When designing spaces such as your kitchen, laundry room, home office, or bathroom, selecting the right finished end or side options is a key consideration. Beyond the standard choices, a variety of options are available depending on your layout, including exposed ends, flush ends, end skins, applied or false door end panels, integrated panels, prep false sides, and unfinished flush ends. While the range of possibilities may seem extensive, Brian provides clear guidance to help you understand these options and determine which are most suitable for your project. For additional questions, don’t hesitate to contact your Cabinet Coach.
Video Transcript
Introduction
Good morning, and a warm welcome to our cabinet joint viewers and family.
Today, we're going to be covering finished end options or cabinet end options. A little background: if you go to a Home Depot or a Lowe's and ask for cabinets, they’re generally going to come automatically with a finished side. This means the side of the cabinet will be finished to match the front of the cabinet.
With our cabinets, they’re more custom, so we work with you to determine which cabinets are going to be visible after installation and finish those cabinets in one of a multitude of ways. I’ll start by talking about the standard end you’ll get with a cabinet if you specify nothing and then work through the four, five, or six options we have to finish the end of a cabinet.
Standard End (Unfinished)
For starters, here is an old cabinet I pulled out of our showroom. This is a standard end. It’s just an unfinished B-grade veneer with no stain, paint, or finish. If you specify nothing, that’s what you’ll get.
Your front frame might have Arctic White paint or another finish, but the side of the cabinet will have no finish whatsoever. That’s your standard end. Now let’s work up to the next level.
Exposed End
An exposed end means we’ll take that same half-inch-thick plywood side, but instead of having a B-grade, non-finished side, we’ll use an A-grade plain-sliced veneer side matching the species you requested. For standard species—cherry, red oak, maple, or painted—we can match the side of the cabinet to the face of the cabinet.
It’s still a half-inch side with a 5/16-inch reveal where the front frame hangs past. The only difference from the standard side is that it’s finished. This isn’t a very common option because something else came along:
Flush End
Years ago, the flush end became popular. A flush end thickens the plywood to about 11/16 inch, or just under three-quarters of an inch. This flushes the cabinet side with the front frame. The side panel automatically gets the same paint or stain as the front frame and doors, as long as it’s a standard species or finish.
However, there’s a small reveal. I can catch my fingernail on it. This design is intentional to account for variations in thickness or assembly during manufacturing. It ensures that the cabinet side tucks behind the front frame, preventing unfinished plywood from sticking out.
For flush ends, a seam is visible between the front frame and the cabinet side panel. To address this during assembly, we recommend clamping tightly along the front frame to create a tight gap. Use enough clamps to apply even pressure and wipe away any glue for a seamless look.
End Skin
If you’re working with non-standard species like walnut or rift-sawn white oak, we offer an end skin option. An end skin is a pre-cut veneer panel laminated onto the cabinet side. For instance, if you order a walnut cabinet with a finished side, the end skin will match the cabinet’s finish. This creates a flush, custom look for non-standard finishes or species.
Applied/False Door End Panel
For a furniture-like appearance, you can opt for an applied or false door end panel. This is common on overlay cabinets and islands. A door panel sized for the cabinet side is mounted flush with the toe kick and inset slightly from the edges. The result mimics the look of a functional door, maintaining the overlay style across the entire cabinet.
Integrated Panel/Prep False Side
Integrated panels are another option. For overlay styles, we can create a prep false side by moving the cabinet side inward. This creates a 3/4-inch space on the outside for a matching door panel to cover the entire side.
For inset cabinets, the side panel can’t be moved inward due to hinge placement. Instead, the front frame is extended by 3/4 inch to achieve the same look. This option is particularly clean and seamless for inset-style cabinets.
Unfinished Flush End
Finally, if you need a moisture-resistant option, like for a dishwasher opening, we offer an unfinished flush end. It doesn’t get paint or stain but has a UV acrylic clear coat for protection. This is a cost-effective way to seal off cabinet sides in moisture-prone areas.
Summary
Hopefully, this overview gives you a good understanding of the options for finishing cabinet ends. Whether you need exposed, flush, or integrated panels, our cabinet coaches and designers are here to help. They can provide three-dimensional visuals and guide you through tricky applications.
Thanks for watching, everyone!
