Handmade doorknob
Door hardware and cabinet pulls that emulate the beauty of nature
• Manufactured by Martin Pierce Hardware Inc.
• 800-619-1521; www.martinpierce.com
• Cost of entry lever shown here: about $1300 (other finishes also available)
If a standard knob isn’t making the first impression you’d hoped for, one from Martin Pierce Hardware might be just the thing to guarantee that wow factor. Based in Los Angeles, Pierce specializes in door hardware, cabinet pulls, and high-end furniture that emulate the beauty of nature.
Although Pierce offers bronze hardware that resembles trees, vines, lizards, and butterflies, our favorite pick from his collection is the more modern stainless-steel door and cabinet hardware in the Ergo line, which he designed to “literally fit one’s hand.” To create the intricate hardware and pulls, Pierce hand-carves an original model, which is then duplicated in red wax and covered in progressively coarser layers of sand that are heated to form a hard ceramic shell. The ceramic shell is filled with molten metal to form the hardware. As the metal cools, it shrinks slightly and allows the ceramic shell to be removed, revealing a solid piece.
Photo: Courtesy of Martin Pierce Hardware
