A hardware misstep

That's what we want to avoid, at least. I've been perusing other people's lovely new cabinets and it lit a fire under my ass to get a quote for new doors. $750. It's not much. I know that. But we are in a recession, people, regardless of what the Fed wants to call it. For those of you who can afford it, the company is Advantage Cabinet Doors. They priced 22 doors and 7 drawer fronts for us, in red oak that they would select for redder undertones to blend in with the existing red oak cabinets. The doors would be Shaker style with square edges-- no beveling or mitering or raised panels-- and the stiles would be of the width that we designate. And unfinished, so we could keep everything consistent. In other words, custom doors, if not custom cabinets. That also included shipping. I think if they were closer to $500, we'd do it. Somewhere in that $250 difference is the line between an awesome deal and something not worth justifying when we have perfectly functional cabinets. We'll live with what we have and try to make them a little more likable.

These are the cabinets in question, as seen in a "before" shot of the kitchen:


And you know, I've been looking at them stacked on top of each other in the garage for months-- they actually don't actually look half bad in place. I will definitely need to sand them and put a clear coat on; the finish has yellowed severely over the years. And I planned on putting hardware on the doors and drawers. This hardware:




I had the micro setting on. I don't know WTF they're blurry...Anyway, the finish on the wood, as I said, will be more natural and pinky. But I kept looking at them and thinking something wasn't right about the knobs. At first I thought maybe they were too small. Then Adam said they looked unnecessary. I think he may be right. The doors are the kind that have a little curve to the edge so that they don't need hardware. I'd hate to drill holes in them and then hate the way they look...But if I do decide to get hardware, I have a mess of $10 off Lowe's coupons to soften the blow. (You can still get more!)

What do you guys think? I just feel like all cabinets should have hardware; but, then when I look at ours and they don't look right, my addled little brain doesn't know what to do. At any rate, it's cheaper to have nothing, so we'll start with that. Get them all hung in place and see how it looks. Step one in that direction? Sanding.

In other kitchen news, we have a big old blank space on one wall.

I put the dining room chair there for filler. Baseboards are obviously in order, as is crown...But I think I'm going to refinish a metal baker's rack that my mom had in her old house. It needs serious rust removal, and a coat of paint. I'm envisioning red-- deep red wine red-- with dark wood shelf tops. The shelves it has are wire, and a thin "butcher block" style top would be really nice-- in fact, some poplar strips would be super cheap, and I've got the glue, clamps, and red mahogany stain just begging to be used.

It's always something-- something that gets you no closer to final inspection, but which is clearly going to be more fun than any of that stuff.