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Do hardware pulls have to be consistent throughout?

8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago

We are pretty particular about our pulls because we like plenty of finger room (clearance/projection) and we prefer a clean look (both for aesthetics and for actual cleaning). We're also trying to stick with a fairly low allowance, but we ended up with two different styles that fit the bill:

This one comes in a variety of sizes (up to 10" long) and would go nicely with our appliances (Bluestar oven and range, Miele dishwashers): [https://www.houzz.com/products/round-cross-bar-cabinet-pull-stainless-steel-9-prvw-vr~18312667[(https://www.houzz.com/products/round-cross-bar-cabinet-pull-stainless-steel-9-prvw-vr~18312667) . However, we are not so keen on using it in bathrooms, mudroom, and bedroom built-ins. It feels a little too "appliancey" for those applications?

This one feels good, has good clearance, and would look good anywhere in the house, but unfortunately the longest size it comes in is 5.5" : [https://www.houzz.com/products/5-center-solid-square-cabinet-hardware-bar-pull-satin-nickel-prvw-vr~36222417[(https://www.houzz.com/products/5-center-solid-square-cabinet-hardware-bar-pull-satin-nickel-prvw-vr~36222417) . That's comfortable for grabbing but seems like it would be too short for our longer kitchen drawers.

Our kitchen drawers range in width from 12 3/4" up to 29.5". Most common is between 20 and 26". One rule of thumb is 1/3 the drawer width is good for pull size but I guess it's a personal preference thing?

Elsewhere in the house we've got:

14 and 21" drawers in the mudroom /espace,

24" drawers in our window seat,

17" drawers in other bathroom vanities, 20" drawers in the kids' bath

26" in laundry room (30" for sink)

Our cabinetry all shares the same style: shaker/slab drawers and shaker doors.

What would you do? We're nearing the finish line and the decision fatigue is real so input would be so appreciated!

Comments (12)

  • 8 years ago

    We have bought them and held them, so the comments I made were based on having them in hand.

    I appreciate the feedback about changing based on the different spaces. I think my husband wants the house to feel "cohesive" and he worries switching pulls will interfere with that.

  • 8 years ago

    I think the important thing is to look stylistically cohesive, throughout, but that does not mean things need to be identical throughout. Actually that starts to become a negative when things are identical...it looks builder-ish or institutional.

  • 8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    It's your house. Do what feels good to you, not to people you don't even know. There are no rules. Go with what you want. There are more important things in life to get anxious over. Whatever you choose, you'll get used to, believe me.

  • 8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    you might post some pictures with your cabinets, It might help. I'm not a "designer", so take my words with a grain of salt. But of the hundreds of homes I've been in, I've only ever once noticed the pulls, and that's because she pointed them out, and each one was different on purpose. I have two different color pulls in my house depending on the hardware style of the space, and it never once occurred or bothered me that they were different.

    To palimpsest's point, different colors or styles creates interest, wheres all the same is cookie-cutter.

  • 8 years ago

    I don't think I've ever seen kitchen pictures where I've thought "Gee, that's a beautiful kitchen - but what were they thinking with the pulls?" There really are not very many wrong answers.

  • 8 years ago

    I choose the pulls based on the room and the feel of the room. What I'm doing in my kitchen is different than what I'm doing on my living room cabinets and different than my master bath cabinets.

  • 8 years ago

    I don't think I've ever even a house where the cabinet hardware is the same in every room. Maybe in large production builds, where the builder is buying everything in bulk and everything is the same generic, house to house, room to room.

    But otherwise, a house looks cohesive through an overall style. Not cabinet hardware.

  • 8 years ago

    There’s more than one route to cohesiveness. Ours are all the same style, but many different sizes, and different finishes upstairs and down. But there are many other combinations that would work.

    (But I totally get the decision fatigue. I think it took a couple years for my brain to recover from it. Every now and then I will get a flashback about all the thousands of pages of lighting fixtures I looked at...)

  • PRO
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    I prefer them different. That way if anyone asks, "Why are your drawer pulls all different?"; your can say, "To make little girls ask questions."

    Have fun.

  • 8 years ago

    If the pulls can't been seen at the same time (for example, some in the kitchen, others in the bathroom), I see no reason they need to be alike at all. I agree with Mark: I prefer them different!

  • PRO
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    Yes. It creates an impression that things were planned and coordinated.