The terms ‘In-Frame and ‘Lay-On’ is as much about how the doors are adjoined to the kitchen cabinetry as it is about the style and design of the kitchen furniture. At Codsall Kitchen Studio we do both in-frame and lay-on kitchens.

A lay-on kitchen is where the doors literally lay straight on to the front facia / edges of the cabinet. The doors are usually fastened to the cabinet with what we call an adjustable, concealed hinge - so called because you can’t see the hinge when the door is closed. The hinge fasteners to both the reverse of the door and the internal sides of the cabinet. Most modern looking kitchens such as the European styles from Italy and Germany have this arrangement; although many of the more ‘cost effective’ traditional / English style kitchens have this style of door / hinge fitting too.

With an ‘In-Frame’ kitchen, the door doesn’t directly fasten - or ‘lay-on’ to the front of the cabinet. Instead, a front frame fastens to the front of the cabinet, into which a door is then hung. This means the door is hung and supported by the frame - hence the expression ‘in-frame.’ To do this, butt hinges (similar - albeit smaller, to the ones most likely used on your homes internal room doors. The butt hinge is recessed or ‘chopped in’ to the door as well as being fastened with screws to give additional support. The other virtue of hanging the door this way is that the hinge doesn’t encroach on cabinet space as well as allowing the door to open a full 180 rather than 90 degrees making cabinet access easier.

The above - proper in-frame way of hanging cabinet doors has always been a ‘hallmark’ of the high end bespoke cabinet maker and many of the high value ‘trophy kitchen brands’ work in this way. Naturally, many cheaper brands have tried to emulate this style to varying degrees of success. Some have the door within a frame aperture BUT the door is still fastened directly to the cabinets inside using a concealed hinge; the frame is there purely for visual effect. Other mass production manufacturers make a one piece ‘lay on door’ that appears as though it’s within a frame. This is achieved by routering or pressing into the door a groove 25mm or so from the outer edge.

Bespoke In-Frame Styling and Door hinge illustration