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-----Converting old Brass items to Brushed Silver
I have several old brass pieces (an aftaba, very large candleholders, a couple of plates) that I would like to display above my kitchen cabinets in a new home. But everything is either stainless steel or brushed silver, so brass would not fit in.
Is there a way to change the look of brass to a brushed silver finish?
collector, home decorator - North Brunswick, NJ USA
July 18, 2008
July 19, 2008
Hi, Susan. You have four choices that I can think of.
- You can paint the items with one of the fancy metallic paints from Krylon or Rustoleum (but they will look painted).
- You can try a colored metallic wax like
Rub n Buff
⇦ on
eBay or
Amazon [affil link]
(but my understanding is that these are better at darkening metals than in lightening them).
- You can try to silver plate them yourself with a commercially available wipe-on or dipping solution (see our FAQ: Silver Plating at Home for an explanation of how this works and its limitations).
- You can do it right, which involves sending the pieces to a plating shop for silver plating.
Good luck & Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
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