Do Kitchen Cabinets Need Handles?

Kitchen cabinets need handles for the convenience of accessing the contents inside the cabinet, these small details are mostly overlooked yet they can be very instrumental in improving the aesthetic look and feel of the kitchen.

However, in the 21^st era, things seem to be taking a turn to simplicity, to which end most modern houses no longer construct kitchen cabinets with handles.

The new technology will let you access the contents of the cabinet by just giving the cabinet a small push.

So for as much as kitchen cabinets need handles it also depends on the theme of your kitchen, for example, if you are renovating your parent’s kitchen, you will need to keep it simple but also traditional.

Older people are rarely interested in the new generation technological advancements and would really appreciate it if they weren’t forced to adhere to a lifestyle that they are rarely used nor resonates with them.

For the younger generation however it’s a different story and by putting handles on their kitchen cabinets, it seems more cumbersome and old fashioned.

Handles, however, come in many different designs, there are those that are just simple knobs, others are longer especially the ones used on countertops, and there are those that feature decorative patterns.

So what are the factors to consider when getting handles for the kitchen cabinets, read on?

Types of kitchen cabinet door handle

We all carry some little history from our past and wouldn’t want to let go because they carry sweet memories of our childhood and youth.

Well, one best way to hold onto sweet old memories is by customizing our homes to reflect our past life, with our parents.

The Transitional cabinet handle will thus suffice for the above objective.

So if you are not yet ready to move over to the contemporary design of handles, you could adopt the transition handles that are neither traditional nor wholly contemporary.

The above kitchen is rich in recent history, as it is also not very traditional but neither is it from the year 2030.

The cabinet handles offer a warm homely feel, and if you have noticed they are nothing like the current long sophisticated door handles which will look at shortly in this excerpt.

Traditional

The only way to get the feel of the traditional door handle is through movies, their make and outlook were simple but very beautiful.

Traditional cabinet handles were not long pieces of metal or plastic but rather carefully crafted pieces of steel that had flower engravings to complement the kitchen décor.

If you check the design of the cabinets they also complimented the handles, everything just featured an attractive cosmetic look.

And the best thing about then is that you could combine them with a matching doorknob for the drawers especially on the kitchen counter or on the doors.

Contemporary kitchen cabinet handles

The most recently constructed houses don’t have handles on their kitchen cabinets, the reason being that they are trying to make everything as simple as it can possibly get.

So with the latest technology, all you need to do is just push in the door at a specific place and wallah open sesame.

But if we back up a little, because not everyone has transitioned to the first approaching 2030 technology, we have the simply designed kitchen cabinet handles.

The idea behind this simplicity is to achieve a sophisticated and classy look and by the way, it has worked check below.

Factors to consider when choosing the kitchen cabinet handle

Choosing your kitchen cabinet door handle shouldn’t be a thorn in the flesh if you know what it is that you want.

And the first thing would be to consider which theme you want to adopt, do you want to retain the safe home feel of your parent’s house or do you want to shoot into the future by adopting the handleless cabinets.

Well, the choice is entirely yours only that you need to observe the below important tips.

Quality of the kitchen cabinet handle

We live in an era of expensive knock offs, and this you could fall victim of because of design.

When choosing door handles ensure that you get them from a credible vendor to avoid purchasing substandard cabinet handles that will rarely last you a year.

The design of the handle should also not compromise its quality.

A good quality kitchen cabinet handle should, therefore, be able to withstand the constant opening and closing of the kitchen cabinet without falling apart.

Also, ensure that the handles can be used by anyone such as the older people or the small kids that is they should have a nice comfortable grip and should complement the overall décor of your kitchen.

Size of the kitchen cabinet handle

Well, the size of your kitchen cabinet handle directly correlates with the size of your cabinets, and this is one of the aspects that can completely mess up the outlook of your kitchen.

The problem comes in when you are conflicted about whether to go with handles of the same size or to take different sizes.

A rule of thumb would be to ensure that the handles don’t look too big on smaller cabinets and too small on bigger cabinets. 

Your aim should, therefore, be to achieve a consistent and harmonious look throughout the kitchen and this can only be possible if you use handles of the same length.

The positioning of the kitchen cabinet handles

Don’t let the person installing your kitchen cabinets putt the handles before you determine the best position.

So by holding the handles over the cabinet doors, you will be able to establish the best position and installation height.

However, you might want to stick with the standard design where the pull out drawers have horizontally placed handles and the cabinets have vertically installed handles.

Handle positioning has the ability to attract attention to itself anytime someone enters the kitchen, therefore, if you want a toned-down look don’t install handles on the overhead cabinets but ensure that all the lower cabinets and drawers have handles.

You might also want to install the traditional type of handles but achieve a contemporary feel.

Well, this is simple as you will just have to use the vertical design of installation on all the cabinets, a design that works well with drawers.

You also need to ensure that proximity between the adjacent handles is observed so that they don’t hit on each other when the cabinet doors are closed.