Estimated Read Time: 6 Minutes

Properly utilizing glass door cabinets can add an eye-catching decorative statement in any kitchen design. 

However, with that aesthetic flair comes a number of concerns that accompany glass cabinet doors that you may not know about. 

At Deslaurier, we have over 40 years of experience crafting custom cabinets and breathtaking kitchen designs for our clients. In that time, we’ve included glass door cabinets as a prominent accent piece for hundreds of homeowners. 

With that experience in mind, this article will detail 6 of the most common issues that go along with glass door cabinets. The purpose of this article isn’t to steer you away from choosing glass cabinets, but to  prepare you for the potential problems that could arise and equip you with helpful solutions. 

Let’s get started!

What are Glass Door Cabinets?

Glass door cabinets are often implemented as upper cabinets to highlight beautiful dinnerware or wine glasses. For that reason, they’re also quite common for bar areas or china cabinets.

There are two main cabinet door styles that incorporate glass: mullion and open frame.

Mullion cabinet doors have a glass insert with mouldings that divide an open frame. The name “mullion” actually refers to the frames that run vertically or horizontally on a window or glass door. 

Open frame cabinets have a door frame with a large glass insert in the middle. They are effectively mullion doors without the interior mouldings.

See for yourself below, with a walnut mullion door on the left and a black metal open frame door on the right.

As previously mentioned, while the purpose of this article is to highlight the common issues you will encounter with glass cabinets, it is not intended to deter you from installing them in your home. Glass cabinets are still an extremely popular cabinet style to use as a decorative kitchen accent piece, and can add a beautiful element to any kitchen.

1. Trouble Keeping the Glass Clean

Maintenance and upkeep are a big part of owning glass door cabinets. 

The primary purpose of glass doors, of course, is for visual presentation. Glass doors are meant to make an aesthetic statement. Not just the cabinetry, but the items on display inside. It’s important to ensure the glass doors remain squeaky clean.  

That’s easier said than done, of course. Fingerprints and smear marks on the glass inserts are extremely common for glass door cabinets. Especially in high-traffic areas where the cabinets are being used often. 

A great accompaniment to glass door inserts is to utilize glass shelving inside the cabinet. However, glass shelving will show dust accumulation much more than regular shelves. Especially with inside-cabinet lighting (more on that below), dust will be much more noticeable than it would be in a typical cabinet. 

Routine cleaning is an important part of owning these types of cabinets. But some cleaning products can use harsh chemicals or leave your glass doors with streaks. 

We have just the thing to help keep your glass cabinets in tip-top shape! Check out our Learning Centre for our article on How to Clean Kitchen Cabinets. 

2. Messy and Cluttered Cabinet Interior 

When it comes to the contents inside glass door cabinets, clutter is enemy number one. What you’re going to be displaying – primarily dinnerware and glassware – needs proper arrangement to be presentable and on display. 

Many homeowners start out with a prim and proper display cabinet, only to find themselves slowly neglecting the contents inside. Cramming wine glasses together, lacking organization, ultimately treating them like any other kitchen cabinet. 

But not to worry, there is an easy solution to get ahead of a messy cabinet before it even happens!

For those that don’t find the value in consistently maintaining the insides of their cabinets, or homeowners that are not-so-organized in the first place, clear glass inserts may seem like more of a chore than anything else!

In that scenario, leaded (commonly referred to as crystal), acid wash, mirror, or frosted glass inserts may be a more appealing design choice. 

Below is a visual of just a handful of the glass varieties offered at Deslaurier:

These glass types still offer the allure of glass material, but visually mask the items behind them—so you don’t always need to have everything inside your cabinets neatly arranged!

3. They Have Design Limitations 

When it comes to design flexibility, glass door cabinets are more limited than most other styles. 

As we’ve mentioned, they are more of an accent piece. You wouldn’t outfit your entire kitchen cabinetry system with glass doors. Further, they are primarily intended for upper cabinet use – keeping things at eye-level so they are fully on display – so they won’t commonly be used for base cabinets, especially not in a busy space like the kitchen. 

In terms of design style, glass door cabinets have a timeless appeal that oftentimes shoehorns them into somewhat of a more traditional design taste. 

While they’re offered in all of our wood species and MDF, they will restrict you from accessing the entire product catalogue. Materials from our modern line, such as thermofoil, PET, or textured melamine, won’t be available for glass cabinets. 

As well, not every door style is available for glass door cabinets. There is no version of a modern slab-style door when it comes to glass cabinets. If you’re leaning toward a glass cabinet with a modern flair to it, you’ll have to go with something like a stainless steel or black metal door. 

Not that that’s a bad thing! Look at these stunning cabinets with black metal frames and glass inserts: 

The downside to metal door frames, however, is they are even more expensive than regular mullion or open frame glass doors made from wood or MDF. Further adding to the cost of an already pricey door style. 

4. Adding Interior Cabinet Lighting 

Inside-cabinet lighting helps accentuate the decorative items on display behind glass door cabinets. Since the point of glass cabinetry is to display the contents inside, adding a little extra light can go a long way! 

While you don’t need interior cabinet lighting, many homeowners opt for it when installing glass door cabinets. Especially if you have included glass shelving, you’ll certainly want adequate lighting for your cabinet interior. 

That being said, including internal cabinet lighting isn’t a quick fix. 

Your interior cabinet lighting must be installed by a licensed electrician. Nearly every home improvement project needs a qualified electrical contractor on the scene. Installing inside-cabinet lighting is certainly no exception. 

The lighting will need to be prepped for in the same manner as implementing under-cabinet lighting. In doing so, your electrician will assist you with moving power outlets, wiring everything to code, and properly attaching your inside-cabinet lighting to said wiring

5. Glass Cabinets Are Expensive

Glass cabinets are one of the most expensive door styles available, and when you break it down, it’s not hard to see why. 

There are a number of elements involved in glass door cabinets that will increase the price compared to standard kitchen cabinets. 

• The glass door inserts themselves are made from thick, high-quality glass that is going to be more expensive than wood cabinet doors. 
  
  
• With the interior on display, you’ll want it to match the outside of the cabinet. That’s three more finished sides, per cabinet, that need to be painted or stained. 
  
  
• Implementing glass shelves will be much more expensive than standard melamine shelves. 
  
  
• As we mentioned above, if you do opt for the more modern, metal frame doors, they will be more expensive than any wood or MDF.
  
  
• The cost of interior lighting and the electrical labour that goes with that. If you’re hiring an electrician yourself, expect to pay anywhere from $70 - $120 per hour for their services.

All of these factors increase the cost of glass door cabinets compared to standard kitchen cabinets. 

6. Restricts Storage Space

Somewhat hand-in-hand with the messy and cluttered interior, glass cabinets aren’t the most efficient method of storing kitchen items. 

In order to keep a presentable interior, you can’t fill glass cabinets to the brim like you might with your other kitchen cabinets. After all, the best way to reduce clutter and disarray inside glass cabinets is to minimize the number of items you keep inside them. 

Regular kitchen cabinets aren’t an issue – you can utilize every inch of internal storage and not worry about it being an eye-sore – but glass doors won’t offer the same luxury. 

If your kitchen has limited space and you’re trying to maximize its storage capacity, you might want to reconsider glass cabinets. As many popular kitchen cabinet accessories won’t be compatible with glass-door upper cabinets. 

Design with Deslaurier Custom Cabinets 

At Deslaurier, we believe that whether it’s glass, wood, or anywhere in between, we have a cabinet door style in our collection for every design taste. 

Book a free consultation and look through our extensive catalogue of over 70+ cabinet door styles with a Deslaurier kitchen expert at our Ottawa showroom today!

If you have your eye on custom cabinetry, Deslaurier Custom Cabinets has everything you need. With over 40 years of experience to our name, we provide our clients with a fully customized design process with our talented team of designers. 

Interested in becoming an authorized Deslaurier dealer? Visit our Become a Dealer page to learn more! Live outside the area? Find a Dealer to connect with a Deslaurier dealer near you!