Don't get lost in the hardware. Take along a roadmap and avoid these ten common mistakes when choosing those cabinet fittings. Mistake #1. Not Spending Time Choosing the Right Hardware. Okay folks, picture this: You're redoing a gorgeous kitchen in what was an adobe vacation cottage in Taos New Mexico, and which is now your first new home. It has a domed ceiling and birch wood trim all along the outline of the plaster walls. Floor to ceiling windows bring the vast desert landscape with its painted mountains right into your kitchen.While at the showroom looking over cabinet models you see the street scene through the storefront window and think that through your kitchen windows you see a genuine natural masterpiece. Just then the salesman mentions choosing a cabinet color. You order a sage grey finish to complement and cool the stark landscape through your windows. It's the perfect touch that will please you for years.Then he asks about the hardware. What kinds of knobs and hinges to put on your masterpiece? On the sample board it is immediately apparent that all the knobs and hinges have nothing to do with that lingering fantasy involving the continuity of cabinet coloring and view. They would just distract. Except for the white ceramic knobs that hint at the clouds over the mountains.Customize that hardware to your specifications. Since most cabinets are custom or semi-custom, picking the right fixtures should be the customers choice not the factory's.Mistake #2. Choosing The Most Popular One.When you get a look at the sample board of knobs, pulls, and hinges, catches and fasteners don't get dazzled by the fashion statement and forget that you're choosing a drawer pull not a piece of jewelry. The intent is to blend into the overall design of your kitchen, not overwhelm it. That's not to say you can't have any fun; Save that whimsy for the closets and drawers of the children's room, and maybe the kitchen after a few years when you might want to brighten up a drab ho-hum feeling. The first choice should be with an eye on enhancing and supporting overall design. Traditional kitchen cabinets look best with dull, or matte finished metal hardware in stainless steel, nickel, pewter or brass in traditional even shapes. Usually only a modern motif with a lot of stainless steel accents and sharp angles can incorporate shiny chrome, polished or enamel hardware in unusual designs.Mistake #3. Picking The Wrong Type of Hinge For Your Cabinet Design. Cabinet hinges not only open and close cabinet doors, they also hold the doors to the cabinets. Doors are literally "hung" onto the hinges. Therefore they have to be strong enough to bear the weight of the door.Height and weight of cabinet doors determine how many hinges you need. For a cabinet door less then 40 inches high and less then 11 pounds, two hinges are sufficient. For a door 40 - 60 inches high and 13 - 20 pounds, three hinges are needed. For a door 60-80 inches high and 29 - 33 pounds, for hinges are required. For a door 80 - 85 inches high and 40 - 48 pounds, five hinges are necessary. If too few hinges are installed onto heavy doors, too much stress is put on the hinges under repetitive use and the hinge and door will either break or pull out. make sure to pick the right size hinge for your door's weight and height.