Cabinet Hardware, the Jewelry of your kitchen!

We all know that kitchens can get messy on a daily basis, and preventing that mess from ending up on your cabinet surface is important for it’s longevity. Knobs and pulls help to protect your cabinet finish because you are not transferring the oils on your fingers to the cabinet fronts.

They are necessary if you have a frameless or full-overlay cabinet since your fingers won’t fit in the reveals of the cabinet for operation.

So how do you make your selection?

Whether you are remodeling or building new, choose your hardware last. After you have all of your materials chosen, use these tips to guide you toward the right cabinet hardware for your kitchen.

1) Knob or Pull?

There are no strict rule to follow when choosing whether to select a knob or pull or both.

One preference is to use knobs for all doors and pulls for all drawers. For any large door such as a pantry or any pull-out door, it is recommended that you use a pull. It is much more comfortable to open a drawer using a pull. This allows whole hand to grab, instead of only your fingertips. When deciding to use all pulls, you must consider how they will be mounted, all horizontal (a contemporary look) or horizontal for drawers and vertical for doors.

2) Design

Also, when it comes to design, choose a style that is consistent with the type of lines in your design. Square style hardware can still be round in shape, with square corners, giving you a contemporary look. Curved style hardware has more soft edges and more detail, this will be more traditional or transitional. While most homeowners will choose chrome or brushed nickel, there are numerous other finishes available to add interest to your kitchen. You don’t need to match your faucet, as long as the finish complements other finishes in the design, including the faucet. Finishes that go well with a brushed nickel or brushed stainless faucet would be antique pewter, bronze (light to dark), satin brass (although this could be a bit tricky), oil-rubbed bronze, aluminum, black matte, and rust. Finishes that go well with a chrome faucet are more limited, such as white, black, dark bronze, pewter, or clear glass.

3) Comfort

Try out the knob or pull before you purchase for the entire kitchen. When you grab the knob or pull, does it have pointy edges or ridges that press on your fingers? You should be able to fit 4 fingers comfortably around whichever you choose. Many companies, such as Top Knobs, offer a sample program where they will send you the knob or pull you are interested in, and only pay the shipping. Try them out, it will be worth the extra research.

Cabinet hardware is the jewelry of the kitchen, just like in a wardrobe, it must coordinate, be comfortable and enhance the design of the outfit. So before you buy, do your research, order samples, and check finishes with your kitchen materials to get the perfect fit.