If you own an old home, you can preserve the authentic look with antique-style cabinet hardware that improves the look of a kitchen.

You can focus on the cabinet and drawer hardware that makes a surprising impact on the look of your kitchen, and installing antique hardware pieces can be done for a fraction of the cost of new cabinets and can be done in a few hours or less.

Here are steps you can take to install antique-style cabinet hardware:

• The first step to install cabinet handles and drawer pulls is to remove each one of the old ones, which are attached with one or more screws that can be removed from the backside.
• Make a count of the number of cabinet handles and drawer pulls you'll need, and replace them with antique handles and pulls of the same size.
• Cabinet knobs and pulls are typically installed between 2 ½ and 3 inches from the corner of the cabinet doors furthest from the hinges. Knobs and pulls installed on a kitchen drawer front are typically centered in the middle of the drawer. Oversized knobs or pulls may look better placed lower down on a cabinet.
• Use a cabinet drill template to get the correct placement of knobs and pulls on cabinet drawers. Hang the template on the cabinet door, locate the holes you need to drill, and draw their outlines on the cabinet to mark the areas to drill.
• Once you know where the handles and knobs will be installed, drill holes for them, using a drill bit that is the same size as the screws being used. Drill from the front to back, holding the drill level and drilling slowly.
• Now install the knobs and pulls with screws inserted into the hole in the door from the back until it is snug against the door.