Would it be easier to construct a cabinet door using Stile & Rail or routing out plywood for a mullion look?
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Answers: If you try to use the router to make the "pane" cut outs, youre going to enjoy rounded corners on the inside of the panes.
Depending on the length of those mullions, you may even see some breakage due to voids in the plywood.
If you really want the mullion look, I would run with a framed style of door.... but you can do MITERED frames, instead of Stile and Rail, if the stile and guiderail bits are confusing. Or use simple mortise and tennon joints, if you want a simpler look... I reflect on you mentioned a "Shaker" influence in one of your question regarding this project. (Shaker style typically is straight (or tapered) lines... no curves resembling you would end up near using a router)
For the mullions, I would make them half-lap joint. (Half-lap, is where you cut a serrate, in respectively piece, and then assemble them by placing the notch together.) Rather than trying to cut notches contained by a bunch of little pieces of trim, I would cut the notch into a wide open piece of stock (using the router, or table saw), and then rip the wide-ranging stock into narrow strips. You'd inevitability one length for the vertical mullion and another for the horizontal.
An important detail which youve indeterminate yet... are these doors going to be painted or stained? If you similar to the look of wood, then I'd strongly recommend stain, and using frame style doors (mitered or stile and rail).
If you want to try routing out a plywood panel door, later youre going to need to form some templates. You'll stipulation templates for the facade of the door, and a pilot tip (guide wheel) bit for the backside rabbet for the panel. You'll also need to route past its sell-by date the excess thickness of the 'mullions' if you route out individual pane on the front side. (Remember, the panel has to fit on the backside, so the mullions own to be thinner) So, its either remove the stock from the backside, or brand seperate mullions anyway... and if youre going to have to create seperate mullions, I'd just jump ahead and make the frame style of door.
If youre going to use plywood... be paid sure you get a polite 7 layer ply. It will be more stable, and smaller quantity likely to curve on you. Poplar plywood would be a extraordinarily good choice, if you plan on fine art these doors, or using a dark stain (cherry for example). There will be not as much of problems with voids surrounded by the layers too.. something markedly important to consider if you really want to route out the 'panes' contained by the doors. I would NOT go to the expense of using a 'veneered' ply (oak obverse veneer for example), because you are going to be removing MOST of the sheet to make the 'skylight panes'... its just too expensive.
Have Fun
Easier is a cross-examine only answered by the skills and tools that you enjoy.
Are you trying to match a existing door ?
Is it basically one cabinet door that you need.
If you want to mimmick a typical mission style door, to be precise very smooth to do, with only just a table saw, use a plywood panel as your interrior panel. All straight square cuts, simply dado out your rail and styles to adopt the panel.
Cutting a door out of a piece of plywood is likely going to look resembling, well, look similar to you cut a door out of a piece of plywood.
Typically, style and rail doors are done beside a shaper and using a matched cutter set. If you are making one door, not likely you want to run and buy the cutter set, let alone a shaper if you dont already hold one.
There are a myriad of things you can do to closely approximate this with merely a table saw if you have to. Sit down and plan out your work. If you also enjoy a router, now you are on your track to doing a improvised style and rail using solely these two tools.
If you do style and rail, is your door inner panel going to be plywood or a solid wood raise panel. Again, shaping a raised panel traditionally process a large diameter cutter and a shaper. However, once again, the universal table saw can help you to closely approximate a nice raise panel. You can bevel the panel by feeding your work orient against the fence vertically. A steady appendage and be careful, this leaves greatly of blade exposed and the work piece is standing up against the fence making it more difficult to control.
Most home stores, lumber centers etc. stock exceedingly attractive doors in a mixture of styles and their prices are usually far cheaper than if you bought the lumber to build the door yourself. The trick will be to find a door that works for you.
Finally, most medium sized towns hold a cabinet shop or three that do custom, or semi custom work. They may have a stock size door they would be of a mind to sell you as powerfully.
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