I agree with you. Easy to change now before the doors are drilled for knobs.

but looks like if I rotate the door and switch the hinge position, it'll leave two hinge holes in my new cabinets. That sucks...:(

They can be filled and barely noticed .

We switched the swing of one of our doors...easy peasy...and the holes, once filled will never be thought of again.

Can the entire cabinet be flipped? Is it symmetrical top and bottom?

It depends on what the function that you'll be doing on the counter below is going to be.

Can you post a pic taken from the front with the doors open and closed and include more of what's below?

My first reaction was "yes", but I think it might depend.

My first reaction was also that the hinges should be on the other side. But, if the DW is to the right and you'll be taking glasses and/or cups out of DW and into that cabinet, you'll definitely want it the way it is.

Donna

@DIY2Much2Do the cabinet has edges of different size on top and bottom. So I guess the cabinet cannot be rotated entirely.

@blfenton and @mimipadv: the cabinets below are just normal cabinets with two doors.

@msmeow the door way theory is interesting. Yeah, that's a valid concern. It is next to the door way. So maybe it is correct right now?

I think it helps with the doorway, but I don't think it swings far out enough to be an issue. What are you planning on storing in that cabinet? Ie something you'd access when walking into the kitchen or when you are in the kitchen working. I would let that dictate which way the door swings.

For aesthetics, I would switch and have the right cabinet hinged right.

Btw, another argument I'd keep it as in the picture is that you might want the door knob on the right so that you can use your left hand to open it and put stuff in with your right hand. I feel this is correct for most right-handers.

so I feel aesthetically speaking it might be better to switch. But practically speaking, it might be better to keep it as it is. Tough choice to make.

Looking at the mock up pictures I just added above, I personally like the looks of the first one. It wouldn't bother me at all to open the cabinet with my right hand and then put stuff in with right hand and I'm right-handed.

I agree with you that the hinge should be on the right. Visually it will look better once hardware is on, and also with the way it currently is you have to step out and around the open door to access it. It doesn't make sense.

I'd have it changed.

I would have it changed. If you're standing at the left side of the counter and need something from that cupboard you're going to have to walk around the door to get whatever out. Regardless of where you're standing at the counter it's easier to put away and get stuff out of that cupboard if the door swings the other way.

Jancy - thanks for the mock up. Having the knobs next to the wine rack frames it nicely.

The doorway shouldn't be affected either way. ( I don't think)

hey guys, thanks so much for your comments and sorry for the late reply. I'd definitely switch it if I had the chance to redo it. But my contractor, to be honest, is not that good and he made a big crack in one of my cabinets. I'm so afraid that he would break this cabinet as well when he drills another 3 holes, which he also mentioned that might happen.

I think I can live with the cabinet opening from the right, though it's not ideal. I just don't want to risk more to potentially make it worse. Remodeling your home is really a painful process, so I'd highly recommend everyone else to find a trustworthy contractor and plan in details in advance.

That wouldn't work for me. I would want to be standing in front of the wine rack and be able to grab stuff and put stuff away on each side without having to open a cabinet door in my face and step "around" it.

I just saw where you said you were going to live with it. In the grand scheme, it's not a big deal. If that eases your stress, then it's fine.

Change it. Looks out of whack.

Just change it before you drill for knobs, it will drive you nuts otherwise. It's a really easy fix and the holes are easily filled with white putty.

We had a door that opened the wrong way too. We simply drilled new holes on the correct side of the frames, flipped the door and it was fine. We filled in the old holes in the frame too. If you had already put your pulls or knobs on, that could be a problem but it looks like you haven't, so it should be easy.

If your contractor cracked a cabinet and mentioned that it "might happen again," I would not allow him to drill for the hardware. There is no room for error there. I would rather do it myself than turn the job over to an admitted clumsy contractor.