Antique Way

New Cabinet Hardware Gives Kitchen More Pull

Updating a kitchen doesn't have to cost thousands of dollars. Instead of replacing countertops or appliances, the cabinets might just need new pulls and knobs.

So how can bits of metal hardware make a difference? Consider this: The average kitchen has 45 doors and drawers, most of which have pulls. That means metal sticks out of 45 surfaces in most kitchens.

"Although they're such a small detail, not much bigger than 3 inches, pulls show up over and over again," says Tom O'Malley, owner of Locks & Pulls stores in Kansas. "They're a part of the house you touch every day."

O'Malley has seen houses that sat on the market for a long time, but when the seller replaced the outdated kitchen cabinet pulls, the house sold soon after. "It's weird," he says, "but it works."

Cabinet hardware reflects the look of a decade. The 1970s and 1980s saw the brownish-gold look of antique brass pulls. Shiny gold brass, sometimes accented with white porcelain, marked the 1990s.

Currently, two finishes are hot. Oil-rubbed bronze, with its dark brown tone, has an understated, old-fashioned look. Brushed nickel has a clean, modern look that works well in kitchens with stainless steel appliances.

Most early appliances reflect the abilities of two craftsmen: the blacksmith who could forge the head of an ax or the blade of a plane and the woodworker who produced the framework needed to secure, grip, and move the metal blade. At times when raw materials were rare, prudence prevailed: Blacksmiths often forged new tools from old ones, making a drill bit from a cast-off file or fashioning a saw blade from that of a broken scythe.

Prior to this century, specialized tools were part of every occupation; tools required by now-unfamiliar trades, such as that of the cooper (barrel maker), intrigue collectors today. Enormous augers used to turn logs into water pipes, double- or single-bladed axes, various saws, and levels ranging in length from a few inches to several feet y all have their collectors. But of the hundreds of types of tools that were used in America between the 17th and 19th centuries, the most collectible by far is the woodworking plane, especially those manufactured domestically after 1840.

"Other silver finishes and pewter come in behind those," says Jay Marshall, who owns Knobs & Locks, another Kansas store, with his wife, Glenna. "But mostly people walk in and ask for the brown ones."

The up and coming finish is French brass, a brushed, dulled gold. The patina has more depth than oil-rubbed bronze or nickel and would look good with ornate cabinetry.

Besides color, Marshall has noticed another trend. People are matching the hardware to the function of the door or drawer instead of using the standard 3-inch pull. Heavy pantry doors are getting 6- to 10-inch pulls. Old-fashioned bin pulls are being used on drawers that hold hefty pots and pans.

"People have become much more comfortable with mixing the size and style of hardware in a room," Marshall says. "But it's typically best to stick to the same finish for a room."

Stores often let customers borrow samples of several types of pulls so they can determine what's best for their kitchen.

O'Malley suggests that people choose smooth, simple pulls and knobs. Hardware with ornate details retain grease from the kitchen and dirt from hands. Eventually, the finish starts to pit, leaving permanent dark marks.

Pulls start at 89 cents for a lightweight plain one and range up to $45 for a heavy 24-karat gold-plated model accented with a glittering blue stone that would make Donald Trump jump for joy.

On average, people spend between $6 and $12 per pull for the most popular types.

Although investing in new hardware is thousands of dollars cheaper than buying new cabinets or countertops, the expense of buying new pulls was too much for Alicia and Brian Alferman of Overland Park. Still, they wanted a fresh look for their "Brady Bunch"-era kitchen.

Alicia Alferman, a muralist, decided to refinish the antique brass knobs. She bought several types of spray paint and spent a few hours during a weekend on the project. (See box for how to do it.) All supplies cost about $25. And the black-coated pulls have held up for more than a year.

"It's definitely updated the 1970s look of the kitchen," she says. "Friends come over and say they like the pulls. Some say, 'Thanks, you just saved me some money by giving me this idea.' "