display aspect can be much more important.
Open Cabinets
Open cabinets are either an amazing choice or a terrible one, depending on the context of where you are placing them and how you want to use them. These are cabinets with no door or window pieces in the main body, instead leaving the shelves open and fully visible.
These cabinets are ideal for things that you might want to display out in the open or for anything that you might need to quickly locate and grab at a moment’s notice. This can make them good for kitchens, hobby workspaces, or even home offices, depending on your needs.
However, they also offer very little privacy and security unless they have a separate section with drawers or a door. This means that anything you store in them is going to be a lot more visible and that things could fall off the shelves at any moment if you do not place them in a safe way.
This, obviously, depends on where they are placed. It might not matter if you have an open cabinet as a bedside table, like some of these cabinets here from Homes Direct, but there are certain cases where you want a regular cabinet for added safety and security.
There are a lot of cabinets out there to choose from, and it is impossible to break down every single design and style option in one list. However, some of the general categories above should hopefully give you an idea of what’s on offer and where to start your search.
Remember that there is no objectively best cabinet design on the market. Personal taste is a huge part of buying one that suits your home, so take some time to explore your options and figure out what you want.
**This is a collaborative post
