Materials · 4 min read
Patina, not polish
Why we specify unlacquered brass hardware and hand-finished timber — and what to expect from materials that are allowed to age.
Unlacquered brass hardware is a quietly contentious choice. It will darken. It will mottle. In time, it will look nothing like the day it was installed.
That is the point.
A lacquered finish is a thin film of plastic over the metal. It works for a few years and then begins to peel. Unlacquered brass simply ages — first to a warm honey, then to something deeper and more interesting. The timber beneath it does the same.
If you want a piece that looks identical in twenty years to the day it was installed, we'll specify a lacquered finish and a sprayed lacquer top coat for you. If you want a piece that gets better, we'll leave it raw.