In previous posts we have explained why creating one-off custom pieces is expensive as it requires a 3-dimensional pattern to be made and then a one- or two-part mold, all of which takes considerable time and expense.
However, don’t be too downhearted as there is a pragmatic alternative, that is if you like one of our collections and have a creative mind.
Our hardware collections reflect a theme and while each collection embodies the same style the pieces are not simply smaller and larger versions of one pattern, but artistic adaptations of the style honed to fit a particular function and scale. A good example of what I mean can be seen by comparing 3 willow cabinet pulls, while all were designed for cabinet doors and drawers and all have flowing leaves each of the pieces is different and distinct and reflects a holistic approach to design.
Sometimes we find ourselves thinking like the pizza chef who is called upon to add extra basil but hold the anchovy. Using my culinary analogy and realizing that taste is obviously subjective I was presented with the challenge of making the large willow cabinet pull but with fewer extraneous leaves and with a concentrated leaf arrangement akin to the smaller cabinet version. We were also asked to see if we could grow the willow sprig so that it could be used as an appliance pull with a span of 16”.
Below you can see how we cut and pasted a left and right willow sprig at the wax stage and how we then melded the sections together to create a longer piece. At this point a minimal amount of time and expense has been spent on creating a new piece and if approved we will use this new wax pattern to create a bronze casting. Since this will be an appliance pull, we do not expect the order to be for more than a few pieces and for each casting we will go through the same cutting and pasting process. If the order had been for many units then we would have created a new permanent pattern from which a mold would have been formed so that hundreds of subsequent waxes could be made.
By making a left and right willow sprig in wax we were able to fuse the 2 to create a hybrid piece.
