Ideas to Update Your 2000s Home: Hardware & Lighting (PART 3)

4 UPDATE IDEAS: TRIMS, LIGHT FIXTURES, DOORS, & MORE

Whether your home is a small step out of the 90s, beige-on-beige, or pure 2000s Tuscan-style, homes built between 2000 and 2010 aren’t good at keeping their age a secret. Hence the creation of this blog post; to look at affordable ways to update these homes, either for yourself or for resale – starting with hardware, lighting, and doors.

They say the devil is in the details, but if you’re living in a 2000s home, you might find the devil in the BIG things too, including a few of these..

COMMON FEATURES IN A 2000s HOME

• maple or cherry cabinets – usually mid-toned or darker, but sometimes lighter
• granite countertops with warm colors in them (eg. St. Cecilia, Venetian Gold)
• some granites from the 90s also pop up, including Baltic Brown, Peacock Green, and Uba Tuba
• light fixtures with a kind of ombre-golden glass shade
• nickel light fixtures with a lot of curves (a LOT of Home Depot/big box style lights as this was pre-Wayfair).
• oil-rubbed bronze cabinet and door hardware (often with a curved handle on doors)
• cathedral-style doors (not so much in kitchen, but on bedroom/bathroom doors – also common in the 90s)
• over-the-range microwaves
• travertine flooring, backsplashes, fireplace surrounds, and bathrooms
• beige carpet with multi-colored flecks in it

You can LOVE some of the above – I LOVE some of the above. But when trying to modernize your home, some of these features (especially the ones that are costly to replace) can hold you back.

The great thing is you don’t have to tackle it all at once. Via my 6-PART SERIES, I’ve got awesome update ideas for you to help you transition your home without blowing your budget.

Let’s get this party started…

 

1. UPDATE ALL CABINET & DOOR HARDWARE

Nothing gives away an outdated home or KILLS a modern home like outdated hardware, this includes…

• cabinet door handles and knobs
• bedroom/bathroom door handles and hinges
• brass fireplace surround
• front door hardware

But what hardware finish is MODERN? It depends on your home. And this is a tough one. Some homes built in the 90s and 2000s have traditional BONES. And without updating the bones, it’s hard to shift into a new gear. This is where transitional pieces come into play – pieces that nod at where you want to go without ditching your home’s roots.

If your metal fireplace surround isn’t all black, it should be (tips on doing that HERE)

This also means that sometimes one metal finish/type of hardware gets updated, whereas another gets updated down the road (budget-allowing). In this case, you need to do some careful coordinating.

The hardware and lighting in this next kitchen sets it back a notch, but it still has GREAT BONES…

• gorgeous travertine/stacked stone fireplace
• travertine tile floors without any decorative borders/stripes
• relatively neutral granite countertop
• cabinets and walls that are BEGGING for some paint!

 

So what is trendy in the lighting world? What shapes & metal finishes are in style?

Again, what’s best can depend on your home and the surrounding finishes. Black is hot right now, but I wouldn’t do all the metal finishes in my home black. Instead, I would pick a secondary metal finish that I like and sub it in here and there. However, not all metal finishes coordinate with each other.

Here’s a chart to give you the down low…

Now don’t kill the cute lil’ Ginger messenger if you love mixing metal finishes. The above guide is meant for the average home. Can some homes/styles handle mixed chrome and gold? Sure. However, do that in the average 2000s home and it will look like you updated in 1994 (when gold/chrome was a popular blend). If you have a unique style that can pull off a wild assortment of finishes in a room/home, then cheers to you (Ted Lasso style).

I DO want you to notice one important detail in the above chart – black. Notice that no matter what you put it with, black works. In fact…

Black is the most transitional, versatile metal finish for hardware & lighting. 

A FEW MORE THINGS TO NOTICE IN THE ABOVE CHART

• While gold and brass can go together, make sure they’re a similar TEMPERATURE and one isn’t rosier/pinker than the other.
• Yes, polished nickel and chrome can go together (with exceptions). While IDEALLY you’d use just one in a single room, blending the two as a ‘whole home’ approach is super doable (as many bathrooms have chrome fixtures already).
• If your bathroom has all gold/brass fixtures and you want to update to nickel in the rest of your home – it’s okay, you can. It’s more that I wouldn’t mix the two in the same room.
• Oil-rubbed bronze is the fussiest metal finish to coordinate with. You might think it goes with gold/brass, but this tends to have yellow undertones whereas oil-rubbed bronze is more likely to cater to orange or orange-pink.
• While brass was HOT in homes built in the 90s (update ideas for that range here), this was replaced by some sort of nickel or oil-rubbed bronze finish in homes built in the 2000s.

 

WHAT CABINET HARDWARE GOES WITH STAINLESS STEEL APPLIANCES?

A lot of effort goes into coordinating the metal finish of cabinet and door hardware, as well as light fixtures, however, appliances often get left in the dust…and that’s not a bad thing.

Why?

Appliances aren’t hardware. And no matter how pretty they are (some stoves are amazeballs), they aren’t the jewelry of your home – they aren’t the small DETAILS. For this reason, stainless steel appliances often recede in a kitchen and don’t play a huge part in the overall metal palette. This means you can use a wide range of metal finishes with them without worrying about clashing.

But this doesn’t mean stainless steel doesn’t play favorites, as some metal finishes look even BETTER than others, including…

• black – stainless appliances usually have black on them somewhere for black hardware to visually connect with
• polished nickel – it appeals to the similarly silver/shiny look of the stainless finish
• if you love gold/brass hardware, it’s nice if your stove has a bit of gold on it as well – it gives a polite nod to your hardware and acts like the JEWELRY of your stove

A bit of gold detail on this stove would wink nicely at the cabinet hardware

The hardware in this kitchen is the perfect finishing touch – notice how well it suits the appliances, in particular! 

Simple is usually best! 

 

STYLE OF HARDWARE

It comes down to the style of your home (its roots) and how much you want to update. Sure, curvy hardware might suit a Tuscan-style home, but if you want to update OUT of the Tuscan look, choose hardware with cleaner lines or opt for a round knob.

Given its surroundings, the curvy, oil-rubbed bronze hardware makes sense – but it’s not ‘updated’.

If your home is stuck in the early 2000s (particularly Tuscan-style), this door handle (below) from Weiser has a transitional style. This means that it works moving forward, as well as with existing finishes that aren’t changing for the time being…

Weiser Trafford (I’m not an affiliate for these companies, I just like the look of their stuff). 

Broadway lever with Greenwich trim from Schlage

 

OIL RUBBED BRONZE HARDWARE

If you love soft, earthy warm colors, oil-rubbed bronze hardware makes sense. HOWEVER, it’s all in the style. The above styles offer a transition, as does this Katella lever from Weiser. Slightly more modern styling, but some soft lines to humor your existing finishes…

However, for most of my clients who are shifting out of the heavy beiges and Tuscan vibes of the 2000s, oil-rubbed bronze is a hard no. Black is usually a better choice for the average home (and coordinates well with existing oil-rubbed bronze pieces that you can’t change right away!)

 

BLACK HARDWARE

Black hardware finishes (mostly matte) are having a moment. How long will this moment last? A home with ALLLLL black metal finishes is slowly on its way out, however, black in moderation will often have a place in the average home (assuming the surroundings suit it).

Seeing as we explored door hardware above, let’s look at cabinet hardware for these next examples…

Not every home can handle black hardware; it can look harsh without other black items in the room for it to belong to. And while it doesn’t take much, make sure you integrate black elsewhere (i.e., picture frames, lighting finish, decor, etc… – a little goes a long way!).

This isn’t a 2000’s home, but the black hardware is GREAT as the shape is transitional. 

Avoid hardware with sticky-outie bits that go beyond the bolt holes. First, your pant pockets will catch on them. Second, they look early to mid-2000s…

The above hardware style is a hard no as it’s from 2010. 

Stick to hardware where the lines are cleaner, but not too long or oversized. I LOVE this next kitchen which is awesomely resurrected from the 2000s. However, instead, of long handles, I’d love to see black knobs on the doors and pulls that are about three inches shorter…

Funny enough, what’s one thing that winks at the above home’s original roots? The hardware on the pantry door! LOOK AT THIS CURVES (insert catcall here). I’d switch that bad boy up for sure.

 

SILVER/NICKEL HARDWARE

Polished nickel is a win for many homes, but the more matte, softer-looking nickel finish is still sitting in the 90s. As for pewter – it’s hit and miss (more miss than hit) and pretty ‘home specific’, which means it doesn’t suit the average home.

This next kitchen was fresh outta the early 2000s with its granite countertop, beige backsplash tile, and cherry cabinets…

After, the right paint color on the cabinets is just what this space needed to come back to life. Slightly less curvy, more transitional handles would be the next step in its evolution, but the knobs are great…

The key to the above kitchen is to listen to its roots. This kitchen will NEVER be ‘modern/contemporary’ because of the cabinet door profile, countertop, backsplash, and window trim. Changing these involves a huge remodel, which isn’t what this blog post is about – this is about workin’ with whatcha got. As it relates to the hardware, the above kitchen has slightly traditional roots via its cabinet door profile. While it can handle a handle that’s a bit more simple and TRANSITIONAL, anything beyond that would be out of character for this kitchen.

This next handle is WAY TOO EXPENSIVE, but it’s the right transitional look (you don’t come to me for online shopping, I’m not that kinda of gal – you’re here for my ideas and inspiration…and wit…and good looks)…

Wayfair cabinet pull

 

GOLD HARDWARE

Just don’t. Or do, but consider the following:

• Gold can work well in some Tuscan vibe homes as they often humor its warmth more than other homes.
• If you follow trends or worry about resale, you might be changing out your gold hardware in the next few years to the ‘next popular finish’ (probably polished nickel).
• Don’t do all gold. Gold partners well with blacks in some homes. Or save your brain cells and just do polished nickel.

The thing is, gold hardware is GORGEOUS, but it’s a trend, and one that will slooooowly make its way out. Again, some homes might ALWAYS suit it, but these are often a) older homes b) homes that are a bit more eccentric/layered, and b) not the average 2000s home.

Would I add gold hardware to my home right now?

Yup, but only on a few key pieces – it wouldn’t be my majority finish, this way it’s more affordable to change down the road.

I love the gold hardware in this next kitchen. HOWEVER, I bet in five years it will be polished nickel…

Sherwin Williams Pure White

OKAY, so I feel like we’ve exhausted that topic. I don’t want to give you TOO much info and overwhelm you, but I always don’t want to leave you with TOO many questions.

NEXT TOPIC!

 

2. UPDATE BEDROOM & BATHROOM DOORS

While I wish that arched, cathedral-style doors were left in the 90s, sadly, they were carried into the 21st century via the Tuscan style. And I’m not talking about cathedral-style cabinet doors, I’m talking about doors going into bedrooms, bathrooms, closets, etc.

I just noticed that the entryway closet has a newer profile while this one has the original.

What door profiles are trendy and in style for 2024 and 2025?

There are only a few good styles available, and what’s best depends on your home – where you’re currently at, and where you’re heading. If your home is LEGIT Tuscan-style, you don’t want to shift into too modern of a door style – you need to find a moderate style.

Again, if you’re blowing out your whole home and updating it all, moderation is somewhat irrelevant as you’ll be introducing a new updated look on a large scale.

This is about transitioning your home when you can’t update everything at once. 

From there, once you’re ready to do your NEXT round of updates, you’ll have some good flexible, transitional bones in place to work off of. This next door style is a great moderator between the 2000s and a more current look…

However, this one is my favorite for almost any home built in the 2000s, as well as current new construction – choose this door…

Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter doors, White Dove trim – also note the FLAT door trim.

You can also get the above style of door with only one panel, rather than two, but that takes things up a notch re: modernity and isn’t necessary.

The Best Paint Colors to Update a 2000s Home (PART 1)

Avoid anything even remotely related to this next door, it’s way too modern-looking. The same goes for a flat panel with no routering detail…

Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray & Chelsea Gray

I would also avoid a 6-panel door like this next one as it’s more dated looking…

The door hardware is great!

Aside from the doors, the light fixture in this next entryway is great, as is the door hardware and board and batten (AND the paint color). The doors aren’t BAD, they’re just a bit 90s/2000s in style. Also, adding a glass insert to the front door would open this space up and add some much-needed light…

I’d also LOOOVE to see this front door painted a gorgeous accent color, like a dark green!

By the way, for your front door, this style is gorgeous…

The Best Paint Finish for Doors, Trims, Ceilings, & Walls

The Best Paint Colors for the INSIDE of Your Front Door

 

3. UPDATE MOLDINGS & TRIMS

While this one is lower on the list, if you’re changing any flooring, you’re likely taking your old baseboards off. Even if you aren’t, changing your trims is a great DIY and a good way to freshen up and modernize a space.

Generally, speaking, as long as your trims are 3 1/3″ or wider, they’re pretty good (even if they have somewhat of a profile/design). It’s the 2 1/2 to 3″ curved moldings that instantly date a room to the 90s or early 2000s…

Instead, opt for a trim that’s at least 3″ wide with a simple profile (below) or a completely flat front…

Between the trims, doors, and hardware (above and below) these hallways look fab.

Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron

 

4. LIGHTING UPDATES

Homes built in the 2000s were lit from head to toe with these tobacco-stained light fixtures and I hope I never see another smoked golden, frosted glass shade in my LIFE. Sure, they suit the odd home (so don’t kill the cute lil’ Ginger if they happen to suit yours), but chances are your home is Tuscan style. And if you love this light fixture, you probably love your home as it is…and proooobably aren’t reading this blog post in the first place.

HOWEVER, if you want to UPDATE your home, these smoked shades are a no, as are any curly-cue metal details attached to them…

Insert deep, discontented sigh HERE.

And I’m not trying to be mean when I say these have got to go. Some of them are beautiful and suit the space they’re in – they just scream the 2000s. You’re reading this blog post because you want to update your home. If you LOVE your light fixtures, you can fill yer little boots. However, if you’re ready for a change, I’m here to help.

However, amber shades aren’t the only culprit – there’s also a lot of nickel from this decade, particularly dining room chandeliers and island pendants that were sold en masse at Home Depot…

This light fixture isn’t BAD, it just lets you know that it was installed in the early to mid-2000s. 

Guess who helped this homeowner update this next home…

How to Update Wood Cabinets WITHOUT A DROP OF PAINT! 

ME. And guess when it was done? A decade ago, HOWEVER, because the cabinet hardware is transitional and timeless, it’s still applicable – it’s the light fixtures that give its age away!

If you’re updating all of your light fixtures in a single room or open-concept space, I’d stick to ONE metal finish. From there, you want to match other metal finishes to your lighting or carefully coordinate. Here’s that chart again for quick reference…

So what light fixtures are trendy or in style for 2024 and 2025?

It TOTALLY depends on the style of your home. The idea here is that you’re likely not redesigning your home from scratch and it might have many original finishes left. This potentially includes outdated granite countertops (or laminate counters that look like granite), beige tile floors and carpets, travertine backsplashes, and so on.

Your light fixtures need to be transitional to humor your old style while nodding at a new one. 

Again, I’m not the type of influencer who throws products at you at every turn. I’m an INFO gal and a Color Consultant. So, rather than spending endless hours scouring Wayfair for just the right piece (which will then be discontinued/out of stock/etc.), I’m just going to show you some pretty pictures.

I lied. I might have to throw in a few Wayfair options when I don’t have the right image to show you. C’est la vie.

 

WAGON WHEEL LIGHT FIXTURES

Whether over your dining table, entryway, or as a focal point in your living room, wagon wheel light fixtures are still kickin’ it. I’d say they’re on the OUTWARD side of things, and in a few years, they’ll be swapped out. However, for the average home built in the 2000s, they’re AWESOME transitional light fixtures – regardless of whether they’re exactly on trend or not.

Paint Color Benjamin Moore White Dove

The style of the above light is AWESOME. Paint Color Sherwin Williams Alabaster

Choose a round light fixture with MINIMAL muss and fuss. No rope, thick oil-rubbed bronze, brass or gold details, and MINIMAL chain. Keep it simple, classic, and nodding at the clean, traditional end of things vs the ‘modern farmhouse’ look.

I love this next fixture, but it’s too modern for most 2000s homes unless your home has gone under a HUGE transformation…

Paint Color similar to Sherwin Williams Drift of Mist

 

CAGE OR LANTERN-STYLE LIGHT FIXTURES

This style of light fixture is great when you want to transition your outdated home into a more modern look. Whether over an island, foyer, or dining table, simple is better. Avoid gratuitous details and use a minimal chain when possible…

The above 2000s home is living its best life – I would just update the recessed lights to something more low profile. 

LOVE these fixtures. For your home, consider a dining fixture with no wood detail and pendants with no chains.

Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray 

This next larger-scale light fixture is also popular. It might only have a year or two left on the trend cycle (at best) but again, when we’re looking to transition our homes, we can’t always jump into the ‘next big thing’ and need pieces that get us part way there!

Because it’s not hanging by chains, it’s less modern farmhouse-looking, which means it’ll look updated for longer. 

Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter painted kitchen cabinets

I also LOVE a simple white glass shade, as shown in this next fixture…

Rowley 5 Light Fixture Wayfair

 

UPDATE YOUR PENDANT LIGHTS

When updating your pendant lights, be careful not to lean too far into the previously popular modern farmhouse look. Keep things a bit more classic and traditional in your lines and overall look. ALSO – it’s a HARD NO to Edison bulbs (it makes me giggle that I typed ‘hard on’ at first – we know where my brain usually goes).

Don’t forget to pay attention to the KELVINS OF YOUR LIGHT BULBS! 

Backsplash Ideas to Update Your 2000s Kitchen

I’m also a HUGE fan of pendant lights and chandeliers with white fabric shades. These often give a brighter, but softened light to a room (whereas a bare bulb can be bright but a bit more abrasive looking).

Here’s another Wayfair link that will hopefully stay in stock…

The metal edges are maybe wink hard, but it’s the right idea Hymel 2-Light Kitchen Pendant

This style is super popular right now over kitchen islands in black and gold…

Clearly, this isn’t a kitchen island, but you get the idea. 

Wait, I haven’t even touched on bathroom light fixtures – THREE SLAPS WITH A WET NOODLE! Let’s see what I’ve got on hand that’s a good update for your 2000s loo…

I could do without the wee horizontal bit on the top of the vanity light, but it’s the right general idea.

These next lights are great. Also, notice the original 12×12 tile floor. Like a grown-in blonde on brunette dye job, the roots of this bathroom are showing. However, with the prefab vanity and the updated faucets and light fixtures, the overall look is SO much better!

Your light fixture and faucet should have the same finish and similar lines.

In this next bathroom, the updated faucet and light fixture have similar lines and a simple chrome finish. Paired with a fresh wall color, shower rod, and shower curtain, this late 90s/early 2000s bathroom has a new lease on life…

The original vanity, countertop, and sink are still in place. Although the vanity would LOVE some paint! 

3 Ideas to Add Personality to a Small Bathroom

READ MORE BLOG POSTS IN THIS 5-PART SERIES

Paint Color Ideas to Update Your Outdated 2000s Home (PART 1)

The Best Backsplash Ideas to Update a 2000s Kitchen (PART 2)

Ideas to Update Your Outdated Granite Counters (mostly 90s & 2000s) PART 4

5 CASE STUDIES: 2000s Kitchen Updates: Tuscan, Travertine, & More (PART 5)

Ideas to Update Your 2000s Bathroom (PART 6)

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