Decorating with Brass: Why This Old-World Metal Is Made for 2025

The ubiquitous Millennial gray has graced showrooms and homes for astir a decennary now, washing implicit walls, furniture, and decor. Its versatility made it a cleanable lucifer for assorted aesthetics, with modern farmhouse emerging arsenic 1 of the astir fashionable styles.

Though the classic, cool-toned neutral is versatile and mass-appealing, it has fallen retired of benignant successful 2025 successful favour of warmer, much lively interiors. When Redfin surveyed astir 50 designers astir the incoming 2025 interior plan trends arsenic good arsenic what we’re leaving behind, the bulk called for a resurgence of comfort, curves, and wide playfulness successful this year’s aesthetics. With 2025’s absorption connected warmth, it lone makes consciousness for designers and homeowners to commencement decorating with brass. Redfin talked to designers and renovators connected their champion tips for implementing brass, truthful instrumentality a look.

Sustainable, flexible plan with brass

Dan Bochichio of Albany-based Bocain Designs, “Brass is simply a sustainable, recyclable worldly that adds warmth and sophistication to immoderate space. Its durability and versatility marque it a timeless prime for some modern and classical interior designs portion supporting eco-friendly practices.”

This metallic looks arsenic astatine location connected airy fixtures, furnishings legs, and furniture knobs, offering flexibility successful however you incorporated this metallic finish, adjacent if you privation to support immoderate of your different metallic fixtures. Plus, mixing metals is trending this year, truthful don’t interest if you’ve outfitted your location with different metals.

With the diminution of grey metallics connected everything, Forest Rose, manner blogger with Kingdom First Motherhood, speaks to the versatility of brass, stating, “Mixing metals is wholly just crippled now, particularly successful the kitchen. Try pairing a matte achromatic faucet with lukewarm brass furniture pulls. The opposition adds conscionable capable involvement without feeling cookie-cutter. It’s a elemental swap that makes the full abstraction consciousness a small much lived-in and a batch much unique.”

Brass besides proves a flexible decorativeness that coordinates with plan styles spanning aggregate eras – from baroque to brutalism. Erica Shepard, NCIDQ, IIDA, proprietor and main decorator of Shepard Design Studio, adds, “Over time, brass develops a patina that tin connection unsocial quality to the fixture. We similar that brass has a timeless entreaty and complements galore styles from modern to vintage.”

Brass: the metallic that blends aged and new

Since its aboriginal usage successful the Roman Empire to now, brass has recovered a spot successful homes. Find retired immoderate possibly astonishing aesthetics that it suits to this day. 

Traditional gets a refresh 

If you’ve seen immoderate period pieces specified arsenic Bridgerton oregon Downton Abbey, you’ll spot lavish brass accents successful the acceptable design. The metallic plays an important portion successful history, reaching backmost arsenic acold arsenic the highest Roman Empire days, arsenic they forged it into armor and assorted location decor and accessories. Similarly, successful centuries ahead, it was utile for crafting armor and ships, furnishings, and yet connection devices and instruments. 

No substance however it’s utilized crossed eras, brass conveys decadence and warmth to everything it touches. This couldn’t beryllium much applicable than erstwhile it’s utilized successful the home. Sarah Seung-McFarland, Ph.D., a licensed scientist who specializes successful manner and plan psychology, and laminitis of Trulery, notes: “Brass has been valued for its durability and aureate glow since the days of Roman society, a go-to for adding touches of old-world charm. It’s 1 of those materials that conscionable screams luxury, and adjacent though it’s gone successful and retired of trend, it’s nary astonishment that it’s back. In these uncertain times, radical are looking for what’s timeless, and brass finishes connection that consciousness of comfortableness and tradition.”

Meri Wick of Westbrook Inn successful Westbrook, CT, besides weighs in: “As the proprietor of a vintage furniture and breakfast, I find that brass decor adds a timeless warmth and authenticity to interiors. I usage brass sconces and antique mirrors with modern wallpaper to make a warm, but caller vibe to our spaces.  Another large mode to sphere that lived-in elegance is to fto the patina archer a story, which our guests love.  Pair brass accents with affluent woods, velvets, and floral patterns for a layered, inviting ambiance that whispers of the past.”

Art deco finds its metallic finish

Right earlier World War I, creation deco swept in, bringing with it crisp geometric designs reflecting a brash, modern world. It wasn’t until the years pursuing the Great Depression that its designs took hold, which makes consciousness fixed that the benignant aimed to glorify modernity and machines. In this progressive aesthetic, cleanable lines and metallic finishes dominate, emulating the caller technologies of the aboriginal 1900s. As seen supra successful the pictured NBC Building successful New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza, this metallic draws the oculus into the ornate patterning that makes it a Manhattan icon. 

Indoors, too, creation deco imbues a luxe look to lighting fixtures, chaise lounges, and ornately decorated armchairs. Though it grows progressively hard to find archetypal creation deco pieces, vintage furnishings stores bash merchantability vestiges of that era, oregon modern pieces made to grant them. 

Mid-century modern’s earthy companion

We heard from Hannah Boyce, manager of The Boutique Handle Co., an interior-design-focused hardware plan firm. She states that brass people fits the vintage aesthetic surrounding the well-loved midcentury modern look. 

Her suggestions for decorating with brass? “Pair brushed brass oregon antique brass with heavy colors of green, blue, oregon burnt orangish – to make a gorgeous mid-century modern aesthetic. Try adding immoderate brass knobs to a portion of acheronian woody furnishings to make a gorgeous opposition and timeless style. Incorporate immoderate lighter finishes specified arsenic marble oregon linen to equilibrium retired the beardown code of brass. Mid-century modern interior plan lets furnishings and decor instrumentality the forefront, and utilizing brass hardware is the cleanable mode to adhd immoderate understated luxury to your interior.”

Think backmost to the deed TV amusement Mad Men. One look into immoderate of the scenery volition amusement that brass became the reigning metallic decorativeness during the mid-century era. 

Increase coziness by decorating with brass

“You tin springiness adjacent the smallest spaces a lukewarm and polished vibe with brass. We added a brass reflector framed by brass sconces to our basement stairwell landing, serving arsenic an instauration to the cozy basement surviving country you’re astir to enter. 

Recently, we ordered this flush equine sconce successful the brass and solid decorativeness to afloat implicit the space. The brass basal ties into the existing finishes, portion the solid canopy adds magnitude and allows airy travel to deed the abstraction successful a lukewarm and welcoming way,” says location blogger Ashley Burk.

Brass touches to adhd to your renovations

Yes, decorating with brass is trending, but if you similar the aesthetic capable to instal it successful your home, wherefore not adhd the decorativeness to your adjacent renovation project? For example, if you’re revamping a bathroom, brass tub legs would look stunning against a acheronian wall/white tub combo. In the kitchen, brass furniture pulls and knobs opposition against achromatic surfaces, updating the now- outdated room aesthetic.

Experts look to agree. Donna from Modern connected Monticello, notes that “Brass is trendy again successful caller unlacquered, satin, and aged finishes, portraying a vintage vibe that beautifully mixes with existing metals successful chrome, bronzes, and adjacent nickel finishes.”

She concludes with much brass decor ideas: “I person been crushing connected each the brass partition mirrors, furniture knobs, ligament shelves, plumbing fixtures, partition sconces, and adjacent carnal figurines. Yesterday’s shiny brass furnishings legs of the 1980s are a fading representation arsenic today’s caller brass accessories, furniture, hardware, and fixtures bring warmth and charming quality to a space.” 

Image courtesy of Ashley Burk Design

Unique places to decorate with brass astir the house

Though brass looks beauteous arsenic a fixture successful the house, you don’t person to permanently connect it to your location to payment from its graceful look. It fits conscionable arsenic good successful tiny accents passim the home. 

According to Rachel astatine The Antiqued Journey, decorating with brass tells a communicative arsenic aged arsenic time, yet ne'er feels outdated: “Brass decor is making specified a resurgence owed to the earthy quality it exudes. Brass items, whether it beryllium candlesticks, airy fixtures, oregon decorative objects, bring warmth to immoderate space. It’s astir similar brass decor, vintage oregon not, creates a cozy feeling and helps your location to archer a story.”

“For a elemental array centerpiece oregon decorative vignette, effort compiling assorted brass objects onto a tray oregon platter,” suggests Rachel. “To adhd ocular interest, alteration the heights of items used, specified arsenic gangly candlesticks successful the back, a lidded vessel oregon crockery successful the middle, and circular it disconnected with smaller brass figurines specified arsenic birds, bunnies, quails, oregon pheasants. Add a array runner oregon portion of scrap cloth to the show for softness, oregon effort mounting a faux stem of greenery amongst the vignette. This moveable vignette tin beryllium styled connected a table, placed connected a shelf, oregon utilized arsenic an entryway display.”

The station Decorating with Brass: Why This Old-World Metal Is Made for 2025 appeared archetypal connected Redfin | Real Estate Tips for Home Buying, Selling & More.