A Touch of Gold……Well, Actually It's Brass

Have you noticed that brass is making a comeback in lighting fixtures?  I'm not talking about the 80's lacquered brass, or the 'antiqued' brass that used to be so popular.  Today's brass fixtures have more of a brushed finish and add a warm ambiance to the room.

Shades of Light, one of my new favorite catalogs, calls it the Golden Touch - “Golden” is a word that brings to mind various themes; of royalty and riches in luxurious palaces, of destiny and excellence in an opportunity or favorite, and of luminance and warmth from shining light or a glowing sun.   Okay, so that might be over the top, but you get the idea!!

Whether you call it gold or brass, we've decided to use brass fixtures in the living space of the Beach Cottage.  The few original fixtures that are in the house are brass, so it seems like a good choice.   And in a nod to the mid-century origins of the house, we'll be using some drum shades that give it a bit of a traditional touch, with an updated twist.  

Restoration Hardware

Hudson River and Visual Comfort are two of my favorite lighting companies, but their prices tend to be out of my budget.  For example, this New Caanan sconce has an MSRP over $1000. Restoration Hardware's Convoy Sconce is very similar (both are patterned after a fixture from the British Royal Navy), but retails for $379. With that kind of price difference, you can guess which one I bought (plus I found it on sale)!  

Hudson Valley Lighting

Lots of other companies are starting to carry the aged brass - Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs have some nice options.  Still a bit pricey, but beautiful (Lowes, Home Depot, etc. don't seem to have many offerings yet, but I'm sure they'll be adding them as the finish gets more popular).





Since we have such a tall ceiling in the master bedroom, we wanted to have a pretty dramatic fixture.  I found this Murray Feiss 'Arabesque' drum fixture.  It does a nice job of blending traditional and contemporary styling, with a bit of a wow factor when you enter the room! 





For the other bedrooms and the foyer, we'll use this Hinkley fixture in a finish they call 'brushed bronze'. 

For the dining room, we'll hang this drum pendant.  I love it's simple, sophisticated design with the antique, gold leaf finish!  

Kitchen Pendants

And as you saw in an earlier post, we'll be using these pendants over the kitchen island. 









Over the fireplace, these Restoration Hardware Library sconces with shades will be perfect.  I can't wait to send the current sconces off to the ReStore!  I'm sure some one else will love them, but I want something a little different.

I'm still finalizing a few more of the fixtures.  I hope to get them posted with the room designs soon!

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