This kitchen cabinet style — a flat-panel door covered in laminate, with full-width oak pulls at the top — golly, there were a lot of these. If you need a replacement — or maybe, you’re ready to lead this 1980s revival in your kitchen or how about a craft room? — you can still get replacements. You can also get the doors sans wood trim. The source: Woodmont Doors from Eclectic-Ware.
Atomic cabinet pulls modernize a 60s birch kitchen 
Ikea kitchens — cheap & cheerful midcentury modern design 
Go E-Z replacement drawer slides — launched in 1959 and still made today 
56 vintage St. Charles kitchen cabinets — Chiffon Yellow, i heart you 
COMMENTS WILL RE-OPEN on MONDAY, DECEMBER 2. For the first time in, like, 13 years, I am taking a real vacation from the blog, to spend un-distracted time with family. As part of this, Commenting on the blog is paused. Meanwhile, please enjoy reading all the many stories in our archives -- and come back Monday, Dec. 2 when I will launch our annual giveaway of a vintage ornament wreath made by Georgia Peachez -- and when comments will reopen so you can enter to win! HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!
ineffablespace says
I know I keep chiming in, but the more I think of it, the more I think it is really the almond laminate that causes the primary objection.
I’ve seen these doors with all wood faces, and there are versions of this door through companies like Seimatic, where the entire door is one lacquered finish (usually in very bright white, or an actual color) with the profiles routed into the slab, and people don’t seem to find them so objectionable.
And the metal and laminate version of these doors with a metal edge pull rather than oak has never really been out of production.
Brooke says
I have a visceral response specific to my cabinets because they replaced beautiful 1960’s birch cabinets with amazing midcentury knobs. We have 2 of the original cabinets in the garage and I can picture how beautiful a whole kitchen would have been with them. I can’t believe the original owners replaced them with these 80’s cabinets :/
You can definitely tell my kitchen cabinets are still this style but painting them out made me feel better about them in general. So maybe if they’d had better colours to choose from or the all wood version the kitchen wouldn’t have looked so bad.
The colour as you mentioned was also a huge factor in the appeal. The cabinets in combination with the beige backsplash (complete with cornucopia of fruit!), dusty blue countertop, beige sheet linoleum and light yellow walls made the whole kitchen feel dirty.
I also think that poor quality is also associated with this cabinet style. I’ve seen so many examples of this kitchen falling apart that I probably associate poor quality with all kitchens of this type which is wrong since like with any style there are cheap and high end versions. My cabinets are in great shape for being 30-37 years old and they would probably last for a while yet.
While I’m itching to replace my cabinets with something more mid-mod looking I’ll just have to wait.
ineffablespace says
I linked to the Formica UK site instead of the US site.
They have 120 plain color (colour) offerings including a few really nice pale blues, a pale yellow
and pale pink :-/.
I wish we couldn’t even open sites that have great stuff we can’t get
Why does Formica have such better colors in foreign countries. 🙁
Joe Felice says
I saw a picture of a kitchen with these, and the wood strips had been painted, and they looked fantastic.
Mary-Catherine says
Hi, Pam, It was great to see this info about replacements for the Euro cabinets.
I am a REALTOR in a large New Mexico town, and there are a number of 1980’s homes that still have these cabinets….some look good….others, not so much.
Some 80’s homes have been renovated and these cabinets are GONE!!!
I would like to share this basic info with my fellow REALTORS, I can get the basics to fit on one side of an 8 x 11 sheet of paper…..just need your permission to share.
Thank you in advance.
Erica Freeman says
I admit it, I’m freaked out that an ’80s revival is being discussed in a retro design site.
I’m also freaked out that there’s an ’80s revival. Those cabinets—PLEASE NO!
Katharine Carroll says
I’ve had these cabinets in numerous apts over the years. I liked the practicality of them. No extra handle to catch clothes & ease of clean up. The fact that they are streamlined & not a lot of design with wood grain made it easy to decorate. They’re not everyone’s preference, but they have their positives.