SA Baxter: A Textural Approach to Modern Hardware

September 14, 2018

Whether a material is touched by the “hand of the maker” or by technology, it imbues the spaces we design with life and warmth. This fascination with craftsmanship has taken us to artists’ studios, high-tech labs and far-flung fabricators but there are times when we search for an existing solution and the product we’ve dreamed of does not exist in the marketplace.

 

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Several years ago we went looking for a hardware collection that felt modern and yet crafted to take the place of the sleek, functional but also relatively invisible hardware that had become standard, and found limited our options limited. So, when an opportunity to collaborate with S.A. Baxter on the design of a new, modern hardware collection came up we jumped at the opportunity.

Modern Brass Hardware
Through the Looking Glass Collection, by Workshop/APD & SA Baxter

Our product designers, with Workshop/APD’s warm modern aesthetic in mind, set out to create a collection that would provide subtle shine, texture and interest to doors and cabinets. The result is the Looking Glass Collection, which is inspired by textured, patinated forms sliced through to reveal gleaming interiors. The contrast of matte exteriors and “sliced” surfaces, polished to a high shine as if they had not yet been touched by the outside world creates a lovely tactile experience for the user.

 

To ensure that the collections forms would also feel incredible in hand, our design team did extensive 3D modeling, landing on a unique, rounded oblong shape repeated in the collection’s escutcheons as well as a unique pill-shaped door pull and lever handle. A sliced-round door knob is also available in addition to cabinetry and appliance pulls, and recessed pulls for sliding doors. Often challenged to find beautiful large-scale hardware for tall doors and cabinets, we also created dramatic 12” cabinet pulls and 24” door pulls. The collection is meticulously crafted by S.A. Baxter’s artisans in solid bronze, and is available in a range of finishes