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<\/a><\/p>\nPhotos by James Bombales<\/em><\/p>\n European-style cabinets, which open upward, not outward, are designed with a sleek, minimalist aesthetic. Although they look good on the outside, inside they are potential death-traps, waiting to clonk you on the head, or cause a tremble that will shatter your best champagne flutes. <\/span><\/p>\n So, what\u2019s a home cook to do with a kitchen full of slamming doors and drawers? Upgrade to soft-close hardware that will save your sanity and your glassware.<\/span><\/p>\n We recently caught up with interior designer Christine Dovey<\/a> at an event for GRASS<\/a>, a leading developer and manufacturer of slide and hinge systems, as well as flap and corner cabinet systems. We asked her about the ins and outs of soft-close technology, and how she integrated GRASS products into her own home.<\/p>\n Designer Christine Dovey<\/em><\/p>\n BuzzBuzzNews: Why is soft-close hardware worth splurging on?<\/b><\/p>\n Christine Dovey: We often pay a lot of attention to what something looks like on the outside, but what the soft close hardware does is it allows you to take notice of how things are working on the inside. Many kitchens nowadays have lower cabinets without uppers, and one of the issues with that is you\u2019ve got to keep glasses and dishes in the lower cabinets. If you don\u2019t have soft-close hardware, you\u2019ll have glasses in drawers that are essentially slamming shut. This can cause the glasses or plates to break and create a big mess.<\/p>\n For a lot of modern design choices, the soft-close hardware makes it possible to re-navigate how you would design a kitchen. To be honest, this wasn\u2019t something I was thinking about when I put in my kitchen. I was just like, \u2018How do I achieve the look I want with X amount of money,\u2019 and aesthetically, it looked great, but the noise drove me crazy. Everything was slamming, everything was breaking \u2014 soft-close really gives you the flexibility to design in different ways.<\/p>\n BBN: How can it benefit families with kids, in particular?<\/b><\/p>\n CD: Kids are known to attack lower cabinets because they can\u2019t reach the uppers. When you have lower cabinets without the soft-close, basically your whole life is listening to your kids smash the drawers shut! In my house, we have these large pantry drawers, and one of them is stocked with all the kids\u2019 food so they can access it themselves. Those drawers are heavy, and without GRASS hardware they wouldn\u2019t operate properly because there\u2019s just too much weight. Most hardware companies, their maximum weight is 40 kilos, but GRASS can hold up to 70 kilos. It allows you maximize storage in your drawers, and use them for food rather than having a giant pantry cupboard. Plus, your kids can utilize those drawers without breaking your dishes or making you go deaf in the process.<\/p>\n BBN: Can you install soft-close systems yourself or should you hire a professional?<\/b><\/p>\n CD: For me, personally, it\u2019s one of those things that I could try to do myself, or I could pay somebody else to do it properly. If you\u2019re spending thousands of dollars on a kitchen renovation, it makes sense to have a professional install it so that it works the way it\u2019s supposed to. Unless, of course, you\u2019re legitimately very handy, but that\u2019s just not me!<\/p>\n BBN: Can you update an older kitchen with soft-close hardware?<\/b><\/p>\n CD: Yes, it is possible to retrofit soft-close systems. You can take your existing hardware and replace it, which is great if you don\u2019t want to renovate your entire kitchen, but the drawers aren\u2019t working properly. You could even buy big-box store cabinetry and then invest in soft-close hardware that\u2019s going to make it function better.<\/p>\n BBN: What\u2019s the difference between a big-box store soft-close product and the GRASS<\/a> line?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n