Materials & Finishing

EA custom made kitchen is also in materials and finishing really custom made. If the choices for the style are clear often multiple choices for materials are available. Material choices will influence the price of the custom made kitchen. The better and the more durable/sustainable the choices for the materials the better the value of the kitchen. Cheap materials are often a very short term decision.

Hereby we show you an overview of material choices for the fronts doors and insides of uour custom made kitchen.
Solid wood
Panel doors and flat doors and fronts of the kitchen are the best quality and the most durable and sustainable. The colored versions are sprayed or hand painted. Wood will always work a little bit. If wood is dried and seasoned well this will not be a big problem. The advantage of solid wood is that it is strong and easy to repair and to work with.

Solid wood can be sprayed but with an oak kitchen the nerves of the wood will remain visible. The characteristics of the wood will be the same.

Plywood

Those are different layers of thin plates of massive wood pressed together. They make very strong boards of construction material. It can be sprayed of handpainted. The boards can be used for fronts and flat doors as well but mostly used for the insides of the kitchens. This is a very durable and strong material.

MDF

MDF is a material that is made of different products, wood chips and glue. Those elements are pressed in big machines to big boards. MDF is easy to finish with spraypaint or can be hand painted. Basically it will look the same as a kitchen in solid wood that is just sprayed. MDF will work less then wood. MDF is not sustainable, durable and is difficult to repair and re-use. MDF is not resistant to water damage. It will absorb the water and expand. MDF will bend easier and is weaker then wood. Besides it is less hard so easier to damage. After for example 5 years of usage you will easy see the difference between wood and MDF.

Foiled MDF

This material is used for insides of kitchens or wardrobes. It is MDF with a thin layer on top. It is easy to paint but also used unpainted in the standard white color.
Oak veneer
Oak veneer can be pressed on MDF or Chipboard. There is a real veneer that is a thin layer shaved from a plank. This is solid wood of a few mm. Normal veneer is around 1 mm thick and is rolled from the tree. The disadvantage of veneer is that the layer can be detached from the base material and on the edges. Thick veneer quality wise is the best and is hard. The outlook of oak veneer is very beautiful.

Melamine and HPL

Melamine and HPL are artificial or plastic layers pressed on MDF or chipboard. It is a simple material and useful in usage for the wardrobes and cabinets. You cannot use this material like wood, it is difficult to saw, mold and cut the material and glue the edges and is basically only useful as a base material. After a while the top layer will not hold anymore and will become loose. It is not a durable and sustainable material and is generally weak. HPL is a very hard material on the surface and therefore suitable as a top for kitchen, workspaces or reception desks. HPL or melamine from Egger can be glued on chipboard or MDF.

Finishing

MDF or solid wood can be sprayed or handpainted in a color of choice. Spray work is applied in several layers and gives a hard surface resistant against scratches.

Handpainting gives a natural or classic outlook and finish to the kitchen or cabinet. Oock uses paint from Sikkens or Sigma. There are also different brands that give a nice mat or very classical outlook to the product. Next to Farrow & Ball, we also supply Painting the Past, Sanderson and Little Green, they have good dealerships in Amsterdam, Haarlem, Den Haag and Utrecht.
On oak veneer we use oil from Rubio Monocoat. In our showroom we have all color samples ready.

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