Transparent glass or mirror inserts in cabinet doors are beautiful and practical. Even massive double-leaf oak furniture with this finish will look quite light. In addition, glass details visually expand the space. Various finishing options and combinations with other materials allow you to create original interior solutions. Glass will never go out of style. Next, let's look at what types of glass cabinet doors there are, the advantages and disadvantages of various designs.
Types of glass cabinets
This piece of furniture is divided into categories depending on its purpose. Glass cabinets are used mainly to store dishes and books. Thanks to the transparency of glass, things are in front of your eyes. This makes it easier to find the items you need.
Lovers of rarities and antiques keep their collections and show them to guests. The location of the cabinets is in the kitchen, living room and even bedroom. Glass furniture is usually not placed in the hallway.
Living room cabinets
If your apartment has a lot of different porcelain and crystal dishes, then a cabinet with glass doors is the most optimal solution for storing it. All accessories are at hand, they are easy to get and put away when you no longer need them.
The fashion for this type of furniture has not disappeared since Soviet times. Back then, places to store dishes were called buffets, sideboards or secretaries. They were very heavy and massive in weight.
Now modern industry produces lighter and more comfortable models. Glass shelves add elegance to the design.
Finishing features
Furniture inserts differ in geometric dimensions, shape, color scheme, degree of transparency, and so on. To achieve the desired effect, treatment with chemical reagents and abrasive materials is used. During glass production, pigments are added to its composition. Another common decoration technique is applying a polymer coating.
Glass furniture doors are:
- Completely transparent. In terms of price, this is the most affordable type. You can buy a bookcase with glass doors of this type inexpensively. In the event of a breakdown, they are easy to replace; just take a measurement and contact the nearest workshop. There is no need to select or search for anything.
- Matte and partially matte. More expensive and attractive look. Often opaque areas alternate with transparent elements, which allows you to create a pattern. Frosted glass cabinet doors are useful if you want to hide the contents of a chest of drawers or bedside tables from prying eyes. A rough surface appears on glass when it is etched with chemical solutions or when treated with sand.
- Grooved. Such canvases turn out to be thicker, and light is beautifully refracted in them. But cleaning the surface is much more difficult. Corrugated glass is a massive and not very practical option for a cabinet. Such inserts are more often used for interior doors.
- Patterned. By laser engraving on a glass surface, you can create beautiful patterns. If the cabinet has double doors, then the design can be mirrored or asymmetry can be used. Most often you can buy a bookcase with glass doors with floral patterns and curlicues.
- Colored. Painting glass helps to create furniture, all elements of which harmoniously complement each other. It is important that the shades match the colors of the walls, curtains, and flooring.
- Tinted, mirrored. Mirrors are a good solution for decorating furniture doors. This is a combination of beauty and functionality. Tinting is useful if things or products stored in the closet need to be protected from fading, exposure to sunlight, and excessive heating from its rays.
- Stained glass. Beautiful bookcases with glass doors of this type are expensive. For real stained glass, patterns are created from pieces of multi-colored glass. In the case of imitation, sections of glass are simply painted in the appropriate color. Such inserts are useful for decorating antique furniture in a classic interior.
- Fusing. A simple and modern technology consists of placing another patterned sheet of glass on top of a completely transparent sheet of glass. After this, due to heating, they are sintered into a single whole. The inserts are beautiful and durable. This pattern will never wash off.
- Bending. This is giving a sheet of glass a curved shape. To do this, the material is heated and then shaped. The facade of furniture with such inserts is not flat, but convex. A very good solution for corner chests of drawers.
The choice of door is determined by the purpose of the cabinet and the material from which it is made. If the chest of drawers is a storage place and is made in a classic style, then you can use simple transparent or mirrored doors. If you want to make furniture a decoration for a room, you should order (buy) a glass door for a cabinet with inserts with patterns or a stained glass composition, and put a whole picture on the door.
Furniture for storing books
Glass bookcases are often used in apartments and houses where owners prefer paper publications instead of electronic books. Usually the library is passed down from the older generation to their children, who have been instilled with a love of reading and books since childhood. It’s a shame to throw them away, so you have to store them somewhere.
The models have a number of advantages:
- protection of printed publications from direct sunlight;
- easier search;
- interior decoration.
The frame of bookcases and shelves are made of natural wood or chipboard with MDF in combination. A variety of shades of material allow you to choose a cabinet that will fit perfectly into the overall style of your living room or study.
Display cabinet
This type of product differs from its counterparts in its complete openness, that is, all its walls are made of impact-resistant glass. Drawers can be located below. They house dishes or rare exhibits. Install opposite windows or in the middle of the room.
The display cabinet visually expands the space in the room. This happens thanks to the mirror mounted on the back wall. This is what affects the visual increase in space.
In such cabinets you can place a collection of rare items and allow them to be viewed from all sides. Showcases are also used in trade and medicine. Unfortunately, such display cases can hardly be found in ordinary furniture stores.
In this case, the Swedish company IKEA will come to the rescue. The range of Ikea glass cabinets in the catalog is very wide. The products include unusual greenhouse cabinets that can be used to grow plants indoors and outdoors.
A glass cabinet with a display case is not recommended for those who have small children. The little ones may accidentally bump into it or knock it over. A fall can cause serious injury to a child.
What are the benefits of door mirrors?
Most often they are mounted on furniture where clothes are stored. Then there is no need to additionally install a mirror in the room or hallway; just look at the closet door to evaluate your appearance.
In addition, mirror inserts have many more advantages:
- Increased space. If the room is very small, then you can install mirrors on all the cabinets, make an entire reflective wall, this will make the room seem larger.
- They are easy to care for. You can use any window cleaning products. Also, just wipe the mirror with a damp cloth and then polish it with a dry cloth.
- Decorative finishing can be done. A small pattern made in the corners or along one of the edges will make the mirror more attractive. Another finishing method is to install decorative strips with a pattern or ornament around the perimeter.
- Reliability and safety. To prevent the mirror from crumbling into small pieces when broken, its surface is covered with a retaining film. If the insert is damaged, no one will be harmed by it. Therefore, such furniture can be installed even in a children's room.
Full-length mirror inserts are appropriate in wardrobes in the hallway; small cabinet doors in the bathroom can also be decorated with mirrors.
Closet
This type of cabinet furniture with sliding doors is convenient and popular in modern times. To add chic and originality, glass doors are often ordered instead of chipboard doors. They are made from opaque glass using spraying.
Such models will cost more, but their style and ease of cleaning deserve it. Unusual designs are often applied to the glass, colors are combined, or a full-length mirror is installed on one of the doors.
An aluminum profile is used for the guides. Sliding wardrobes are used in bedrooms and in rooms with limited space. The versatility of the models also lies in the fact that they save space, unlike cabinets with hinged doors.
Choice of colors
At the same time, the facade elements are processed so that they create not only a style, but also a color ensemble with other modules. For example, a white cabinet will most likely have a front made of pine, linden, white birch, oak or ash, painted white, beige, light pink, bright turquoise or pearlescent.
Glass hanging cabinet
Among the variety of furniture, there are some that will not take up space. The owner of a wall glass cabinet can place it on the wall in the living room or kitchen. You can put rare souvenirs or dishes there.
Such cabinets must be secured thoroughly, and you should not overload them with dishes or other things.
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Library in the house
Currently, a room reserved for a library is considered not only a place where book publications are stored, but also a corner in which there is an opportunity to relax, reading the press or a favorite book novel after a busy day.
In addition, books in the library should be arranged in such a way that finding the required work does not take much time. A glass cabinet is best suited for such purposes, in which all the contents are clearly visible.
In order to make a room adapted for a home library into an excellent relaxation place, it must be equipped with the help of an unusual type of bookshelves and shelving.
Special book walls and cabinets with doors placed along the walls of the room can radically change the design of the room. A large book collection at all times demonstrated its owner’s serious passion for literature, and spoke a lot about his character.
Nowadays, although book publications are being replaced by electronic media, it is worth noting that the interior of a room in which there is a large number of different books looks much more homely and cozy.
Corner cupboard
No less popular furniture products are corner glass cabinets. These are very compact and convenient models. They are placed in any empty corner in the apartment and serve as a valuable and practical keeper of things. It is recommended to place them opposite the window. Natural light is refracted and emphasizes the beauty and elegance of stored items and dishes.
Cabinets can have different designs. They are made with doors and shelves. Can only be with hinged doors.
Modern style decoration
A glass china cabinet used in a living room is considered an item of luxury and wealth. Nevertheless, it is necessary to select such furniture carefully and thoughtfully. Otherwise, there is a risk of spoiling the appearance of the room.
High tech
This style is characterized by engineering innovations and technological adaptations. In this type of interior, glass cabinets are allowed in the kitchen.
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Belonging to the technological style will be ensured by installed door closers and various new-fangled door opening and closing systems.
Arranging items in the closet
Due to the fact that transparent doors reveal the contents of the closet, many housewives think about how to arrange this storage area. Kitchen utensils and furniture intended for them must be combined with each other.
Simply put, the simpler the dishes, the brighter and more modern the cabinet should look. And vice versa. Modern furniture with simple shapes should contain bright objects.
Before arranging, remember the following rules:
- place heavy objects on the lower shelves;
- place things that you often use closer to the doors - in the access zone;
- if things do not match in style, but they need to be placed in one place, then modern items should be placed on the top shelves, and antique items should be placed on the middle and bottom shelves;
- do not put clay figurines on shelves - they begin to give off an unpleasant odor;
- play with the placement of things using artificial light.
In the latter case, consumers are provided with modern illuminated cabinets. Crystal dishes in such cabinets will look irresistible.
Types of additional decor
To emphasize the chosen style, custom-made cabinets from the manufacturer are equipped with handles, hinges and plugs, designed in the same artistic manner as the facade, shelves, and sides.
An additional aesthetic effect, at the request of the customer, is achieved by using three-dimensional wood carving, applying mosaics to glass surfaces, and using high decorative strips covering the joints of sections.
