Brass Revival Bathrooms

Brass bathroom fixtures belong to a warm family of metals that includes copper, bronze and gold tones.

The default white tile bathroom was first revised when the fashion for using gray, black or brown grout (in place of white grout) came over from Scandinavia and England.  Another logical way to progress the look is to switch from the usual chrome and nickel to brass bathroom fixtures in the sink and shower. A metal with a warm tone, brass (made from copper and zinc) is a living finish that will patina. It’s nearly indestructible (hence its used as the base metal for high end faucets) and it was out of fashion for so long it was a logical choice to rebound. Now firmly back, brass is becoming a popular choice to use in white tile and dark grout baths. It offers a lot of bang, too, because it stands out and looks luxe unless it’s badly lacquered.

A white bathroom always looks spacious and neutral (and it’s always affordable). So colored grout is a way to make it individual as well as emphasize pattern on the walls, which was noted in my posts on Dark Grout with White Tile and White Tile Baths with Bold Grout. Colored grout (especially in the Swedish Yellow-Grout Bathroom) still looks hip, which means it’s wearing well.

Design retailer John Derian’s bathroom [top] nails the vintage English brass look with white subways and dark grout. The sink is obviously salvage since it has an integral overflow drain and painted iron legs which show their age. Hot and cold pillar taps with cross-handles and porcelain caps add a rich natural brass look and vintage patina. A matching brass tub filler is a companion piece for the adjacent bathtub and shower.

An editor from Canada’s House & Home magazine (one of my favorites) rehabbed her old bath and reconfigured the space to include an en suite master spa. The look is similar to Mr. Derian’s but no less distinct. A Duravit Vero sink is one of those choices that has an old aura yet still looks new. A console sink with the legs removed, it’s a great choice along with Kohler’s Purist faucet in a tony finish called “vibrant brushed bronze.” Bronze (an alloy made from copper and sometimes tin) is a cousin to brass so the look is similar.

The airy shower in that same bath has a black hex-tile floor and matching Kohler Purist pressure balance valve and overhead rain shower.
A bathroom in a converted attic space — the one with the Eastlake Dresser Vanity — chose lacquered brass shower fixtures for a dark-grouted subway tile shower with a large hex floor. For me, the pale color and shiny coating makes it look less expensive than the other two. But there’s no denying the impact the warm metal tone.

Bronze-tone fixtures in a Stockholm bathroom blend well with the kind of gilded mirrors that the Swedes (and I) adore. The tiny sink here boasts a modern single-lever faucet in a matching finish. So whether it’s fixtures are actual brass, bronze, bronze tone or even gold-y they belong to a good family that works well together.

(Source: elledecor, house & home, chicdesigninvestments, decordots)

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