The Cabinet Knob Adventure

This spring I was shopping for new cabinet pulls/knobs for my kitchen; I wanted something colorful and unique. There are a lot of beautiful options out there on Etsy, eBay, Amazon, etc. but without seeing them in person it was hard to decide if they were what I wanted.

As I was looking for ideas I came across some great articles and blogs about making your own painted knobs, which was right up my alley. In the end I used wood knobs, tissue paper, Modge Podge, and paints to make my own knobs. I hope if anyone else out there is interested in creating their own knobs or other art pieces like them that this project page helps you!

The Base Knobs

Step 1 - I needed some plain knobs that were the size I thought would be right for grabbing quickly in the kitchen.

To Etsy I went, as I love to support craftspeople around the world! I found what I was looking for: Round, 1.5" (1 1/2 inch) unfinished pulls.

I bought these from LemuelRobbins, who is based in Maine. There are a lot of choices on Etsy that might be a better shape for you, but this seller has great options!

The Supplies

Step 2 - Now, I needed to gather my supplies (or buy them if I didn't have them):

Plain white paper that's not too textured, scrap paper or printer paper is fine
White tissue paper, like you would use for gift giving
A pencil, and a pen for inking the base designs if you prefer
Paint brushes
Acrylic paints of varying colors that you like, and a white acrylic to use as the base
Modge Podge or similar, which is a decoupage glue
For sealing these you can use decoupage glue, or there are some other great options I explore in Step 7.

The Designs

Step 3 - Unless you're a confident free hand painter you'll probably want to create some drawn designs to paint over.

I drew these on the plain white paper with pencils first, then I inked those drawings in, so that they were more easy to trace over.

Speaking of tracing, I then took the white tissue paper and traced over the designs. This also made it easy to have some knobs that match in design and/or color.

Pre-Paint the Knobs

Step 4 - Pre-paint (Gesso) your knobs. I recommend using white acrylic paint at least on the face of the knob, so that your pencil outlines show clearly.

I made the mistake of trying this with black, teal, and orange, and it didn't work nearly as well when I went to paint in the designs, as the penciled design on the tissue was not as easy to see.

You can definitely paint the stems/bases of the knobs other colors, I just don't recommend it for the face, where your design will be.

Add the Design to Your Knobs

Step 5 - Add the tissue paper designs to your knob faces

Cut your designs to fit the knob face
Paint the first knob with a thin layer of the Modge Podge and immediately place the image over it, so that it sticks to the surface
- Do this carefully, so that you don't have wrinkles or bubbles in the paper (or at least, not too many)
Very carefully paint over the tissue with more Modge Podge to seal it down onto the knob.
- Make sure you just use a light layer or your tissue paper might tear.
Set this knob aside to dry and continue on to the next.

Now, Paint!

Step 6 - Now for the fun part: PAINTING!

You can use any acrylic paints available to you. I got several options from JoAnn's when they went out of business, and also had some kicking around. Then I found Acrylic Paint Pens, which was even better in a lot of cases, as they travel well and have both a fine tip and a brush tip.

Seal 'Em Up

Step 7 - Last step prior to installing is putting a layer of sealant on them.

I recommend letting your painted knobs dry for at least 24 hours; if you used a metallic paint I would wait quite a bit longer - one knob I had some silver paint acrylic on smeared all over and I needed to clean it all up and try to fix.

When they are dry you can pay them with a sealer.

If your knobs are really more for decoration than constant use (e.g. you're putting them on a pretty decorative end table that you never open the drawers of) the Modge Podge or other decoupage glue should be fine.
If you're planning to put these in a higher traffic area like your kitchen or bathroom you may want something like a clear acrylic gel. I went with Impasto Clear Gel Acrylic Medium, but I'm sure there are other great options.
Lastly, if you're putting your knobs in an area that children, toddlers, and pets might be able to reach them, you may want a sealant that is specifically non-toxic. This wasn't something that occurred to me until I started on another panting project for a baby, and I saw I should be looking at this option. I used GRANOTONE Acrylic Artist's Varnish - Matte Finish, but there are some other options out there.

Install!

Step 8 - Now you can install your knobs! I had some trial and error with this because my existing cabinet knobs used a much smaller screw, so just something to keep in mind.

Here are some pics of my kitchen with the new knobs so you can see how they turned out!