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poolroomcomesfirst

Advice needed: knobs, pulls or both, & size

Looking for some advice. Knobs pulls or both. Here's our kitchen layout

Here's the cabinet style

Here's the knobs we're looking at

(40mm/ 1.5")

and here's the pulls


(4.7", 5.6", 6.8", or 8")


what would you suggest and why?

Comments (15)

  • 9 years ago

    Those look like they might be hard to clean?

  • 9 years ago

    I like the look of knobs on uppers, pulls on lowers, but this is a totally personal preference. People successfully put pulls all around. Lowers always used to have knobs, but I think that that's less ergonomically desirable, meaning, it makes drawers harder to open.

    One thing I would caution on those pulls: Have you seen and used them in person? I would be concerned that the open weave would make them uncomfortable to pull. They're pretty, but do they feel good on your fingers? Also, as wysel points out, they might get gunky and be hard to keep clean and sanitary.

  • 9 years ago

    I agree with suzanne - you really need to handle the knobs and pulls if you haven't already. I really like the look of the hooded bin pulls, but when I actually went to use them, they felt awful in my hands, so I went with something else.


    After that, it's a person aesthetics. I thought I was going to go with knobs on the uppers and pulls on the lowers (no lower cabinets - all drawers), but in the end I went with pulls all 'round. They felt better in my hands - it just felt more natural to use a pull to me. Your mileage may vary.

  • 9 years ago

    How about size of pulls? Any insight on that?

  • 9 years ago

    There are multiple threads on this board about choosing knobs and pulls. Search for them and you should get a lot of information. There are many suppliers that have sample programs for checking out hardware. I think you really need to get the samples and handle them to see if you like how they feel and look. I changed the pulls I was going to use because they did not have enough clearance (projection) to comfortably use them.

  • 9 years ago

    For pulls, a general rule of thumb is 1/3 the drawer size (ie 15 inch drawer can handle a 5 inch pull, 24 inch drawer can handle an 8 inch pull...) But you probably don't want a bunch of different sizes, so be prepared to choose one size for all. I'd either get one of each size to test out, or, at the very least, make a painters tape mockup to see what you like best.

    poolroomcomesfirst thanked Kathryn P
  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I agree with Kathryn P about the 1/3 drawer width for pulls. However, I do not agree with "you probably don't want a bunch of different sizes". Why not? Why would some pulls have the 1/3 proportion, but not others? Pulls are made in different sizes because drawers and cabinets are made in different sizes, and it's fine to have different sizes in your kitchen. A good tool is to take aluminum foil and shape them in the several pull sizes you are considering, and hold them up against the drawers or cabinets to see how they look. It will really help with the decisions.

    I also agree with the posters above who are concerned with the maintenance of the pulls pictured in the OP. Nooks and crannies mean places for dirt to adhere, and you will need Q-tips. A pull that just requires a wipe down is much easier, but if you are willing to do the extra cleaning, that is your choice.

    poolroomcomesfirst thanked friedajune
  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    What's funny is that while I suggested choosing one size, I actually have 3 sizes in my own kitchen. 5" pulls for most drawers and doors, 9" inch pulls for the pantry doors, and a 12" pull for the integrated dishwasher. That doesn't include the knobs we have on our uppers.

    I more meant that I wouldn't necessarily want similar, but not quite the same, size pulls right next to each other. For us, the 12" pull is so different in size that it just registers as a dishwasher handle and doesn't look like we mistakenly ordered the wrong size. Our 9" pulls are vertical, whereas others nearby are horizontal, so the difference isn't quite so obvious. Mapping it out with painters tape or foil is a great idea to just see what looks right in your space.

  • 9 years ago

    KathrynP, would you please post a picture of your kitchen? I had also posted a question about sizes, but thought we would stick to one size. But now, that you advise you have three sizes, I would really love to see the kitchen with the different size pulls

  • 9 years ago

    We went with knobs on the uppers and pulls on the lowers. We have 3 sizes of pulls too. We used the tiffany ones in oil rubbed bronze by Jeffrey Alexander pictured here

    The ones you showed are nice but I would worry about the weave being harder to clean, especially if you have children grabbing them with sticky hands etc.


  • 9 years ago

    Thanks so much, Kathryn. This definitely helps me.

  • 9 years ago

    Have you considered doing single pulls (in the 6.8" or 8" size) on all the lower drawers where you currently show double pulls -- given that the pulls you've chosen are pretty ornate, you might find that the double pulls may be too much.

    poolroomcomesfirst thanked rmsaustin
  • 9 years ago

    Thanks, we thought about that but the bigger sizes look a little off because the basket is the same size but the metal on each side is so much longer.

  • 9 years ago

    I used 6" pulls on all my top drawers, and used a pair of 8" pulls on each of the lower drawers that were deeper and wider. I thought it looked better, and kind of liked that it wasn't so uniform.