This Hidden Detail Instantly Dated My Newly Redone Kitchen Cabinets (But the Fix Was Easy!)

Painting cabinets and swapping out the knobs and pulls are always the easiest first steps when it comes to a no-demo kitchen reno. And fortunately, it’s a (relatively!) affordable and approachable way to dramatically change the look of your kitchen. With only swapping wall paint and one fixture, my 1950s kitchen got a whole new look by trading a black-and-white paint job on the cabinets for a dark green. But as soon as I was done, I realized I’d made a mistake. 

These were the original cabinets, and I had failed to notice one little detail: The hinges were a shiny finish and style that screamed out-of-date. Now, if I were beholden to all things original all the time, I’d want to keep them as is. But in an effort to bring the kitchen into 2024, with just some fun nods to the era (hello, vintage pink wall oven!), my plan was to add some contemporary hardware to the cabinets. Realizing anything I liked would clash with the vintage chrome hinges stopped the plan in its tracks. 

And I stayed frozen — until talking with a cabinet refinishing specialist. I wasn’t sure if it would be a huge lift to replace the hinges, as I was sure I wanted something hidden, or something that better matched the rest of the kitchen. Brandon Butler owns Louisville Cabinet Rehab here in my city, and he was kind enough to talk me through how to replace those old, dated hinges (which is easier than it sounds!). 

He said what we most likely have here is chrome. Thanks to an electroplating process that made it easy to mass produce hardware, that was incredibly popular in the 1950s, and although it may not be quite as simple as popping off a knob or a drawer pull, it’s a simple enough project to DIY, Butler said. (Although preferably, it would have been done at the same time as painting the cabinets, but I digress.) 

If you’re an avid DIYer, you should have no problem making the swap. He recommends using a drill to carefully loosen the screws on each hinge, then remove the screws and hinges. Be sure to keep your cabinet doors in order, or even stick a piece of tape on each one along with the opening it goes to, identified with numbers so you’ll know which one goes to which when you’re done.

It’s easy to find replacement hardware hinges; a quick search turned up a slew of options like these at Lowe’s, or these on Amazon, and for anyone with a heftier budget, these beauties at Rejuvenation. Just be sure you’re getting the same style, i.e. surface-mounted (although if yours are hidden, this may not even be an issue!). And remember to check that the size will more or less match up with the ones you’re replacing. 

What’s even better news? The holes don’t actually have to line up — which would really narrow down your hinge options — according to Butler. His tip if they don’t: Get some thin, double-stick tape, place it over the hole you’re going to use to mount the new hinges, drill through it, and put your screw in. You might have to tap out new holes for the others, he says, but the plate will cover the old ones. 

And that’s it! I wish I’d done it when the cabinets were being painted, but I feel confident enough now to pick out some hardware, then find hinges that will match and make the swap. Before long, without too much of a time or money commitment, we’ll have beautiful, original cabinets that don’t scream 1957.

Buy: Berta Full Overlay Frameless Soft Closing European Hinges, Set of 6, $12.88