What would you choose for your kitchen: Chipboard, MDF or wood?

A friend of mine is furnishing his apartment and we discussed quite a lot about the materials he wants to use. Now it's the kitchen's turn and one of the important factors he needs to consider is budget. I thought I'd briefly present the available options to make his choice easier. So, chipboard, MDF or wood kitchen furniture?

Kitchen furniture can be made of wood solid, veneered panels, MDF or PAL

Furniture from chipboard has the advantage of an affordable price. There is a very rich supply of chipboard that imitates wood, stone, marble and comes in a variety of colours, so it can be easily "matched" to the decor. It is simple to make and to adapt to an atypical space. However, it does not excel in personality, the chipboard panels are flat, with no possibility to be mechanically machined on the surface and it has another flaw: the specific, pungent and rather unpleasant smellemanating from these plates, which persist for quite a long time.

Solid wood furnitureis the dream of those who love wood. There's 'off-the-shelf' furniture in the shops, but you can also have it made to order. There are design firms that do both the design and the execution, or small workshops that make wooden furniture. Working with wood is infinitely more attractive, both from the point of view of the choice of species and the combinations that can be made, and from the point of view of design and personalising the space much better. (photo 2, 3)

If wood is used, there is also the problem of finishing it. As the kitchen environment is quite aggressive, with lots of moisture, aggressive cleaning materials and steam, it is imperative that the finishing materials are resistant to such conditions. In addition, the wood must be very well "sealed" with these materials, eliminating any possibility of water getting into the wood. Sometimes wood is combined with veneered panels to make furniture, both for dimensional stability and to reduce costs.

MDF furniture is qualitatively between chipboard and solid wood. MDF kitchen furniture is not as expensive as solid wood furniture, but can be finished to resemble it. MDF boards can be machined to look like solid wood. The finish will also contribute to the illusion of solid wood. A coloured primer applied as a first coat will hide the colour and structure of the MDF. Then, finishing materials or techniques can be used to make the furniture look older, more precious or of a particular style. The important thing is that the materials used are in harmony and everything looks as natural as possible.

MDF-the floor can also be finished modernly, in different colours, plain or combined. It is an attractive material, easy to finish and dimensionally stable. MDF also requires finishing materials that are resistant to kitchen conditions.

We often end up making kitchen furniture combining wood, MDF and chipboard. And the combinations of wooden or painted MDF cabinets and wooden countertop, coloured or natur are, in my opinion, the most successful. (photo 6, 7, 8)