Have you ever taken a minute to assess how much woodwork you have in your house? If you’re like most homeowners, chances are your kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms, and living rooms are adorned with polished or stained wood for cabinets, tables, drawers, and closets. During this slow housing market and continuing downward spiral economy, maybe you should take on a new do-it-yourself home improvement project. Restoring or replacing your existing cabinets is a quick and easy project that will not only keep you busy but also increase the value of your home. What are you waiting for? Follow these guidelines to get started and you’ll be on your way to creating a fresh new style of home that will put extra money in your pocket in the long run!

Dust off your tool belt

Chances are your home renovation project will start with your kitchen. After all, the cabinetry and millwork in this room gets enough daily “trauma” like spills, nicks, and scratches from life’s daily hustle and bustle. However, before you decide to remove any wood, knobs, or pulls from existing cabinets, you need to gather all the necessary hardware to complete the project. These items include:

– Measuring tape
-Level
– Pencils
– Study Finder
– Spare Wood
– Cabinet pulls, knobs or handles
– Matching screws and hinges.
– Screwdriver

Remove old hardware

This is the fun part of your home improvement project! Involve the whole family in this step. Be sure to wear protective goggles if you’re going to cut wood into pieces! Proper removal involves unscrewing the hinges on all cabinets and gently prying the wood out of the cabinet frame or wall.

Align and assemble

Unless you’re simply replacing existing cabinet doors, you’ll need to use your stud finder to hang new cabinets and other woodwork. Mark where you will hang the new cabinet with your pencils. Then, whether you’re just replacing a cabinet door or installing a new one, you need to use your level to make sure you’re hanging the new fixture correctly! Screw the hinges part way while holding the level to ensure a straight and accurate line.

Choose the Accessories

Now that your new woodwork is in place, it’s time to have some fun! You can freshen up any tired kitchen, living room, or bedroom by re-staining the wood color or simply adding new cabinet pulls. For busy households, easy-to-use kitchen cabinet handles and simple door knobs may be your best bet. More contemporary kitchen designs are incorporating more unique cabinet pulls, including finger recesses that are hidden in the top edge of cabinet drawers and shelves.

Be creative

With the most difficult and inconvenient part of this project out of the way, now it’s time to think outside the box! Adorning your newly hung cabinets with unique or interesting handles can totally transform any room almost instantly. For rooms that typically get a high volume of traffic, choosing larger drawer handles can make things easier. However, the kitchen also has most of the drawers in a small area of ​​space, so having handles that are too big can create some clutter. Shop and try on a variety of sizes to see which feels most comfortable and looks the most pleasing to the eye.

In addition to trying large sizes, consider installing cabinet hardware that has a unique design or polish. Newer handles and knobs feature knotted iron in a distressed or distressed varnish to create the feel of a rustic, distressed home design. For newer style rooms or rooms that include multiple stainless steel appliances, a bright polished chrome or satin nickel will add sparkle and shine, especially when caught in the sunlight. Viola! Your new or renovated cabinets, drawers and shelves are complete!