Melamine
Melamine is a very popular material for kitchen cabinets. It?s made using a low-pressure laminate process during which decorative paper and resin are fused, and then glued to pressed wood or MDF. The decorative paper gives you the flexibility to choose from a variety of colours and finishes, including faux wood grain. Since the colour of the melamine is manufactured, you will also achieve a uniform tone and finish across all your cabinets. Melamine is durable too. Its tough, outer coating stands up to common kitchen conditions, such as moisture from steaming pots and heat from the stovetop and oven. With melamine?s smooth, hard surface, spills and splatters are easy to wipe clean as well.

Melamine Textured and Melamine Matt
These two options offer the same properties as regular melamine cabinets, but with a toned-down finish. For those who prefer not to see some of the marks of everyday use and wear and tear, a textured melamine cabinet is ideal. If a high-gloss or textured finish doesn?t suit your subtle style, a matt-finished melamine cabinet is the solution. Keep in mind, though, finger marks and scratches show more easily on a matt-finished surface than on a gloss or textured one.

Thermofoil

Thermofoil is created by fusing a vinyl film to wood or particleboard using heat and pressure. This process provides a snug fit and a smooth, seamless, high-gloss finish that is free of imperfections, highly scratch-resistant and moisture repellant. With an ultra-smooth finish, Thermofoil cabinets and facings are very easy to wipe clean. Thermofoil is available in a large variety of solid colours and many patterns, including wood grains and metallic styles.

Plastic Laminate

Plastic laminate cabinets are made using a high-pressure laminate process through which layers of resin-saturated kraft paper are fused together and then given a clear, melamine finish. This process makes these cabinets extremely scratch- and chip-resistant and allows for an almost limitless selection of colours and patterns. Plastic laminate cabinets also boast a hard, glossy surface, which means they are very easy to wipe clean and will stand the test of time.

Solid Oak or Maple with a Veneer Centre Panel

Solid wood cabinet doors are expensive. One way to reduce the cost of cabinet doors yet still achieve the wood-grain look is to choose oak- or maple-framed cabinet doors with a matching wood veneer centre panel. While the frame of the doors is made from solid oak or maple, the centre insert panel is a single piece of particleboard or MDF with thin strips of high-quality oak or maple veneer affixed to it. When stained, it is virtually impossible to tell the solid wood from the veneer. Having a veneer centre panel adds durability too because the one-piece construction of the panel will better resist warping and moisture.

MDF

Medium-density fibreboard (MDF) is a high grade, composite material made by combining recycled wood fibers with wax and bound with resin. High temperature and pressure is used to produce dense sheets. MDF is generally denser than solid wood, plywood or particle board and can better tolerate changes in heat and humidity. Its ability to withstand humidity greatly minimizes expansion or contraction which will keep your paint finish from cracking.

P.E.T.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is a thermoplastic polymer resin used in synthetic fibers and in engineering resins often in combination with glass fiber. PET materials are extremely heat and moisture resistant that provides a stable, consistent and smooth finish. Available in matte or high-gloss finishes.