The Best Design Tips For Mixing Metals In Bathroom

When I was working in retail, one of the questions I was asked the most came from the bathroom hardware section. It was all about mixing metals. “Shouldn’t all my fixtures and faucets be the same finish?” Many customers are afraid of mixing metals in their bathroom.

But mixing metals in your bathroom can work out amazingly. When you know how…

Mixing metals adds interest and a modern twist to the bathroom. It’s common nowadays to see a mixture of different metals in one space. But how do you go about deciding what metals work well together?

If you’ve been wanting to experiment with more than one finish in your bathroom, here are the best tips for mixing metals.

Mixing Metals In the Bathroom

The important part about mixing metals is the colour and undertone. As well as the finishes. These different factors will help in figuring out the right combination for your bathroom.

Metals & Finishes

Bathroom and kitchen hardware need to last. So invest in quality when you can. Plated hardware options will have a shorter life span. The most common finishes you’ll find for hardware in the bathroom and kitchen are:

Brass

Remember, when choosing a brass finish, there are many different finishes and colour ranges. A bright polished gold or antiqued. It can be very tricky to get an exact brass match when buying from different companies.

One polished brass finish will look different from another polished brass finish. When using the same brass finish, get all your brass fixtures from the same company. You can add in an aged or antiqued brass from a different manufacturer.

One type of brass finish from one company.

Chrome

Chrome metal is a popular finish for hardware and fixtures. It has a high reflective shine with a cool blue colour undertone to the metal. But picks up fingerprints easily and watermarks. However, it’s still a popular choice.

Nickel

A polished nickel can look very similar to chrome from a distance. But the main difference between chrome and nickel is the colour tone. Nickel has a warm yellow undertone to it. When you place a chrome and a polished nickel finish side by side, it is easier to tell them apart.

The textured finishes for nickel are usually polished, satin, or brushed.

Stainless Steel

Stainless steel hardware for the bathroom is great for a modern look. A grey silver colour finish that is durable and more resistant to staining than a chrome finish. A brushed steel finish gives more of an industrial look.

oil rubbed bronze

Oil rubbed bronze is more of a rustic and traditional style. It’s a warm-toned metal. Oil rubbed bronze is a dark brown to black finish, depending on the manufacturer.

Black

Matte black hardware is great as a neutral. Adding a black matte is a great contrast against a chrome, brass, or nickel. Or practically any other finish. It works well for a modern space or contemporary bathroom space.

Is It Ok To Mix Metals In The Bathroom?

Yes, mixing metals is more than ok! It just depends on what look you’re after. Mixing metals has been a strong trend in interiors for a while now. Because it does look good! It adds interest, depth, and helps get a high-end look for your space.

You just have to take into consideration the placement of your mixtures and hardware. Also, the size of your bathroom. And the style of fixtures and hardware you need to put in there.

The fixtures that need to be taken into consideration when mixing metals in the bathroom are: vanity faucets, plumbing fixtures, shower fixtures, mirrors, light sconces and pendants, cabinetry hardware, towel bars, and rings. And switch plates.

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How Many Metals Can You Mix In A Bathroom?

When mixing metals, it’s best to go for no more than three metals in the bathroom. For a smaller bathroom size, two metals are good. A larger bathroom can accommodate up to three finishes. That way, the bathroom design doesn’t get too busy. You want the bathroom to look visually interesting but not overwhelming.

The metal finishes you use should be repeated at a minimum of twice each.

Choosing Your Metals

Even if you’re choosing up to three different metals, there should be a more dominant metal. This will be the foundation of your design. Then choose one or two accent metals that will work well with your main metal and finish.

One thing about choosing your metals, it can be difficult to choose a finish from a screen. It’s always best to order a sample if possible. This is easier to do with hardware pulls and knobs.

With bigger items like mirrors and water faucets, you will have to wait until they are delivered or see them in person. So make sure you’re happy with the bigger items first. Then work around those to finish off your bathroom design.

The Best Tips: Mixing Metals

Here are the main tips to remember when mixing metals in your bathroom:

1. Choose A Dominant Metal

The dominant metal should be repeated in the space and should be the finish of the main focal point. This could be the mirror on the wall. Or the light pendant or the sink in the bathroom. It should be repeated throughout the space at least in two different places.

2. Accent Metal

Your accent metal should complement the dominant metal. Altogether, there should be a maximum of three finishes altogether including your dominant metal. Depending on the size of your space, you might only opt for two finishes instead of three.

3. Repeat the Metal Finishes

The metals need to be repeated. When adding in your accent metal finishes you should add it in at least two places. Only putting in your accent metal in one place will look like a mistake. Especially if you’re mixing only two metals.

Just make sure the dominant metal is repeated more than the accent metals.

A time you can get away with only using a finish once is with a centred vanity mirror. Plus while using three metal finishes throughout the bathroom. Then the wall mirror then becomes a focal point instead of looking like a mistake.

4. Contrasting Metals

Contrasting the metals is how you get the design to look intentional.

So the colours need to stand out against each other. For example, a black and a brass finish would work well. Whereas nickel and chrome are hard to tell apart from a distance. An oil-rubbed bronze with a matte black finish is too similar. Use one or the other.

Stay away from mixing two finishes together from the same family as well. Like satin nickel and polished nickel next to each other. A strong contrast between metals makes the design look elevated.

5. Finish Placement

The best way to pull off this trend is to have different metals sitting next to each other. If you have a polished chrome faucet for your sink vanity, then choose a different finish for the mirror hanging directly behind it.

Even though the same finish should be repeated, it should be spread apart from each other.

This same rule applies if you are using two finishes from the same family. Like using nickel and chrome. In this case, a third metal would be used to balance out the two finishes. Like a contrasting black matte or a brass. And the nickel and chrome finishes wouldn’t be placed next to each other.

6. Mixing Textures

In the same way, you should only stick to two or three metals; it is the same for mixing metal finishes. Don’t go for a different finish for every different metal. Stick to two finishes or sheens. For example, a matte and polished finish. Polished and brushed.

Which Finishes Should Match?

That being said, mixing your metals is definitely a go-ahead, there are some metal finishes that should match. The shower fixture and the sink faucets are a good pairing to match. Simply for unity in the design.

Items that have the same function should have the same finish.

It’s better if you can get these fixtures from the same company to ensure the metal finish is the exact same. Then you can work around which other fixtures you’d like to contrast.

Can You Mix Gold and Silver Together?

Gold and silver is a great contrast for mixing metals. Mixing gold and silver is going to give the bathroom space a luxurious look. A cool-toned and warm-toned metal together actually balances the space really well.

Even if gold and silver aren’t the look for you, just remember a warm metal and cool metal together will work well.

Mixing Finishes in a Small Bathroom

If you have a small bathroom, mixing a maximum of two metals is the best option.

You don’t have to mix metals in every space. Generally, the smaller the space, the more restraint for finishes and styles. You don’t want too many different things in a small space. It can be overwhelming even in a large bathroom space!

The Best Way to Start Mixing Bathroom Metals

1. Different Levels

An easy way to put different metals together in the bathroom is to look at the different levels in your bathroom. Dividing the space up this way is a good starting point and keeps things simple.

One metal finish for the bottom, which would be the hardware on the vanities. The next level up would be the faucets, which would be a different finish. Then the mirror has a different finish.

And repeat a finish already used for the light fixtures. Preferably, the same finish as the hardware on the vanities. This way, all the finishes are repeated, but not next to each other.

2. Decorative Fixtures

Another way to mix in your metals is to have the same metal for the faucets and the hardware on the drawers. The contrasting metal this time would be for the lighting fixtures and the mirror.

Mixing Metals on a Budget

Have you got the same finish throughout your bathroom? You want to add another metal to enhance your space but you’re not doing complete overhaul? Here’s one idea you could try.

The easiest way is to swap out your knobs and pulls on your vanities and cabinetry. If you want to go a step further, you can find some spray finishes for the hardware instead of swapping the knobs and pulls entirely. Make sure you seal the sprayed finish with a clear sealant coat.

If you have framed pictures in your bathroom, you could change the colour of the frames too.

Steer clear of spray paint for major pieces and plumbing features. Like light pendants, faucets, and shower fixtures. You don’t want it to look cheap.

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