How to Make Your Own Cabinet and Drawer Hardware

Make sure the new hardware has the same footprint as the old.

You can quickly update a room's look by installing custom hardware on your cabinets and drawers.

Although they're small, knobs and pulls appear repeatedly throughout a room and have a huge impact on your overall design; they can pull together a theme or clash with other elements. To assure that your hardware is a good fit, place it next to accent pieces while noting differences in color, material and style. For example, a faux metal finish knob might appear to match from a distance, but it may lack the luster and sheen of real metal under closer inspection.

Things You'll Need

• Screw
• Wire cutters
• Clay
• Texture sheet
• Mold
• Spoon
• Knife
• Cookie sheet
• Foil
• Oven
• Sandpaper
• Paint
• Paintbrushes
• Varnish
• Sealer

Instructions

Knobs

1. Remove the existing hardware. Clean the screw with soap and water. Insert the screw into the cabinet and note how much threading is exposed.

2. Cut the screw shorter if the new knob will be thinner.

3. Mold clay around the tip of the screw to form the new knob. Roll the clay against texture sheets to add a pattern. Use candy molds to shape the clay into figurines or shapes. Use the flat of a spoon to smooth out fingerprints and rough edges. Cut off the excess with a sharp craft knife.

4. Compare the clay knob to the old hardware to ensure that the new knob's base is as wide as the previous piece.

5. Cover a cookie sheet with foil. Place the knob on the foil-lined baking sheet. Bake in a conventional oven at the temperature recommended by the manufacturer.

6. Place the tray in a well-ventilated area to cool overnight.

7. Touch the knob carefully to ensure the screw did not retain heat before proceeding.

8. Sand the knob to smooth the surface and remove fingerprints and defects.

9. Mold a cone-shaped mound of clay. Press the screw into the clay so the knob stands erect.

10. Paint the knob. Use spray paint to achieve a smooth finish. Dry it for 24 to 48 hours.

11. Apply a clear spray-on sealant or varnish to protect the knob's surface.

12. Remove the screw. Grip it with a pair of pliers and drive it in and out to loosen the thread.

Pulls

1. Remove the drawer pull from the cabinet and take out the screws. Clean both pieces, then replace the existing fasteners with headless screws.

2. Affix a cone-shaped mount of clay to the table and press the pull into the clay so the screws are erect.

3. Mold a new pull around these screws.

4. Repeat steps 4 through 11 above to bake, sand and finish the pull.

5. Use a pair of pliers to back out the headless screws carefully. Remove both screws at the same time, ensuring that both sides are kept even, to avoid breaking the new clay pull.

Tips & Warnings

• You can easily use your finished clay knob or pull to make a plastic copy. Simply submerge the clay knob in an art mold such as that used for life casting. Remove the knob, then pour a liquid plastic mixture into the cavity left by the knob.

References

• "The Michael's Book of Arts & Crafts"; Dawn Cusick, Megan Kirby; 2003
• "Making Fine Furniture"; Peter Anderson; 2007