Hardware in your home demands the human touch, from the entry doorknocker to your kitchen cabinets. Function is the first order of business for doorknobs, window latches, drawer pulls, and hinges. After function, design steps in and here’s where choices are placed on the homeowner. In today’s marketplace you can restore the charm of your vintage home with ornate Victorian style, basic hand-tooled Arts & Crafts style, and even incorporate the sleek European designs for a contemporary feel in your kitchen or bath. With the amount of knobs, drawer pulls, and hinges available today you can transform cabinetry to reflect your personal vision or fantasy.

If you’re not matching any of the periods above then you have an open palate to create your own style. With all the decorative styles, finishes, and custom designs available today you can create themes whether it be soccer balls, vegetables, fruit, or utensil-shaped knobs for your cabinets. Whimsical shapes like a Gecko, fleur-de-lis, fish, twigs, and human figures — just about any subject is covered with knobs and pulls. Plan to be overwhelmed with the shear volume of what’s available today.

“When I first started in the hardware business some 20 years ago, knobs were selling for as little as $1 and maxed out at $4, now they start at $4 and you could spend up to $100 or more per item,” according to Arti Lilien, product manager for W.C. Winks Hardware. “The bulk of our business is in older style replacements but not everyone has an older home so we try and stock a full line of modern and contemporary decorative hardware. The questions I ask first of a customer is, how old is your home, and what’s your personal style. The historic cops aren’t going to show up at your door to book you for using a contemporary pole pull in your 1909 bungalow, so it’s your choice to find the right hardware that matches your personality and the statement you want to make,” claims Arti.

Scale plays a very important role in the look and comfort of your kitchen or bath cabinet hardware. Using a too small or too large knob/pull can look disproportional to the door/drawer. Arti recommends as a starting point for kitchen knobs 1 1/4” and 1” for bathroom; a starting point for drawer pulls is 3.”

Making the choice to replace your historic hardware can be a challenge. There are many firms that specialize in reproduction hardware, but the chance that they have available your exact style is slim. Here in the greater Portland metro area we are lucky to have businesses dedicated to providing original historical hardware (see House Parts on page 14 for companies to help with your search). What if you can’t find that exact doorknob or backplate that matches the rest of your home? Try to find the closest reproduction or antique hardware that matches your design and replace all the hardware within that room. If your hardware is painted you just might find a jewel under all those layers of paint. If all your hardware is painted bring it to Houck’s Process Stripping Center (see page 15 for more information). If you only have a few pieces try boiling off the paint. If you plan on painting your kitchen, bath, or built-in cabinets make sure to fill all the holes left from old mismatched knobs/pulls. This will give you the opportunity to start over with the proper hardware.

Hardware can change the entire look and feel of a room, a small price to pay in beautifying your cabinets, windows, and doors.

A Brief History
Decorative hardware has come a long way since the basic brass knob of centuries ago.

	1600 to 1860: Early American style hardware was usually handmade with the emphasis on function over style. Hardware of this period was simple, heavy, and functional.		1865 to 1890: The Eastlake style produced during the Industrial Revolution transformed all aspects of America’s lifestyle. Mass-produced and mass-marketed hardware found its way into homes all over America.
	1880 to 1915: The Victorian era represents the height of America’s decorative hardware industry. With innovations like inexpensive casting procedures, new finishing and plating techniques fabricated ornate designs with complicated swirling and floral patterns in relief.		1895 to 1920: The Arts & Crafts movement rejected the excesses of the Industrial Revolution giving birth to an era of handmade, simple, and functional hardware. This style is enormously popular today and found in bungalows all over the country.
	1895 to 1945:The Revival Style borrowed themes and forms of the past to create a romantic style that was manufactured by the millions. Hardware from this era was rustic, Old World, and charming.		1925 to 1940: Art Deco was the new modern look that originated in France. This decorative style was the first to look toward to the future not the past. The style used geometric motifs and materials that previously had not been used in hardware. Common handles and knobs were chrome-plated steel or brass; and plastic was introduced for the first time.
	1930 to 1950: The Streamline Modern style merged Art Deco with Bauhaus International to produce sweeping, aerodynamic curves, and circular forms that was often chrome-plated, brushed steel, or brass; aluminum was used extensively.		1945 to 1960: Mid-century style adorned ranch style houses that gave birth to the suburbs. This style created its own look by mixing clean lines with a stark functionalism turning its back on any embellishments. Function is the style with this no-nonsense post-war spirit of the times. This style is used today for all new construction and can be found on the shelves of all building material suppliers.