How To Pick The Right Hardware To Match Your Cabinets

Choosing the correct hardware for your kitchen cabinets is the most critical step during your home renovation and building process.

Besides complementing your kitchen design, cabinet hardware helps with the following.

• They help extend your cabinet’s life by preventing its wood from coming into contact with oil and chemicals.
• They add aesthetic value to the cabinets and kitchen in general
• Hardware helps improve the functionality of your kitchen cabinets

Simply put, cabinet hardware refers to the knobs, pulls, and hinges on your kitchen cabinets meant to ease its functionality. This requires that you match the cabinets with suitable hardware, which is a complex process given the wide range of hardware styles and finishes available in the market today.

Here is a simple guide to help you in selecting the proper hardware for your cabinets.

Pay Attention to the Hardware Type

So do you prefer a knob, a pull, or both for your kitchen cabinets? Whatever you settle for comes down to your preference but note that it’s always easier to open a drawer using a pull since you can easily exert force without rotating your hand.

On the other hand, knobs go well with cabinet doors as you only need to rotate your hand naturally while doing the opening. It’s a sure bet you will want hardware that feels nice to touch and fits perfectly on your hands. Following this, you must first try out the hardware before purchasing it.

Alternatively, you can decide to go with both styles where you have the knobs on your cabinet’s doors and pull on the drawers. Such a combination helps give your kitchen an authentic look.

Style Is Important

The hardware you go for should intermarry with different aspects of the design of your cabinet, such as the lighting fixtures, ridges, lines, and countertop edges. Different hardware styles will fit in other homes.

For instance, Shaker-style cabinets found in most contemporary homes do well with hardware containing long simple lines.

Material of the Hardware

The cabinet hardware material is essential in determining its durability, ease of cleaning, and appearance. Hardware made of brass is, for instance, durable with antimicrobial advantages, while that consisting of bronze is beautiful and good to feel and touch. 

The Finishing

The hardware you opt for should add interest and flavor to your kitchen. Today, hundreds of hardware finishes such as brushed, satin, matte, antique, and painted and oil rubbed exist. Different finishing goes well with different types of kitchens.

For example, contemporary kitchens blend well with a highly polished or brushed finish, while brass finish looks good in a traditional kitchen. Therefore do your homework well to ensure whatever hardware you opt for matches your kitchen’s décor.

Size

Since cabinets and drawers come in different sizes, the rule of the game should be to put more gigantic pieces of hardware on oversized cabinets and more reduced works on small ones. Whenever possible, always ensure to go for pulls that are one-third of the length of the drawers.

In Conclusion

Besides the above factors, always ensure to first order and test a hardware sample before purchasing. It would help if you were sure it’s comfortable on your hand and it blends and fits well with your kitchen cabinets.

Moreover, ensure it offers high safety standards and doesn’t harm the individuals in your home. Though what you choose depends highly on you, the above guidelines are a sure bet in ensuring you settle on the proper hardware for your kitchen cabinets.