New product introduction: P399-5 No comments yet

P399-5 (bottom) in Venetian Bronze, pictured with the 3"cc pull and the P398 bin pull

The fourth style of 5″cc pull to be introduced is from the Criss-Cross Suite. In addition to the P399-3 cabinet handle, the P399-8 small appliance pull, and the P399-12 refrigerator handle, Cliffside now offers the P399-5 for cabinet doors and drawers. As with all elements of the Criss-Cross Suite, the P399-5 features the attractive ribbon-and-reed design prevalent throughout the entire hardware collection, as seen at right in conjunction with the 3″cc pull and the P398 cup pull.

The versatility of the 5″cc size makes it ideal. It is small enough to be used throughout an entire kitchen, but long enough to be appropriate for ceiling-height doors, taller-than-average base cabinets, or wide drawers. This size is also appropriate for use in applications where the grip height of the 3″cc pull is not sufficient, such as when a customer has larger-than-average fingers (like your blog writer! – personally, I find the 5″cc much easier to use).

For more information on the new 5″cc pulls that are now in stock in 10 finishes and 5 styles, contact Cliffside’s customer service department, and watch our blog for more new updates and exciting developments!

New display designs No comments yet

With Cliffside’s custom display board program, it’s possible to create nearly any hardware board you or your customers desire. However, we do have some “old standards”: designs that we fall back on when a customer asks for something well-established. Cliffside’s hardware suites contain the most timeless and popular items in our hardware line, and we are planning yet another expansion, which we will preview on these boards.

Cliffside's Criss-Cross suite displayed in the Iron finish

Our new board design incorporates the traditional 3″cc cabinet pull, the matching 8″cc and 12″cc appliance pulls, and the brand-new 5″cc large cabinet pull! All of the new 5″cc pulls will be available in fall 2011, but these boards give you an exclusive sneak peek at the designs of these pieces, which will be available in ten finishes and in all five solid brass hardware suites.

At right, you can see the Criss-Cross suite, bold and distinctive in the Iron finish. Along the top of the board are the four pull sizes: 3″cc at the far left, the new 5″cc size beside it, and then the 8″cc small appliance pull and the 12″cc refrigerator pull at the far right. Below the pulls on the left, you can see the K579 knob, a Cliffside-exclusive design, and the K580, a more ornate selection. Any iron-finish solid brass knob can coordinate with this suite, like the oblong 105 shown beneath the 5″cc pull.

In the lower center section of the board, you can see the P398 cup pull, attractively antiqued and displaying the suite’s signature reeded design. Hinges are available to coordinate with all of our suites, and this one is no exception; the AHI inset armoire hinge is displayed alongside two other non-mortise hinges: the BH3A-NM (left center) and BH2A-NM (right center). All of Cliffside’s solid brass suites match our solid brass cupboard latches too, including the IBCL shown here in the lower right corner.

All in all, the new Cliffside display designs are a big hit. The 5″cc pulls are brand-new designs which we believe are the best way to complete our solid-brass suites. For further details on our displays or with any questions, feel free to e-mail us or contact the customer service department

for more information.

What’s the difference: part 2 of 3 1 comment

In continuing our series on finish comparison, Cliffside proceeds from the gray to the gold, delving into the land of brasses. While much of Cliffside’s hardware is “solid brass”, only a few of those pieces are designated with “brass”-named finishes, like antique brass or polished brass, so it’s easy to get the two confused. Here are some other questions that our customer representatives field often:

What’s the difference between…

…polished brass and antique brass?

Cliffside’s polished brass finish has been around since the beginning. It, like the polished chrome and nickel focused on in our last edition, has a high-polish lacquer applied to it, which protects the finish and gives it that lustrous shine that is Cliffside’s signature color.

Antique brass, on the other hand, has a richer, more accented look while still maintaining a glossy sheen that is similar to the silver satin. Pieces with high levels of detailing, like Cliffside’s Rope and Criss-Cross Suites, make especially good use of the antique brass lacquer, as its dark elements linger in the ornamentation and elevate accented designs to a new plane.

The two finishes can be seen below, side-by-side on the same solid brass knobs:

At left: 110-PB (top) and K580-PB; at right: the same knobs in antique brass

…antique brass and antique english?

Cliffside’s suppliers are located worldwide in a variety of locations, and so their interpretations of finishes occasionally vary. In particular, Cliffside’s solid brass hinges are manufactured in Europe, so the antique brass finish that is applied to them is quite different from the rest of our hardware.

Compare, in this picture, an antique brass (AB) hinge alongside an antique brass (AB) pull:

K344-3-AB at left, as compared to BH3A-AB on the right

You can clearly see that the European-made antique brass hinge is much darker; its color, in fact, is comparable to the dark lacquer present on the foot of the pull shown at left. Cliffside’s customers were seeking an alternative antique brass hinge to match more closely with our AB hardware, so Cliffside developed the antique english finish.

View now the same image, but with an antique english hinge replacing the antique brass:

K344-3-AB at left, as compared to BH3A-AE on the right

These two colors are a better match when the hardware with a lot of open golden space, but the AB hinges are still available for those customers who prefer a darker finish, or for those who are using darker, more detail-oriented hardware, such as Cliffside’s Criss-Cross Suite.

Below, see the same hinge in both the AB and AE finishes:

BH2A-NM hinges in AB (left) and AE (right)

This year’s knob-minees No comments yet

The 83rd annual Academy Awards are rapidly approaching and, with them, the presentation of this year’s Golden Knob Awards! Check back next Friday to find out who the winners are, but until then, here’s your list of nominees!

Best Foreign Feature

Foreign Feature nominee: PM3-WT

Presented to Cliffside’s best import from our lines of European lead crystal and marble

• M994
• PM5-BG
• M13-32
• PM3-WT
• P-3-BLACK

Best Original Piece

K544-IR nominated for Best Original Piece

Presented to the best hardware piece that is unique to the Cliffside line

• B600-VB
• 148-SS
• 149-PN
• K544-IR
• K579-AB

Best Adaptation

Scroll Suite: nominee for Best Adaptation

Presented to the Cliffside line whose adaptation best serves our customers

• Rope Suite
• Classic Suite
• Scroll Suite
• Artisan Suite
• Criss-Cross Suite

Best “Short”

The 97015 butcher block knob

Presented to the best piece in our line of “small” or “miniature” hardware

• 97015-SS
• 100-20-IR
• AZ-SM
• 72
• M25

Best Supporting Actor

Great supporting performance from BH2A-OC-BALL

Presented to the hardware piece providing the “best support”

• 3-8-OFFSET-AB
• BH2A-OC-BALL
• AHO-VB
• BH2A-NM-OA
• BH3A-PC

Best Picture

24BP is a backplate for crystal knobs.

Presented to the piece that best exemplifies the great new photography on Cliffside’s website

• 3405-BZ
• M995-AQUA
• BH2A-RA
• IBCL-SS
• 24BP-PN

Be sure to check back Friday to find out this year’s winners!

Featured Suite: Criss-Cross No comments yet

Cliffside’s criss-cross suite received the largest expansion in the past year. With the addition of several new products and a large jump in the number of available finishes, the criss-cross design has proven to be quite popular. Each piece in the suite is unique, so we’ll take them on one at a time, starting with the pulls.

Pulls

The P-399 pulls in 3"cc, 8"cc, and 12"cc models

Cliffside’s criss-cross pulls are the biggest part of this line, both literally and figuratively. The series was originally only available with the 3″cc size, and only existed in two finishes (Antique Brass and Silver Satin). With the advent of the suite concept at Cliffside, we have expanded the 3″cc to be available in all ten of our best-selling finishes. Additionally, we added the 8″cc and 12″cc sizes, which were developed in conjunction with the engineers that create our products.  Though first attempts proved to be awkwardly shaped and humorous at times, the results were finely crafted pieces of durable and beautiful hardware that look stunning on any cabinet design. These pulls match especially well with the “ribbon and reed”-style molding found on many traditional cabinets.

P-398-OC

Also part of this series of pulls is the P-398 cup pull, which has also been expanded to ten finishes. Originally available in only AB, PB, and SS, this piece is striking in some of our more detailed or antiqued finishes, like Venetian Bronze, Iron, and Old Copper, and offers an alternative to a plain and simple cup pull in the simpler finishes like Flat Black and Old Antique.

Knobs

K-580-OA

The original knob from the criss-cross series is the K-580, which Cliffside has offered in three finishes for years. The line expansion gave this traditional piece a new life by providing it in several dramatic new colors. The knob’s design is tied to this line by the criss-cross style around the exterior rim of the face. It is a subtle way of connecting hardware pieces without being too bold.

K-579-VB

If you’d rather make a bold statement about the criss-cross design, consider the K-579. This piece is completely unique, developed through cooperative efforts between Cliffside representatives and the engineering team. The K-579 was chosen from several different designs, based on customer demand for a knob that more obviously matched the P-399 pulls. Each finish offers a different perspective on the knob, whether you seek a subdued statement or an emphatic one.

Mix and Match

Any knob can be used with this hardware suite, if you’d rather not use the K-580 or K-579. If you’re looking for an oblong-shaped knob, for example, why not try the 105? For a more detailed look, the B721 is available as well.

Accessories

BH2A-AE-NF

The main impact that the criss-cross suite had on the Cliffside hinge line was the addition of the Antique English finish. Since the Antique Brass criss-cross hardware is quite popular, it was mentioned by several customers that Cliffside did not have hinges to match the hardware exactly. As Cliffside’s hinges are European-made, the “AB” finish is a rich, dark brownish-gold, rather than the brighter brushed golden color tones that American designers and manufacturers consider to be antique brass. Thus was born the Antique English finish, a matching brushed brass finish that resembles antique brass hardware more closely. This finish is available in six different hinge styles, including the BH2A, BH2A-BALL, BH2A-NF, BH3A, BH2A-NM, and BH2A-NM-BALL. If you are more interested in an armoire hinge, the Bronze Satin finish is the best match in that series.

SBCL-PN

In the Antique Brass finish, Cliffside also brought back the SBCL-AB, and introduced the IBCL-AB, a dramatic-looking piece. As with the rest of our signature hardware line, both latch styles were extended to ten finishes when we expanded our line, including the popular new SBCL-PN shown at right.

The moral?

If you’re frustrated looking for hardware in a saturated market, don’t get cross… get Cliffside’s Criss-Cross!