Wardrobe and Kitchen Handles: 160mm, 320mm or a T-Knob?

Wardrobe and kitchen handles are bought in bulk, so a wrong choice is repeated twenty or thirty times across a home. The good news is that the decision comes down to three questions: what size, knob or handle, and where to put it.

The sizes

Aurelio cabinet handles come in two lengths, 160mm and 320mm, and each design also has a matching cabinet T-knob. Every one is available in Tobacco, Matt Black, Antique Brass and Satin Brass.

Which size for which shutter

A widely used rule of thumb is to choose a handle about a third of the width of the drawer, then round to the nearest size you can buy. In practice:

• Small drawers and narrow shutters: a T-knob or a 160mm handle.
• Standard kitchen drawers: a 160mm handle.
• Wide drawers, deep pan drawers and tall wardrobe shutters: a 320mm handle. On a tall shutter the longer handle is easier to grab whether you are reaching high or low.

When in doubt on a tall wardrobe, go longer. A handle that looks slightly too big on a 7-foot shutter usually looks right once the room is finished.

Knob or handle?

• T-knobs suit small drawers, bedside tables, dressers and upper kitchen cabinets. They are discreet and need only one hole.
• Handles are easier to pull on heavy drawers and tall doors, because you can use your whole hand.
• Mixing both is fine as long as they come from the same design family and finish. For example, Pietra handles on the wardrobe shutters and Pietra T-knobs on the drawers inside.

Where to place them

• Wardrobe shutters: fix handles vertically, near the opening edge, at a height that is comfortable for the people who use the wardrobe most.
• Drawers: fix handles horizontally and centred on the drawer front.
• Upper kitchen cabinets: place the handle near the bottom of the door; on base cabinets, near the top.
• Pairs of shutters: mirror the handles so they sit close together at the meeting edge.

Before you drill

Handles are fixed through two holes, measured from the centre of one to the centre of the other. If you are replacing existing handles, measure the old hole spacing first and check it against the product page, so you are not left with extra holes in the shutter. On new furniture, mark one template and use it for every door so the handles line up perfectly.

Count before you order

Go room by room and count every shutter and drawer, noting the size for each. A typical bedroom wardrobe plus a kitchen can easily need 30 or more pieces, and ordering together means every handle comes in the same finish.

Match them to your doors

Each Aurelio design (Senso, Forma, Luce, Forte and Pietra) comes as a door handle, a door pull, a cabinet handle and a T-knob, so your wardrobes can carry the same design as your bedroom door handles. Browse all wardrobe handles and knobs, or send us your list on WhatsApp and we will help you work out quantities.