What Cabinet Hardware Is Trending Now?

Hey, I’m Hannah! I’m an interior designer turned cabinet hardware shop owner and I'm going to answer the most commonly asked questions about cabinet hardware. 

Today, I'm going to talk about: 

 

• My journey into the world of cabinet hardware
• What is hardware?
• What cabinet hardware is trending now?
• Where should cabinet hardware be placed?
• Are cabinet pulls a standard size?
• What is a good brand of cabinet hardware?

 

A bit about me - I’ve worked in London at some of the top interior design studios on some really cool projects. I worked across several different areas within the interior design world - high-end residential, luxury hospitality, restaurant design as well as commercial interior design. I’m definitely a creative at heart and, as much as I loved working as an interior designer, I didn’t love all aspects of the job.

 

Yes, the interior design world sounds super glamorous and fun with loads of champagne launch parties and creating beautiful schemes but, in reality, there’s so much you don’t see. The endless scheduling, faulty products, dealing with difficult clients, contractors and suppliers, logistics and so on that being a creative interior designer is only about 10% of it. The rest is all project management.

 

One recurring element that I noticed in all of the projects I worked on was how the details really make or break a design. I was instantly drawn to hardware and this was my introduction into the hardware world! 

I ultimately ended up quitting my job as an interior designer in December 2019 and set up on my own to work on the increasing interest in e-design (remote interior design). I ended up doing quite well and luckily managed to make something of it during lockdown but it ultimately took me several years to realise that the project management was still really keeping me down. I decided to get into the world of e-commerce and why not sell my passion - cabinet hardware?! 

 

I used my skills as an interior designer to source some really fun pieces and build up relationships with great suppliers to curate my own collection of cabinet hardware. I really love that I’ve been on the interior designer side and now on the business side as I understand both and where each party is coming from.

I wanted to start this blog to give you some professional design advice, from an interior designer, on all things interior as well as hardware - both of my true loves (except for my dog!) I’m going to answer some of the most common questions that I’m asked regarding both and how to make the most of your interior. I’ve also just left London and moved to a Victorian house in Surrey so I might create some blog posts about period houses and how to make the most of them - we shall see where it takes me! 

Photo credit: Unsplash Christin Hume 

1. What is hardware?

Let’s start with the basics - what exactly is hardware? 

You have general hardware as the main category with subcategories of the following:

Door Hardware: such as door handles, escutcheons, locking mechanisms and door hinges. 

Cabinet Hardware: this is anything that you can use for a cabinet or drawers such as knobs, pulls, invisible handles and hinges. 

Hardware Accessories: Think door stops, coat hooks, robe hooks and towel hooks. 

My recommendation would be to stick to one finish, eg brushed brass or polished chrome etc and unify that throughout your interior so that everything links. This will create a beautiful and cohesive look to your home. 

 

 

2. What cabinet hardware is trending now?

In my experience as an interior designer and online hardware store owner, cabinet hardware is the most popular category. The reason for this is that it’s really simply to replace an existing cabinet pull for a much more beautiful design and this instantly upgrades the look to your cabinets and overall interior. It’s a trick to making a cheap drawer or cabinet look much more expensive than it actually is.  

To answer, what cabinet hardware is trending now - I think that the mid-century modern look is really popular. Wood and brass seem to always sell well and look pretty timeless. I think Soho House has been pretty influential in bringing this style back. 

Saying that, antique brass is also really popular and I definitely see more customers asking questions regarding my antique brass handles and hardware. Antique brass looks amazing in period properties and will look stunning for years to come. 

You can click on the photos below to view some of our most popular collections: 

3. Where should cabinet hardware be placed?

Cabinet hardware should be placed either where an existing handle was, therefore swapping the size like for like, or at the point where you are most likely to open the door or drawer. 

This might sound obvious but it’s easy to put it exactly in the middle of wardrobe or high-height cabinet (like a pantry cabinet) where it looks central, but practicality should always win over aesthetic. 

You can see some different positioning below: 

 

 

 

 

4. Are cabinet pulls standard size?

Yes, cabinet pulls do generally tend to come in standard sizes. I’ve listed the most popular sizes below in imperial and metric for our US, UK and Australia readers! 

⤅ T-Bar or Knob: single hole

⤅ Small: 96mm/3 3/4” hole distance

⤅ Medium: 128mm/5 1/16” hole distance

⤅ Large: 160mm/6 5/16” hole distance

⤅ XL: 192mm/7 1/2” hole distance

⤅ XXL: 224mm/8 13/16” hole distance

⤅ XXXL: 320mm/12 5/8” hole distance

Anything above 320mm hole to hole isn’t very common, and lots of hardware doesn’t even stretch to 320mm, but we do sell lots of collections that are considered extra long. 

 

 

(This is from an upcoming product launch so keep your eyes peeled! 👀 )

 

5. What is a good brand of cabinet hardware?

You know that I’m going to say The Boutique Handle Co! The reasons for this are because: 

• The majority of our collections are made from solid brass so they will stand the test of time
• We offer a huge variety of different colors, metal finishes, styles and sizes
• I use my experience as an interior designer to offer free help to customers looking for advice for their interior hardware
• We ship globally with tracking information
• We really do care about our customers! This aspect has always been SO important to us and we truly will go above and beyond to do our very best for our customers. Check out some of our reviews from past customers!

 

I hope my first, introductory blog post has been some help to you! I wanted to introduce myself personally as well as give you some advice on some commonly asked questions.

Ultimately, the world of hardware is quite specific and has lots of sub-categories of different types of hardware. 

Take a look at our collection of different types of hardware to familiarise yourself with what you need. We’ll be adding a range or door handles and bathroom hardware soon so watch this space!

You can join up to our email list to keep in the loop whenever we have a sale on or a new collection coming out. You’ll also get a 10% discount when you sign up as an email subscriber. 

Let me know if you would like me to answer anything specifically and I’ll look at making a blog post on it so it can help out some other people too 🙂

Hannah x