Eek. What I did in my last kitchen was insist that I didn't have that face frame overlap. They thought I was weird, but they went ahead and filled in that gap with a big sheet of cherry plywood. The cabinets I replaced had crown molding going over that bump. I don't remember how it was done but I remember it was bad.

At this point, you don't want to do that of course. Is it possible to notch the molding to fit over that face edge? In theory it's make more sense to notch the cabinet but I don't think that's a good idea!

You could perhaps shim out the molding with a long strip of filler. Really skinny perfectly cut stained to match filler.

By the way, except for that one little problem you have, it's looking really good. Great cabinets and trim! Hope someone can give you better advice.

We had this same issue and solved it 2 ways. On some cabinets we added a piece of beadboard. It was the right thickness and matched our backsplash so it was great. On another cabinet we shaved/cut a piece of quarter round to the right thickness and used that to fill in the space. It looks nice and is stacked a bit higher than the other trim so it's decorative. I'd post a picture, but the camera needs recharging - so if you can wait until tomorrow, I'll post one then. Do you have a table saw or other saw you can use to shave down trim?

fori - we actually did notch a piece of molding, but didn't really come out with a neat & clean cut so it looked sloppy - yes, I am a perfectionist even though this is a DIY. we may try another piece but want to make sure we have enough to keep experimenting

bethv - beadboard sounds like a nice idea. we don't have any that matches our cherry and if we ordered additional kitchen pieces would probably end up just getting end panels (we are trying to avoid additional expenses if possible). The quarter round is an interesting idea and something I hadn't thought of. I'd love to see a photo if you have time.

thanks for much for responding

Here you go! The shaved-down quarter round sits behind the dental molding and fills that gap.

The right way to do it is to order the skin. Skins are more than just "decorative". They are functional. They fill that gap. It's not a cost saving measure to go without skins. It really affects the molding and counter install.You should need it for proper crown molding install as well. If you have any tall cabinets with counters abutting them, you will need skins for that as well. It also gives a much more "finished" look to the project.

bethv - thanks so much for taking the time to post a photo. Your molding looks really nice.

svwillow - we do have the molding lined up with the frame, not the doors. the front face cabinet extends past the side cabinet which is why we are encountering the problem.

live wire - I'm out of the loop- what is a 'skin'? Are you referring to a decorative end panel?

A skin is not a "decorative" end panel exactly, it is a thin veneered panel that takes up the 3/8" gap from the cabinet box to the face frame and makes the cabinet sides flush. Cabinet boxes, even if they color match, are usually finished with a vinyl or melamine finish rather than real wood veneered plywood, and the skin not only takes up that gap, but it provides a real wood surface that will age similarly to the actual wood of the face frame and doors. WIthout a skin, the sides will stay the same color, while the wood changes color over time. This is one reason that I usually offer a different option for customers who are DIYing an install. I suggest upgrading to "furniture finished plywood ends" in which the cabinet boxes are made of plywood with a wood veneered exterior that is flush with the face frame rather than having that gap that you're dealing with. Skins are what I order when a pro is doing the install, and he just brad nails them in place and putty fills the tiny holes. Skins are usually about 15% cheaper than flush finished sides, but flush finished sides are easier for DIYers to deal with. This is definately something that your KD should have gone over with you before you ordered. THe decorative end panels that you ordered should have been applied over skins as well. There is less chance of them shifting over time as when they are applied and have that 3/8" void underneath them.

We did upgrade the window area ends to finished plywood ends, I guess our cabinet manufacturer does not make them flush with the front. I think we are going to end up adding molding to the bottom to fill the gap.

Thank you for taking the time to respond & explaining.

I guess "skin" is what I used.

Bethv's looks quite nice, I think.

Ugh, we upgraded to plywood finished sides as opposed to skins, too. I wonder what we'll end up with so far as flush goes!

My thought was to notch the trim as well. Made any progress?

Either order flush end panels (an upgrade $$) to begin with, or add the skins now. The 1/4 round moulding is not too bad either, at this point, since the light rail moulding has also been held down about 1/8" to clear the doors.
Casey

I'd love to know where you bought the trim! I've been looking for something like that.

sprengle - for now we are concentrating on getting our backsplash finished ... multitasking! if you are interested I will post a follow-up when we go back to the trim &n finish

scgirl - we ordered our trim through the cabinetmaker so it would match the wood & finish we chose.

I looked at someone's cabinets when I was in their home recently bc I noticed the same issue on their end panel (turns out mine are the same). They notched that edge piece that is in the way so the end panel was flat where the trim goes. Does that make sense? I took a picture with my cell phone and can download it if it doesn't.

I'm sorry to revive an old thread (if it allows me). This thread has great pictures to show the issue and great discussions that prompted my question.

So, to get around this gap issue when doing molding, which approach is easier for a 1st DIY'er? We'll put aside the aesthetic appeal for now.
1) add skin to the side of the cabinet to make the entire side flush. This involves cutting the skin to the exact size and nail it to the cabinet perfectly.
2) carve a notch at the end of the face frame where it goes under the molding to make it flush with the plywood side. One downside I see is the cabinet will look awful without molding.

Again, which approach is easier, less error prone, for a 1st DIY'er? Any suggestions?