The "better warranty" they are referring to that you are paying more for by using the plumber's/GC's vendor has to do with coverage on more than just the fixture itself should it fail. When you buy online/at a non-preferred store, the only thing the plumber/GC will warrant is the install. When you use their supplier, they warrant the fixture, the install & any damage that may occur to surrounding flooring, cabinetry, etc. So let's say you buy your bathroom sink faucets online, they are defective and fail within the first year of install flooding the vanity cabinetry, warped the custom tub deck, and soaked the carpeting in the adjoining bedroom and closet & destroying the bathroom floor. You call the GC/plumber & they say the install was not to blame, it was the fixture itself. You are now on the hook to contact the manufacturer, handle the warranty replacement hassle yourself + the cost of removal & re-installation of the fixture + repairing all the collateral damage that occurred at your own expense. Now if you had bought the same fixture through the GC's/plumber's supplier, they would immediately replace the fixture & take care of the warranty paperwork hassle for you with no waiting, they would re-install at no cost & cover the costs of repairing all the collateral damage. So the next question is, how often do fixtures fail within the first year? I can't say for sure. What I can tell you is that my DM & DD bought all of their fixtures for their5 bd/3.5ba home online & none have failed. We bought most of ours through our GC/plumber's supplier + 2 fixtures online & only 1 has failed --the handshower (supplied by the plumber's supplier) started leaking out the sides of the twist control. It was promptly replaced within a week (it was special order to start with so we felt a week was reasonable). That leaves the final question of what level of risk are you willing to take / is the 20-30% higher price worth the peace of mind of knowing you're covered in the event that the worst happens? Only you can answer that one. You may want to do a search on the 'Bathrooms' forum on this topic--there are plenty of threads on there discussing this very topic. To answer your actual question of where we bought our fixtures--the ones we bought ourselves were purchased from www.irawoods.com. Hope this helps! This post was edited by mydreamhome on Wed, Jun 5, 13 at 23:35

When we were starting out with our home plans a year ago we visited them several times and were almost going to use them. My inlaws used them (they have same builder as us)they went with in oak 4" in an ash or smoke stain. Our builder said it doesn't line up well sharp edges shows cracks. We haven't had our flooring put in it yet but we are using 3 1/4" X 3/4" Savannah Pecan from Sovereign flooring from a local dealer that the builder knows..

Proudmama: Yes, that's exactly what I'm looking for in a light maple. Puppy farms? Egads, just another category of purchases to feel guilty about.... I can't buy anything from China without a twinge of guilt either.... Ellen: Thanks for the insight into Amish business practices. I'm glad they've found a way to survive and still hold their belief system together. I admire those people for their lifestyle and discipline. Thanks again for all of the replies!

My first advice is always to go to a store where you can see and touch the merchandise. We have a place locally that carries hundreds of knobs/pulls mounted on boards so you can do just that. Some pulls have unfinished backs that are just scratchy. Some will be too close to the drawer so that your knuckles bang the drawer/door. Some will be too short side to side for the width of your four pulling fingers. Some knobs are unfinished on the back. Others will just feel funny to you. Some hardware will snatch your pockets when you brush by them. It's the kind of thing you can't tell just by looking at a picture. When we had spent a couple of hours touching and feeling, we ended up choosing Amerock knobs and pulls that were on the least expensive side ($2 and $3 each?), not for the price, but for the look and feel. If you order online, at least order samples before you commit to ordering for the whole kitchen.