Farmhouse Kitchen // Picking our Unlacquered Brass Hardware
THE FARMHOUSE
Brass was the metal of choice in most turn-of-the-century homes, at least the ones I’ve seen, and not surprisingly our Farmhouse is full of it. Doorknobs, sash locks, cabinet latches…it’s everywhere! And I’m so glad because it’s my favorite metal finish.
When it came time to pick the hardware for our Farmhouse kitchen renovation, there was no question it would be brass too. And to be sure the new brass ages well and patinas like the old brass, I picked out an unlacquered finish (also called living, unfinished, or raw).
Our Farmhouse kitchen hardware // sources listed below
So what exactly is unlacquered brass?
Unlacquered brass is brass that has no protective coating. Over time the brass will darken and patina and show wear. This living finish may not appeal to everyone, but it’s great for someone who likes to watch things age gracefully. If the patina isn’t to your liking, you can always use brass polish to return the hardware to it’s original shiny state. Unlacquered brass is otherwise relatively low maintenance.
Can you un-lacquer existing brass hardware?
You can! At least everything I’ve read online says you can. Check out this post and this one if you’d like to give it a try. And please, let me know how it goes!
Roundup of unlacquered brass cabinet hardware
It can be hard to find unlaquered brass hardware. Rejuvenation has the best selection that I’ve found (they have lots of other styles besides what I’ve included here), but if you dig deeper online, you can find unlacquered brass from Amazon and a few other sites. I rounded up some of my favorites below. All of these unlacquered brass styles would look great in a Farmhouse kitchen!
Sources // 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10
Real world examples
If you want to see unlacquered brass in action (aka in a real person’s kitchen), here are a few kitchens to check out:
Julie Blanner’s (using number 10 above)
Chris Loves Julia’s previous house (using number 3 above)
Emily Henderson’s (using the long version of number 7 above)
What do you think? Could you live with unlacquered brass in your own home? I’m not going to lie, I’m insanely excited to watch this beautiful hardware age in our kitchen over the years!