Metal reflects light. That is the challenge and the opportunity. Get the reflectivity, the finish and the placement right, and you have a room that feels fresh and modern. Get it wrong on metallic interior design, and you have a showroom.

Most heavily accessorized “overdone” metallic interiors are that way because of the misuse of metals, rather than the use of metals.

This is a guide to manipulating the variables, rather than eliminating them.

Reflectivity is the variable, NOT the metal

Before choosing between brass or steel or copper, consider how much light you want reflected back into the room. Polished surfaces send light and therefore reflect it back directly. Brushed surfaces scatter light, which reduces both reflectivity and visual shininess, creating a more matte, textured look. Finally, embossed metal work further breaks up the light, creating smaller patches of reflection.

This is more important than the actual color of the metal. A polished chrome tap in a bathroom with harsh overhead lighting will create scattered reflections throughout the ceiling. Replacing it with brushed nickel creates an immediate improvement in warmth and softness, despite similar color tones. In a room with lots of natural light, choosing a brushed or matte finish should generally be considered safer. For interiors where light is more controlled, a polished surface is less risky.

Choose one metal family and STAY THERE

Most amateurish plans feature both warm and cool metals in the same field of view, creating visual static rather than harmony.

Warm metals (brass, copper, gold) lean towards the amber end of the spectrum. Cool metals (chrome, nickel, and steel) lean towards the blue-grey end of the spectrum. Choose one or the other for each room or each sightline, and STAY THERE. The only exception is blackened steel, which I will discuss in the next section.

Blackened steel is a neutral, but should be used sparingly as an anchor.

Blackened steel does NOT behave like other cool metals – it actually absorbs more light than it reflects. This places it somewhere in between warm metals and cool metals in terms of behavior. It is heavier, moodier, and more industrial than other options. However, it can be used as a grounding element for both warm and cool metals, in much the same way that neutral upholstery colors ground a room. It is important to treat blackened steel as you would any other metal – one large surface or gesture, rather than numerous small accents.

Anchor with one big gesture, rather than dozens of small ones

The biggest mistake that can be made when incorporating metals into an interior is to use them everywhere. Accent lights, cabinet pulls, mirrors, side tables, vases. All small accents that individually seem innocuous, but together demand too much visual attention. Instead, choose ONE large surface to act as your anchor, and let the other smaller pieces fade into the background. One big backsplash, one large accent wall, one substantial kitchen island. A single prominent gesture, and ten small accompaniments.

Texture contrast is your friend when it comes to making sure that your one big metal gesture is actually seen as such. Metal against raw concrete or timber is ideal, as it creates a clear difference that tells the eye, “look at me!” Metal against other metallics or against highly-contrasted matte and shiny surfaces is less likely to be picked up on, and will blend in with the larger group. As a result, the visual punch that you were hoping to deliver gets lost in the mix.

Let matte materials do the heavy lifting

Light-absorbing materials like timber, linen, and concrete allow metallic surfaces to reflect light rather than absorb it, meaning that the metal element in your room will stand out rather than get lost.

Think of it as a conversation. The heavier matte surface says “I’m right here”, and the lighter reflective surface says “Look at me!” The eye is then encouraged to have a dialogue with your room rather than simply receiving information from it, which makes the space feel more interactive and engaging. This is why many Scandinavian-modern rooms feature brass fixtures and fittings in combination with pale timber and linen upholstery – the pale materials say “I’m soft and friendly”, while the brass says “I want to shine”.

This is important to remember when it comes to matte vs. polished surfaces. If you choose the wrong material for the task, your metallic surface will not behave as expected. The materials that absorb light make fantastic anchors for metallic interior design, and therefore should be used more often in a room that has metal accents.

Match the mood of the metal to the mood of the room

Certain metals inherently suggest certain emotions, so it is important to choose a material that fits the task rather than the current design fads. Brushed brass and copper suggest an element of luxury, and are great for spaces that will be lingered in – a dining nook, a reading alcove, a bathroom vanity. Chrome and polished steel suggest a more utilitarian purpose, and are therefore better suited to the kitchen and the bathroom. Blackened steel suggests drama, and should be employed wherever you want to create a more moody, serious atmosphere (a home office, a dark landing).

Of course, this is not an absolute rule – but it is a good starting point. If a client wants their kitchen to feel less cold, chrome is probably not the way to go, despite its popularity.

Light the metal, rather than simply lighting up the room

As mentioned previously, polished metallic surfaces are great at reflecting light. This is not always a blessing – if your source of light is steep and direct, it will cause a large amount of glare, defeating the purpose of the more interesting texture that a polished or brushed metal provides. On the other hand, a shallow, grazing light will catch the detail in the hammering or brushing of the metal surface – which is likely why you chose it in the first place.

Practically speaking, this means that downlights should generally be avoided when it comes to rooms with metallic surfaces, or at least kept fairly far back. Wall-washing or grazing lights that are just low enough to skim across a metal surface without penetrating it are your best bet, followed by picture lights that can be positioned to do the same. Warm light bulbs flatter warmer metals, and cool white bulbs flatter cooler metals. Picking the wrong temperature bulb for your metal can lead to even the most spectacular metal surface feeling like it has been poorly chosen.

The 10% rule is your friend

A good rule of thumb for the amount of metal that should be incorporated into a space is the 60-30-10 rule for decorative color palettes. For every 60% of a color palette that is used as the dominant hue, 30% should be used as the secondary color, and 10% should be used as accent color. We use this as a baseline for all our projects to ensure that a room does not become visually weighted in one direction or another. As a general rule, we treat the elements in a room as decorative color palettes – metallics as the accent color, timber and upholstery as the dominant color, and concrete, plaster, and paint as the secondary color. This is why we tend to apply the 10% rule to metallics. Unless there is a particular reason to do otherwise, 10% is a good number to shoot for when incorporating metals as accents in a space.

In practical terms, that looks something like this; a metallic backsplash for your kitchen, with the rest of the room being timber and stone benching. A metallic interior design feature wall in a living room, with the rest of the space being upholstery, timber, and paint. Not an absolute rule, by any means, but a good starting point. If you start to see the use of metals in more than a handful of the elements that you can name when looking at a space, it is too much.

Solid metal offers beauty, but demands sacrifice

One pitfall that many planners tend to stumble over is the reality of solid metal sheet. It is heavy, expensive, and difficult to maintain. While the natural patina that develops on copper and brass can be desirable, many owners find themselves cleaning obsessively in an attempt to prevent it. With steel, one smudged fingerprint or few stray water droplets is enough to make a neat freak break out the Mr. Clean and microfiber cloths. Solid sheet metal is also prohibitively heavy and expensive when it comes to large formats (islands, feature walls), and one small dent or scratch will forever catch the owner’s eye.

With this in mind, many designers and clients alike start to look elsewhere for an alternative that offers some of the benefits of solid metal, without all the downsides.

Many manufacturers of high-pressure laminate have started to explore the potential of metal laminates, particularly in the realm of textured brushed surfaces, while also offering variations that mimic the appearance of polished metals. Laminate metal surfaces tend to behave more like timber when it comes to maintenance, while also possessing some of the visual interest of solid metal. This means fewer daily cleanings and fewer worries about long-term scratches and dents. It also means that the appearance is long-lasting – the brushed finish doesn’t dull with age, because it is not actually metal. When the surface of an island or reception desk is put into regular use, the advantages of HOMAPAL metal laminate start to become apparent.

Metal Laminates Get Their Due

Metal laminates do not replace solid metals, but rather serve as an excellent alternative to them in high-traffic areas. Islands in commercial and domestic kitchens are subject to constant abuse and must be cleaned and maintained regularly. Vanities in bathrooms undergo a similar set of circumstances on a daily basis. Office receptions suffer through the same constant barrage of bags, laptops, and coffee cups. Solid metal for any of these items leads to frequent cleaning and visible wear within 1-2 years. Metal laminates hold up to the same regular maintenance and last longer overall, while also offering more design flexibility. This includes the ability to incorporate larger scale metallic accents, such as accent walls and large format horizontal surfaces.
There is also an argument to be made, for clients that care about such things, that metal laminates are actually more sustainable than solid sheet metal.

Start small

If you are not sure that you, or the person you are working with, will actually enjoy having metal in your space, it is a good idea to not go all in from the get-go. Start with smaller accents, and move towards bigger gestures in increments.

Hardware is a great way to start experimenting with the properties of warm and cool metals, the benefits of matte vs. polished surfaces, and the importance of light in determining your overall success with the material, without breaking the bank.

Once you are satisfied with smaller metallic accents in warm vs. cool finishes, matte vs. polished surfaces, the next step is a horizontal surface in small format (backsplash, island benchtop).

By the time you are considering a large-scale feature wall, you should have an idea of how your material will react to your particular lighting conditions at particular times of day, which is something that a showroom sample will not tell you. An additional part of your house that you could focus one are the exterior features of a house.

Metal has more presence if it is restrained. Pick one family of finishes and apply it to only one surface in a room. Light it well enough that it always looks good, even at midnight. Limit it to 10% of the visual field, and metal will fulfill its role as a surface that reflects, absorbs, or redirects light without demanding your attention.

[All images were downloaded from unsplash]