How to Make a Template for Kitchen Cabinets & Door Handles

Whether your cabinets are new or renovated, hardware is the final touch that pulls the whole look together. Cabinet handles are typically installed in a lower corner of the cabinet door, although this is a matter of preference. A template helps you quickly and accurately determine where to drill the holes for the cabinets. Home improvement stores sell inexpensive plastic templates, but you can make a homemade one that works just as well in less than five minutes.

Measuring tape
5-by-5 piece of cardboard or card stock
Scissors

Instructions

- 1
  Determine where you want the door handle to sit on the cabinet door. Mark the area with a pencil. Measure from the side and bottom of the cabinet door to the mark and note the measurements. For example, the cabinet handle probably sits about 2 inches from the bottom of the door and 2 inches from the side.
- 2
  Mark those measurements on the bottom right hand corner of a 5-by-5-inch piece of cardboard or card stock. Line up the cardboard or card stock so the right hand corner lies directly over the corner of the cabinet door. Check again to verify that the measurements on the template for the handle are correct.
- 3
  Make a hole in the cardboard template directly over the marking with the tip of a pair of scissors. This will be your template. To mark cabinets for hardware placement, slide the template into place with the corner of the cardboard directly lined up with the cabinet corner. Insert a pencil through the hole you've made in the cardboard to make a mark on the cabinet. This is your drill mark.
- 4
  Mark a cabinet door that opens from the left by turning the cardboard template over and placing it over the door. So long as you line up the corner of the cardboard with the corner of the cabinet, the mark will be accurate.

Can You Repair Pressboard Wood?

How to Install a Side on a Particleboard Cabinet

Carpentry