the washington post
.thursday, march
5
,2020DC
8BY ELIZABETH MAYHEWW
hen To by Young bought her one-bed-
room apartment in new York’s Gra-
mercy Park neighborhood, she knew
she would have very little money to renovate
the kitchen. she planned to simply paint the
dark brown cabinets white, replace the ceiling
light and update the cabinet hardware to
chrome to match the existing faucet. It was
this last item on her to-do list that confused
her; her small kitchen opened directly onto
her living/dining room, in which all the hard-
ware — d oorknobs, hinges and lighting — w ere
brass. “I had always been taught that, like the
color of my shoes, belt and handbag, the metal
hardware in a room should match.” Lucky for
Young, times have changed. Restrictive rules
about matching fashion accessories are no
more and, to a degree (a few guidelines do
apply), the same can be said about mixingmetal hardware finishes in homes.
M ixing metal finishes is a conscious design
choice for new Yo rk designer Thomas
o’Brien, founder of Aero studios, and one he
even made for his own residence. When he
renovated the kitchen in his Bellport, n.Y.,
home, he painted his cabinets a glossy white
and installed satin brass handles, but he
opted to use chrome for all the plumbing
fixtures. He s ays that when mixing metals in a
room, there should be logic behind each
choice. “For example, I chose the brass
handles because I wanted a softer and warm-
er feeling than chrome.” H e considers kitchen
cabinets to be like furniture, so in his mind,
they can be treated differently.
D.C. interior designer Zoe Feldman is also
in favor of mixing metal hardware finishes. “I
feel it keeps a space from feeling too one-
note, and it gives a more collected and
see metals on 9THE KITCHEN ISSUEYes, you can mix
metal finishes in the
kitchen — but there
are some rules
STACY ZARIN GOLDBERGthis silver spring kitchen by Z oe Feldman Design, a
D.C.-based interior design firm, uses polished nickel
plumbing fixtures with satin brass cabinetry hardware and
unlacquered brass lighting. the matching tile and cabinet
paint highlight the different finish selections.Home