Add a little brass to your home decor
Stainless steel popular, but trends shifting
Q: I’ve heard that gold-coloured fixtures are coming back into style. Does this mean no more nickel and stainless? A: Don’t be too quick to change over your silver-toned hardware and fixtures to the shiny brass ones they replaced in the early 1990s.
In fact, don’t go for shiny brass at all, because that’s not where the trend’s headed, says Richard Assaly, president and founder of Edmonton-based LightForm.
Instead, think warm, matte gold and brass colours and hand-rubbed finishes.
“In order for a brass or a bronze to work, it has to have a lot of ‘hand’ to it; it can’t just be a dipped, polished brass because it will look like it did 30 years ago,” says Assaly.
The look hasn’t infiltrated a lot of homes yet — it’s still mostly a “high-level” look, he adds.
“We see it first changing in the hospitality world; in the hotel and restaurant business we see it. Then people get warmed up to the idea that it works in those settings.”
While plated, painted and dipped brass and bronze fixtures are available, he prefers the authentic look of finishes that are hand-rubbed, giving them a warmer look.
Bronze and gold tones aren’t traditionally as easy to work with as nickel or chrome, which take on the characteristics of what’s around them, he adds.
But these days, decor involves a much greater mix of textures and finishes.
“It’s like fashion. You can put a combination of clothes together — colours and textures that you wouldn’t have normally done a couple of years ago — because the textures change the way things go together.”
At Towne and Countree Kitchens, designer Tanis Johnson is seeing more customers move to warmer tones like oilrubbed bronze in the hardware they choose.
“You’re definitely seeing it creep back in, but it’s not running back in,” she says. “There’s still that backlash against the old brass with the pearlized oak doors. There’s still enough people who remember that.”
Nickel and stainless steel remain popular because there’s so much product out there, she adds.
As people begin to see golden tones in show homes and on TV decorating shows, that will change.
“Until you see something that really sparks your interest, it’s hard for a lot of people to really imagine that being in their home,” says Johnson.