Project Pine Dresser - Part 2

I mentioned yesterday that the dresser I'm working on was missing one of its handles.  The original were bail pulls set 3 inches from center.  Since the goal was to do a whitewash finish with the grain showing through, I didn't want to use wood filler to close up the original holes - so I started looking.

Man!  Drawer handles are expensive!

We don't have a home for this dresser.  The plan from the moment I got it was to refinish it so that I could sell it.  So investing a lot of money in the pulls is not an option.  So I turned my budget-seeking mode up to high.

I thought I had scored when I saw that Hobby Lobby was having a 50% off sale on their knobs and drawer pulls.  When did Hobby Lobby get so cute?  I guess whenever they made the decision to start knocking off Pottery Barn?  My son was especially enamored with some letter hooks.  Of course you have to be silly to buy anything full sticker price there - they always have the 40% off coupon and most of their things are on sale for 50% off.

I got a little distracted on the knob aisle.  Forget Anthropologie - they had some real cuties!  Here's one I'm still thinking about using in the girls' room. 

They are $3.99 each, but 50% off - not too bad.

They also had some seriously cute red striped ones (reminded me of a circus - but in a chic way - if that's possible) and some adorable letter knobs.  I couldn't find pictures of them, you'll just have to trust me. 

But I digress.  Anyway, I was looking at these cup handles.  I was really liking the idea of doing cup pulls - since it's for resale, and that seems to be the look that everyone likes.  (The picture is from the Hobby Lobby website - but I do think it's upside down.)

They were nice and heavy - felt and looked very aged.  However, who in Hobby Lobby world decided it would be a good idea not to put the measurements on their handles?  I, of course, had not brought either my tape measure or my original handle - so I had no idea what size they were.  I went over to the sewing section to see if I could find a yardstick - no luck.  By this time, I was starting to second-guess my choice.  So instead of buying one to test out - or even all 12 that I needed that I could have returned later - I left.  On to the internet searches.

One of my top 3 favorite blogs, Little Green Notebook, suggested an Ebay shop The Knob Shop.  Talk about deals.  Most of their stuff is in the $1-2 range and they do a combined shipping rate if you buy over 10 things (free if you buy 25).  I really started to like this one:

The finish is Antique Brushed Pewter - which I thought would look really nice with the greywash.  Total cost with shipping:  $29.35  However, I finally decided against the cup pull look.  The holes are drilled in the upper part of the drawer face to accommodate the original bail pulls - so I thought a cup pull would end up looking very odd.

An even cheaper option I found was at The Tool Consignment Store.  They sell some of their handles in lots - so I found this one in a lot of 12.  I wasn't sure how the brass would look, but I liked the lines.  And they offered free shipping.  Total cost $16.99!

The issue I was mainly worried about were these circles:

Even after sanding the heck out of the drawer fronts, they still have the circles left from where the backplate was on the original hardware.  I was almost set on buying the brass handles, when I decided to do just one more search - this time for backplates.  And I found these:

They're black - which I am a little worried about.  But I love the backplate and the design.  They come from Farrs Home Store, which had a large selection of unique handles.  And can you believe they were only $1 each with $2 for the entire shipping cost!  SCORE!  I was so excited I even called my mom.  Total cost $14!  That's half of what I originally thought I could do.  As you can see, the picture is a little blurry - so I'll get a better one when they arrive.  Fingers crossed!