Metal Accessories

Metal accessories at ADORNO cover the small objects that hold weight on a shelf or a table: bowls, trays, candle holders, bookends, vases, made by independent studios working in aluminum, steel, brass and chrome. Some are cast, some are hand-assembled from sheet or wire, and each one carries the particular sheen or patina of the metal it started as.

What defines a metal accessory

Metal holds a line that softer materials cannot. A bowl spun from aluminum keeps a sharp, even rim; a tray cut from steel stays flat under weight; a bookend cast in brass holds its edge for decades. This is why metal turns up so often in the smaller, harder-working objects in a room, the ones that get picked up, set down and moved between surfaces.

Color here tends to come from the metal itself rather than from paint: the warm yellow of brass, the cool gray of chrome, the matte darkness of patinated steel, sometimes a bronze or black finish applied over the base metal. Silver and black are the two most common tones, with pink, blue, emerald and dark red appearing where a studio has lacquered or anodized the surface.

Materials, finishes and techniques in the range

The metals shift with the season of work coming into the gallery, but a few recur. Brass and bronze age toward a warm patina with handling. Chrome and polished steel stay bright and reflective, showing fingerprints more readily than brushed finishes do. Aluminum, the most common metal here, sits lighter in the hand and resists corrosion well, which suits trays and bowls that see daily use.

• Techniques: sand casting, metal casting, metalwork, patination, hand assembly
• Finishes: polished, brushed, patinated, lacquered
• Editions: open editions alongside unique, one-off pieces

Where a piece is sold as a one-off, patination and hand assembly mean no two surfaces read exactly alike, since the metal has been worked or oxidized by hand rather than finished by machine. Open editions keep the same form and finish across a run, so the surface is more consistent from piece to piece.

How to choose a metal accessory

Scale matters more than it first seems with small metal objects: a tray or bowl that is too small reads as an afterthought, while one slightly larger than expected anchors a console or a dining table. Weight is part of the decision too, since cast metal pieces carry real heft and sit still on a shelf without sliding.

Finish should answer the room around it. Polished chrome and bright steel suit neo-industrial, futuristic or art deco interiors, where reflection and hard edges are already part of the language. Brushed brass and patinated bronze sit more easily in contemporary or boho chic rooms, where warmth and texture matter more than shine.

Metal accessories work across the house: a steel bowl in an entryway for keys, a brass tray on a bar cart, cast bookends in a study, a patinated vase in a bedroom. Because the material does not fade or soften with light the way wood or textile can, these pieces hold their place in a room over years, not just a season.

Caring for metal accessories

Most metal pieces need only a dry or barely damp cloth to stay clean. Polished chrome and steel show water spots, so drying after wiping keeps the surface even. Brass and bronze will darken naturally with air and handling; this patina can be left to develop or slowed with an occasional wax, but it should not be scrubbed off, since that strips the surface the studio intended.

For the full range of metal work on ADORNO, including lighting and furniture made the same way, see every metals piece on ADORNO or the wider group of accessories. Pieces finished in black sit together under black accessories, while objects grouped by room and use appear under metal decor. Those drawn to one-off surfaces can look through accessories made as unique pieces.