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Hardware placement

a2gemini
11 years ago

After my avalanche with the counter top on Thursday - the show must go on.

GC wants to meet this morning on handle placement.

I purchased 80 five inch Baldwin Brass arch pulls but am having second thoughts and doing something like Badgergal did with various size single pulls.. At the same time, not sure I can return the BB models.

Our kitchen has a lot of different size drawers - varying from 13-42 inches.

Where would you recommend placing the arch pulls (2 on the larger and 1 on the smaller drawers)


So, if I stay with the BB brass, is it better to mount on the frame or in the center section of the drawers? I think I figured out the cabinet pull location.

Serving and prep area - this is just a picture of the lower drawers to see the style Bottom drawers are 42 inch and top drawers are 21

Cooktop section - 18 inch trash bin, 36 inch drawers, and 14 inch drawers

Wall oven area - 33 inch drawer under oven, 3 36 inch drawers and cabinet will become 3 15 inch drawers next week

Here is a picture of Badgergal's kitchen with single longer pulls

Any and all help appreciated.

Basically 3 questions - Should I stick with the arch pulls (SIL says yes)

Where to place the pulls on the drawers?

Or should I switch to longer single pulls (BB arch max size is 8 inches, so would need to switch to another company and go with SS instead of the Antique Brass)

DH won't give opinions. Thanks

Comments (21)

  • springroz
    11 years ago

    A little sneak peak of mine... Don't tell Christine...ssshhh...

  • springroz
    11 years ago

    A little sneak peak of mine... Don't tell Christine...ssshhh...

  • denali2007
    11 years ago

    Personally, I love the way badger girl did hers. It looks classy. I will be doing mine like that. Your cabinets are beautiful

  • suzanne_sl
    11 years ago

    My first question would be, are the BB pulls returnable or not? Our hardware was special ordered and it was not returnable period. If that's the case, I would love what I have (80!). If you're hemming and hawing about 5" vs. longer pulls, it's just a look. At the time you chose them, you liked the look of the 5" and you probably still do. Maybe the grass just appears greener on the other side of the fence.

    Placement: your choices are pretty much all centers, all tops, or centers on the top slab front drawers and tops on the ones with border frames - except the trash pull, ergonomically that needs to be on top. There were a couple of threads on this just few days ago (Thurs?) with pictures, but I can't find them right now. Here's some photos from earlier discussions. rtwilliams' placement on drawers like yours

    Here's buehl's 33" drawers next to a trash pullout.

    Here's paul ma's really long pulls

    julie9462's trash pullout handle got placed to match the drawers on either side and she said she wished they'd put it up top for easier pulling

    Good luck on a decision!

  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Springroz - sweet and thanks for the preview! I promise not to tell anyone

    Denali - I am playing with the pull sizes from Hickory Hardware

    susannesl - yup - I could love to like the BB if not returnable. They are nice quality and got a nice discount, so hate to push my luck.

    Julie used single pull out with a smaller pull - but we have some 42 inch drawers - so probably too big for a little pull.

  • suzanne_sl
    11 years ago

    I agree that a 5" pull on a 42" drawer is a no-go. What was interesting about Julie's is the placement of the trash pullout handle, both "the look" matching the surrounding drawers, and her comment that she would have preferred it up for functional reasons.

    Huh, just noticed her little 2 open sides shelf in the corner. That was a clever way to deal with an odd space.

  • breezygirl
    11 years ago

    I used three different sized pulls and placed them roughly following the rule of thirds (pull equaling about one-third the drawer face leaving one-third of the front exposed on either side of the pull). Here are my 38" drawers with an 8" pull.

    A 5" pull on a 42" drawer seems out of scale to me. Better options are two of the 5" pulls per drawer like Buehl did above, which can get too busy if you're going for a simpler style, or choosing a longer pull. Personally, I prefer one pull per drawer, but I'm sensitive to visual messiness.

    I've got a ton of other pics showing the various handle sizes near each other if you're interested. How cool for you to be at the hardware stage. Won't be long now!

  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks Breezy
    I actually printed out your kitchen and badger to show my DH (not that he wants to give any input)
    He actually did like the concept but then again - we have these 80 BB pulls
    Feel free to show me a couple other concept or email them to me if that is easier.
    Thanks for sending me the dimensions also - it is helpful.
    My problem started with trying to stay with matching our faucet color and very few longer antique brass pulls.

    Suzannesl - I agree - it would look silly. I do like Julie's shelf.

    Sometimes we have a few learning experiences along the way...
    I also didn't see many longer ones that were modern/transitional until Badger posted.
    KD highly encouraged me to order the pulls before the cabinets came - so I did, and now regretting it.
    The SS pulls would coordinate with my appliance handles and the countertop can go either way.

    What would I do without this group!

    Thanks!!

  • dragonfly08
    11 years ago

    I would have to agree with suzannesl and breezy. I think you could pull off using your current pulls by placing 2 for the longer drawers, similar to buelh's (centered) or rtwilliams (spread further apart). I think that badgergal's pulls work cohesively because they are appliance sized pulls and much longer. 5" handles placed on the frames will look funny, IMO.

    I have drawers that aren't quite as wide as yours, ranging from 17"-39". For all but the 39", I ended up using only 1 pull which was centered. Since I have all framed doors (no slabs), the placements were all the same. For a more uniformed and less fussy look, I used only 2 sizes: 3.5" and 6.5" pulls, though actual end-to-end lengths were slightly longer. (Also, I really couldn't afford anything longer than the 6".) I only used the 3.5" pulls on my cabinet doors that were short (over fridge, under sink, tray, etc).

    Btw, Breezy... your pulls/kitchen played an integral part in my final handle choice and selection, even though outcome is slightly different! :)

    2-pulls for 39" top drawer:

  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Dragonfly - what a beautiful kitchen!! Love the backsplash - what tile company did you use? Obviously, the wrong color for ours, but still absolutely gorgeous!
    Oh - that's right, we are on cabinet pulls - I am trying to repress this problem.

    My original plan called for 2 on most of the long drawers and one on the smaller drawers. I wish I had more fore thought and found this site earlier to help with my decision.

    I will play with the placement. Anyone else have pictures of 2 5 inch pulls on drawers?
    Dragonfly - your 2 pulls on the 39 look nice, so maybe not all is lost...

    Dragon - I notice you started your longitudinal pulls a little lower then most - any reason? It looks nice, but once we drill the holes....(OK, it is the GC who is drilling the holes!)

    Thanks again.

  • dragonfly08
    11 years ago

    Placement for my longitudinal (I like that word) pulls were dictated by aligning screw hole with corner of the frame (does that make sense?). I was kinda sick of all the minute decisions by this point (and I could not believe how many tiny decisions had to be made... things I have never even thought about!) and just said, if it's easier to align to screw holes with the corner, then I'll be very happy with it. I didn't even realize until you mentioned it that it may be lower (or higher, if you look at my uppers?) than typical.

    Also, if you aren't sure how your pulls will look, might I suggest mocking them up using aluminum foil? I couldn't figure out how some people mocked them up using tape without damaging their new cabinets (my pulls are pretty heavy). I used foil and folded them to the same length and width of my pulls, double-sided scotch taped them... then took a whole bunch of pics so I could get a good look at them from afar. Mocked up 3", 4", 5", 6", 8"... single pulls, double pulls, vertical and horizontal, etc. This was a huge help in making my final decision regarding size and placement.

    For my backsplash, I went with the Bellevue tiles from Best Tile. Thanks for the kind words!

  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Great idea - Dragonfly
    I have been using cardboard for a template
    Will try in the next few days!
    Thanks

  • cakelly1226
    11 years ago

    I don 't have pics yet:( but I did the plain European pulls and did different sizes- 6 inches on all the uppers, 14 inch on the longer drawers, 8 inch on the smaller drawers and pull outs, and two 24 inches on the pantry and under oven drawer. But they are those simple plain pulls that cost next to nothing from the manufacturer- I think I paid 100 total.

  • badgergal
    11 years ago

    Since there is no right or wrong answer for hardware placement, you can't be wrong. You will be able to open and close your doors and drawers no matter where you place the pulls.

    Your gorgeous cabinets and countertops wil be the star players in the kitchen. The pulls just have a supporting role. The BB pulls are very nice and will look nice in your kitchen. I don't think anyone will walk into your kitchen and say, "those pulls should have been longer".

    While GW is very helpful, I think it sometimes cause us to fret about our choices too much. Hopefully by the time you read this you will have decided what you are going to do about your pulls and you are can relax a little.

    When things don't go the way I planned or something bad happens, I always try to take time out and make a list of things I am grateful for. It helps me keep things in perspective.

    I hope the last pieces of your remodel fall into place without further issues.

  • breezygirl
    11 years ago

    Dragonfly--If I had the slightest iota to do with the way your amazingly gorgeous kitchen turned out, I'm very proud. I love, love, love your kitchen! And that tile is just perfect. I searched for it online when you posted your kitchen, but had trouble locating the exact one for som reason.

    A2--Here are a couple of other pics. (I did resize in PB, but they still look too big.)

    6" pulls, except 8" on top right hand drawer.

    8" on left. 6" on right.

    Island on the right has 6" pulls. Rangetop wall has 8" pulls, except for 4" on top split drawers. Sink wall has 6".

    I'll also link Theanimala's finished kitchen below where she used multiple size modern bar pulls. Hers is what inspired me choose all horizontal pulls!

    Here is a link that might be useful: Theanimala's kitchen

  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    CK, Badger, Breezy, and Dragonfly(and others but been up since 4:30 this morning for an early class to teach and falling asleep)
    Great ideas and also comforting me if I decide to go the easy route.
    Dragonfly - thanks for sending the tile information.
    Stay tuned for the final outcome.
    Out for the count for tonight!

  • denali2007
    11 years ago

    a2gemini

    Please post pictures when you finally make a decision. I have been following your posts and can't wait to see the outcome..

    Dragonfly. What a great idea for testing out pulls

    Who needs designers when we have each other

  • hwieneke
    11 years ago

    I did all horizontal hardware, here are a few pics:


  • a2gemini
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Packer - just saw your post! Nice modern kitchen - you will enjoy for many years!
    Thanks!
    I decided to stay with the original handles for the kitchen and modify slightly for the sun room.
    Just too much going on to swap everything at this time and Badger made me feel really good - the handles are secondary to my kitchen!

  • vitaminjd
    10 years ago

    breezygirl, for the above photos, could you please tell me the width of the drawers you used the 8" pulls on?

  • blackchamois
    9 years ago

    Dragonfly - how wide is your least wide drawer? And what size pull did you use on that? The 3.5 or 6.5? Thank you!