Cabinet hardware is one of the last decisions that you make in a string of about 100 when designing a kitchen. At this point you’re tired of making decisions and of construction and waiting for parts to come in and all of these people trekking through your house and so on and so forth… You.are.just.so.tired.
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I understand – it’s really taxing. Just a little longer and then you’ll have a beautiful kitchen you get to live and play in for years to come, so take a deep breath, pull on your big kid pants, and get a grip. This is not an opportunity everyone gets to have, and you don’t want to give up on such an easy opportunity to bring a lot of character into your home, right?!
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Right.
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So, you might already know what the metal finish should be based on your faucet…
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but that doesn’t necessarily have to be the case. Using a finish that correlates with another element of the kitchen is completely okay, too. Like matching your shoes & accessories. See…
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and here, too…
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Match the finish of your hardware to a collection you intend on displaying such as the pewter in this kitchen…
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It’s all about deciding what feature you want to emphasize. Remember: this is jewelry for your kitchen. Think about it like you do everyday when getting dressed – with a neutral strapless dress (shaker cabinets) & fine features you might consider a matching set of statement jewelry (hardware), like Heidi did at the Emmy’s earlier this week…
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or like this home in Boston…
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Bin pulls are a classic in cabinet hardware – like gold stud earrings…
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and icebox latches have had a revival…
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Latches have been around for a long time. Variations of them were used on Hoosier cabinets from the 1910’s on. They’ve been around the block. Think estate jewelry.
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This (gorgeous) kitchen shows well how the two styles – bin pulls & latches – can be combined…
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I’m really enjoying un-lacquered brass hardware lately, which is what is in the photo above & photos below. The patina it develops over time is flat-out perfect.
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Un-lacquered brass is not the painfully shiny, cheap stuff that went through a hay-day a couple of decades ago and caused almost instant regret to anyone that installed a polished brass anything.
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The toe-kick even. Wow.
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*Un-lacquered brass is NOT polished brass*
For one thing, un-lacquered brass doesn’t flake off. It can’t. What you see is the raw material used to make the hinge, door knob, light switch plate, register grate, scale, lamp, door knocker, cabinet pull… you’re looking at. If it’s an antique, the beauty might be buried under three inches of gunk & nastiness, but elbow grease and determination (or a professional) will make that baby shine like the day it was born. Quality brass products in a polished finish will last where the poorly made, painted on generic brass finish fails. The “polished” on the good stuff can be stripped to make it “un-lacquered” if you’re motivated.
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I’m not a huge fan of super clean and shiny brass. I like a little age to it. If you are like me, have no fear! Un-lacquered brass can be patina’ed or waxed for a variety of looks, or if you’re patient (not like me) you can let oxygen & time do the work for you, but my tangent will end here. Moving on…
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See more a lot more photos after the jump…
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Kent Kitchen Works Blog 