AU Edit | Bold As Brass

Brass accents have long been a feature of many homes and this elegant metal in all its golden hues has added a timeless quality to countless interiors for almost 500 years and it continues to do so.

Brass is perfectly suited to any style - classic or more contemporary, but it is particularly good at bringing warm accents to more neutral palettes.  An alloy made from a combination of copper and zinc with the addition of tin, this is a metal strong, durable and resistant to corrosion, although when weathered and exposed to moisture - in air or seawater - like any metal containing copper, it develops verdigris, a blue-green pigment.  Often, it is this patina that makes vintage brass even more attractive and sought after.

With or without verdigris, brass comes in a wide range of colours depending on the ratios of copper and zinc in its mixture.  Durable and highly malleable, it’s incredibly versatile and can be hand hammered and shaped by artisans into delicate bowls or forged on a more industrial scale into robust light fittings and other fixtures such as taps and pipes.

See AU’s carefully curated collection of vintage brass objects, including desk and floor lamps, bowls and vases