Overlay denotes the area of a front frame covered by a drawer or cabinet front piece. The two generally used descriptions of an overlay are partial-overlay and full-overlay. The three different terminologies are related but cannot be used interchangeably. When choosing a variety of an overlay, the cabinets need to entirely commit to a single type of overlay either the full-overlay or partial-overlay should be used alone and not a combination of both. The dimensions of doors, drawer fronts and frames are different between both types and must be noted to ensure there is consistency in the set of cabinets. The most detectable dissimilarity between a partial-overlay and a full-overlay the full-overlay is in their respective effects on the visibility of cabinet face frames.

 

By selecting the full- overlay, kitchen designers can create a modern look which offers the cabinets an astonishing appearance. Full overlay doors cannot be substituted for frameless cabinet doors as they often leave a small 3/8-inch space or gap along the edges of the door. Partial-overlay drawers and cabinet doors leave a consistent 2-inches spacing all around the face of the installed cabinets which reveals a small strip of the cabinet frame. The name given to this style is as a result of the even overlapping of the drawers and doors on all the edges around the small opening.