Water Street Brass, a company that designs and manufactures solid brass cabinet, furniture cabinet and door hardware, has introduced a new line of products that draws inspiration from the pure forms of artist Ellsworth Kelly and the simplified color and line of 1980s American sportswear.
The company says it developed the Vestige collection to meet a need designers kept asking for– “hardware that could match the custom cabinetry it was installed on.”
Water Street explains that the references to the artist and to fashion are translated into simple geometric lines and a flexible system of solid brass or brass and wood inlay configurations across the collection. “For clients seeking an exact match to custom cabinetry, Water Street Brass can provide the metal base and unfinished wood inserts separately, allowing cabinetmakers to finish the inserts in the same sprayed or hand-painted color as the millwork before they are epoxied into place,” the company explains.
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The company says a defining priority in the design development was flexibility, creating a system that could respond to different design needs through material and finish. Each piece is constructed from solid brass and offered in a variety of inlay configurations, so the same hardware can be specified with an insert matched to surrounding cabinetry. “This approach supports both consistency across a project and variation within it, giving designers more control over how hardware relates to surrounding materials,” the brand says.
Its most distinctive feature, the brand says, is its approach to custom color matching. For projects with custom cabinetry, Water Street Brass offers the option of supplying the metal base and unfinished wood inserts separately. As cabinetry is sprayed or hand-painted, the cabinetmaker can finish the inserts using the same color and process as the millwork. The inserts are then epoxied onto the metal base, allowing the finished hardware to match the cabinetry.
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The concept for Vestige grew out of observing how designers were already working with customizable systems, particularly the demand for coordinating materials across surfaces. By building that flexibility directly into the collection, Vestige provides a single, consistent hardware system that can adapt to different project goals without sacrificing clarity of form. Stephanie Oh Haley, an in-house designer who is responsible for the line, explains that there were other inspirations for the collection.
“While working at Watermark Designs (our sister brand), I noticed how much designers and homeowners love customizing handles of our Elements Collection,” explains Haley, director of product at Water Street Brass and Watermark. “For that collection, we offer many insert options, as well as the templates so designers can have their inserts fabricated in the exact same stone or material as their counters. This led me to explore how we can design something that is both flexible and beautiful for cabinetry hardware to meet many different needs.
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“For example, for people who want a statement metal piece, they can select the all metal version,” Haley continues. “For someone who wants a fun contrast, they can pick a contrast color or wood insert. And for someone looking for subtlety, they can match the inserts exactly to their cabinetry, leaving only a visual trace of metal. I designed this collection for people who love to design.”
Manufactured in solid brass, Vestige spans 16 styles across pulls, appliance pulls and knobs, so a single hardware system can carry across an entire project. It also comes in more than 25 finish options. Befitting its intended applications in custom homes, Vestige is precision-machined and CNC-milled from extruded bar stock.