Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling: 7 Pros & Cons!

Four different clients of ours were looking for ways to update their kitchens. Two were keeping and reworking/repainting existing cabinets, and two were doing a complete kitchen gut renovation.

NONE of them were thinking about the “extending kitchen cabinets to ceiling” route, but we encouraged them all to do so!

You are watching: Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling: 7 Pros & Cons!

Honestly, extending your kitchen cabinets to the ceiling is relatively easy, inexpensive update with huge rewards! (Or, if you’re ripping out your existing cabinets, you should still have your new ones touch the ceiling, in most cases!)

What’s involved? We’ll answer all that, plus popular questions like

• Can you put kitchen cabinets up to the ceiling?
• Do I need to remove my existing cabinets?
• How do I extend my kitchen cabinets to the ceiling?
• Can you add upper cabinets above existing cabinets?
• How do you fill the gap between kitchen cabinets and ceiling?
• What’s the cost of extending kitchen cabinets to ceiling?

Good news! Yes, you can extend your kitchen cabinets up to the ceiling and no, you don’t have to remove your existing cabinets! We’ll get into the “how to” later on, but for now let’s step back and take a look at why you should (or shouldn’t) extend your kitchen cabinets to your ceiling!

PS: If you are remodeling, we’re professionals and you need THIS!

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

First, the 2 Options You Need to Choose Between!

First, let’s be clear:

there are two ways to go about this!

WAY #1: Extend kitchen cabinets to ceiling (visually only).

WAY #2: Build extra storage in the space between your existing cabinets and the ceiling.

example of Way #1:

example of Way #2:

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling: The Pros!

Pro #1: Visually draws eye up. Makes ceilings appear higher.

Pro #2: Gives a more high-end, custom built look to your kitchen instead of looking like standard, builder grade cabinets like in every other standard home.

Pro #3: Bang for your buck! Going along with the above, for the amount of money you put into building them, you’ll get more out at resale because your kitchen will look that much more high quality!

Pro #4: Less intrusive! Whether you DIY or decide to hire the work out, it’s a much less intrusive project that, say, ripping out your entire kitchen and starting over from scratch!

Read more : Cabinet Handle Size Guide – What are the best size Kitchen Handles?

Pro #5: Extra storage space! (if you choose to go that route)

Speaking of storage, save yourself 20+ hours of time with our “Essential Kitchen Organization Guide!”

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling: The Cons!

Con #1: Whether you DIY this project or hire the work out, it will take some time. It doesn’t magically happen with the snap of one’s fingers, as nice as that would be.😊

Con #2: It will take some money to make it happen, but not much! (Keep reading for our cost estimates & recommendations!)

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

The Verdict

With five big pros and just two cons, can you guess what our recommendation is?😄 If you have the time and money, we say DO IT!

Still, you’d be surprised at how many people balk at the thought of this. And understandably so, sometimes—in the middle of other renovations or life upheavals, it can feels to some like “just one more thing” they can cross off their list in an attempt to make life easier for themselves in the short run.

But in our experience, those who really see the value in putting in a little extra money and effort into extending their kitchen cabinets to the ceiling are wise and will reap the benefits for years to come!

Let’s take a look at that more in-depth, shall we?

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

The Easiest Way to Extend Your Cabinets.

The simplest way to extend your kitchen cabinets to the ceiling is to simply

1. remove your crown molding,
2. build a “box” above it, and then
3. add a crown molding between that and your ceiling.

Really, it’s that straighforward! (And sometimes you can even skip Step 1 and keep your existing crown molding, depending on your design, like the below example! Which still needs to be painted, let’s be clear.)

➜ If you’re serious about improving your kitchen in smart, thoughtful ways, YOU NEED THIS!

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

Extending Cabinets to Ceiling + Adding Storage!

While “Way #1” is certainly the simplest way to go about this, we love adding storage in this space even more! Depending on the design you choose, it’s not much more work…and you get the added bonus of the storage space!

Under this heading, we see 3 different design options for this extra storage space above your existing cabinets:

#1: Open cabinets.

The simplest of the bunch! Instead of closing off your “box” above the cabinets like we showed earlier, you build an open box like this:

Pros:

• Easier.
• Less expensive.

Cons: Open shelving presents its own problems, in my opinion. (See my tongue-in-cheek post “Open Shelving is of the Devil.” 🤣 ) You’d better have some beautiful things to display in this space! No clutter allowed!

#2: Glass cabinets.

one, two, three

Read more : Framed vs Frameless Cabinets

Pros: These give a more finished-off look in comparison to #1…

Cons: …but you still need to keep these pretty…essentially styling them! Which can be added cost in some cases. And don’t forget the added cost for the glass cabinet faces.

PS: If you’re DIYing/trying to work with what you already have in your kitchen, our “Essential Kitchen Guide” is for you! Really, I’ll wait here while you click to check it out then come back to finish reading…😊

#3: Closed cabinets.

This is my favorite option! Why?

Pros: HIDES ALL YOUR STUFF!💃💃💃 Feel free to fill this high-up cabinets with less-used items, clutter, whatever you want! No one will care, least of all you, because no one will see it! 😁

source

Cons: Some added cost for the cabinet faces. (We’ll share some tips below for keeping this cost a little lower.)

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

Cost Estimates

1. For just building a facing (Option #1 above), your materials cost will be around $2-3 per square foot if you’re doing it yourself! Paint depends on whether you already have the paint leftover from your existing cabinets or if you’re matching it, in which case you’ll pay $25-35 per gallon of paint. If you’re hiring out, just add your cabinet guy’s labor.
2. To build actual storage shelves or shelves with cabinet doors, you’ll have a similar cost per square foot, plus an estimated $40-50 per cabinet door (approximately 24″ wide, see tip below).

• As always, this all can depend on your materials and labor costs both in your area as well as how low or high quality you choose!
• You’ll want to grab “Our 15+ Secrets to Save Money on Your Kitchen!”

Tip for keeping cabinet + hardware cost lower:

Instead of buying 2-3 small cabinet faces, you can buy just one long cabinet face and do it this way!

Your upper cabinets don’t even need to open side to side—they can have hinges along the top to open “up”! (You could even make these “hidden” upper cabinets with no hardware, much like we did in our storage cabinet above our fridge here with an awesome magnet!)

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

What NOT to do: The “Barely-Caressing” Ceiling Cabinets

Please don’t follow this example. (We can’t believe these people left it this way! Arghhhhh!)

Do NOT let anyone leave your upper cabinets barely brushing your ceilings! Is this worse than just having them a foot below the ceiling? I can’t even decide, it’s so painful to look at…so I’m looking away and moving on…🤦

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling

Extending Kitchen Cabinets to Ceiling Before & Afters

Here you can see 1) shelves, 2) facing only, and 3) cabinets!

one, two, three

If you’re remodeling your kitchen, you need THIS BEBE!

If you’re not doing a full remodel, THIS is essential!

Next…

• See The Complete Timeline of our kitchen remodel, as well as 5 brilliant kitchen organization ideas that make life easier!
• Our 15+ Secrets for Saving Money on Your Kitchen is included here!
• Check out our 7 Strategies for Choosing Interior Paint Colors, plus how we saved money on our favorite quartz countertops!

➜ See our complete list of home projects categorized.

Source: https://gardencourte.com
Categories: Kitchens