The Art of Kitchen Hardware Placement: A Guide to Maximizing Functionality and Style
When it comes to kitchen hardware, few people realize just how many knobs and poles can be used in a single kitchen. In fact, it's not uncommon to see 30, 40, or even 50 of these pieces scattered throughout the space. With so many choices available, it can be overwhelming to decide where to place them and how to ensure they're installed correctly.
One of the most effective ways to achieve a cohesive look is by starting with the base cabinets. A common mistake people make when placing handles on drawers is to position them in the center. While this may seem like a logical choice, it can often result in hardware that looks too low and awkwardly placed. To avoid this, Tommy recommends starting at the bottom of the drawer and positioning the handle about 1/4 inch off-center on each subsequent drawer. This creates a balanced look from above, making the hardware appear more harmonious with the surrounding space.
When it comes to upper cabinets with doors, the rail, styles, and sometimes even the center point can be used as a reference for placing poles or knobs. Tommy suggests positioning a knob in one location, such as on the door or top rail, and using a piece of putty to hold it in place while marking the exact spot. This allows you to gauge the height and placement with greater accuracy.
Another valuable technique is creating a jig using scrap wood to ensure accurate placement across multiple doors or cabinets. By cutting three pieces of wood, one for each side of the door or cabinet, and adding two small notches to create an offset, Tommy finds it easier to drill precise holes for his chosen hardware. This setup allows him to position the hardware at a consistent height, regardless of the surface being used.
Tommy also highlights the importance of consistency when using jigs or templates. By keeping all components aligned with each other, you can achieve a professional-grade finish that looks polished and put-together. It's essential to remember that there are many pre-made jigs available on the market, catering to various hardware types and designs.
When working with wide handles, Tommy recommends using a specific jig designed for these larger pieces of hardware. By placing the jig on the door and adjusting it until it clicks into place, you can ensure accurate spacing and alignment. In some cases, using a combination square allows you to set an offset from the center point or top/bottom rail, giving you more flexibility in your design choices.
Throughout his process, Tommy emphasizes the importance of taking measurements and double-checking placement before drilling any holes. By doing so, he can avoid costly mistakes and ensure that every piece of hardware is precisely where it needs to be.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enkitchen Hardware Tommy right I don't think most people realize just how many knobs and poles you can have in a kitchen I mean you can have 30 40 or 50 of these things in a single kitchen a lot and there's a lot of different choices out there so you want to make sure um that you actually put them in the right place and that you put them up accurately exactly let me show you a little trick first of all what to do what I like to do with base cabinets now let's take this handle right here some people say let's put it in the center of the draw here center of the draw here or down here something like it on the center of the rail but when positioning them on a drawer let's start at the bottom of the draw you think by placing it in the center of the draw it will look centered but if you stand back and look at it the hardware looks too low almost as if it's down here right so what I like to do is take and move it up a/ inch off center on the bottom draw and about a qu of an inch on the next drawer up and then put it centered there so now when you're looking at the hardware from up here it looks better good idea all right and so on the upper cabinets when we have doors we've got a rail we've got Styles and sometimes you would use the center of these either top or bottom to locate a pole or a knob right a pole or a knob let's let's take a knob right here so you may position the knob right here you could position it down here let me show you a little trick you can take a piece of this two-faced putty right here stick it on the knob and really hold it up there and say oh that's clever is that where I wanted to go well I can't tell you how many hours I spent looking at these things trying to decide where they go in my kitchen you can go crazy actually I wasn't deciding I was just agreeing yeah exactly all right but regardless of where you put them you want to make sure that if you put one down here on this door that it's in the exact same spot on this door same thing up top right and you can use a tape measure and a square like this is actually combination square and you can set the offset right here to the center of that style and then Mark Mark a mark like that and come down here with the height here M measure down from the top your two points right what I like to do is I like to make a jig and with some scrap wood you can take three pieces of scrap wood and put a piece on the top and a piece on the side and let each one hang over just a little bit right that allows you to take this piece with the holes drilled for the hardware that I've chosen take it and put it on the door rest it on the top and on the side and my two holes for the handle that I've chosen gives you an offset from the top an offset from the side right and allows me to take it and flip it over so I can do the same thing on the left or the right hand door very clever I can also use it on my bottom and top cabinets the same way just flip it over right do it here and do it there drill my holes so homemade jig for you although there are a lot of jigs out there that you can buy to help you with this job as well there's all kinds of jigs from this type right here simple jig you figure out where the holes are you're going to use it you put put it here you punch a hole you punch a hole and then you drill it so that's just for marking just for marking all right now there's a jig right here that's come out you can set the offset put it on the side of the door this is for those wide handles that I I set it up for and I push it on the door right there and it gives me I can line it up for example I'd line it up right here all right top Rail and I take my drill and I drill through there and I drill through there because this is a metal it gives you a nice metal guide to guide the drill and keep it straight keep it straight all right now what I use is I actually use this this one right here it sets on the door it gives me my Center it drops down and gives me my height and I can turn it around and do the other door the same way so here we've got the spacing for a pull but then we've also got the center point for a knob right you can use it for a knob and I could take and use this one for a knob as long as I'm consistent of what I'm going to do I can also use this on a draw I can take it put it on the draw and center the position off the top of the draw making sure that I use it on all the same height drawers all right so think about the positioning make sure you get it accurate and to do that in most cases you're going to be using some kind of a jig exactly good information thank you my pleasure\n"