Doors — the key to kitchen decor

Press, 18 February 1983, Page 11

Doors — the key to kitchen decor

Although colours can set the mood of your kitchen, the power to establish the style rests primarily with the design of the doors. Only they can give your kitchen the rustic, old-world charm of a by-gone era. the pure sheen of a futuristic apartment or the grace of a manor house. You have to consider your own personal taste, the overall styling of the home and changing trends because one day you may want somebody else to buy your house and enjoy your kitchen as much as you did. The day of the frame door, with painted hardboard facing. has long gone, and today's kitchen cupboard door is usually based on a flat, rigid panel of particle board or fibre board. Surface treatment can vary, according to your taste. Particularly popular where the warm, homely look of natural timber is desired is the lamination under heat and pressure of natural timber veneers to particle board or Customwood, producing a true

timber finish at a price which could not possibly be matched in solid timber. Also well established in the field is Beautyboard, a product of the Formica company. comprising a resintreated surface material printed with wood-grain patterns and bonded to Customwood. This selection of 12 woodgrains is designed to provide a perfect mix and match with contemporary decor schemes, and Beautyboard is proving to be extremely popular for kitchen cupboard doors in the medium-price range. A further variation is introduced by the use of a laminate of the Formica or Laminex type bonded to particle board with a secondary laminate of the D.A.P. type, usually white, on the inside. An interesting service now offered by some kitchen builders associated with the Building Centre is re-dooring. This comprises the replacement of existing doors with a new, modern style using the face-mounted hinging system.