Many love the look of lovely patina-brown aged brass with its warm, golden-toasted glow.  

Although we carry alot of beautifully plated brass, many of the finishes themselves in a style exclusive to us, I have to say I do love the look of old patina brass, something that has aged over time.

We also carry some of the real deal, the old pieces.   On these pieces, nothing has been done to them, here...I want to assure you of that.  My heart SINGS when I get in an old warehouse or can privately buy from a collector a bunch of this old time-darkened brass, and I neither produce that gingerbread color here, nor do I alter it.   That's why it's always a little sad when I sell out of something special in the old gingerbread brass, as usually there will be no more of it.

 But IS there a way to achieve a beautiful old glow, even a little veridigris, on raw brass at home, the brass that's made from the old tooling from new brass sheet....without chemicals?

THERE IS.

Above in the picture are raw brass pieces that I have aged with dark vinegar, coarse sea salt and my oven.....aren't they pretty?

You can achieve this look very easily and in very little time:

First, take the brass and degrease it.   All stampings are made from raw sheet brass and the oil from the tooling that produced it may linger on it, making it a little oily.  THIS MUST BE REMOVED, but it's simple....just get a sinkful of hot soapy water and scrub with a brush.  Then rinse in hot clear water and dry.

Get a bowl and fill with a mix of about four parts dark vinegar to one  part coarse sea salt.  Table salt will do if you can't get some sea salt, but I prefer sea salt.

Soak well for at least an hour.   Best not to lay pieces on top of each other in the soak....so you might want to use a large glass baking dish.   Sometimes on large pieces it's good to check them and turn them once or twice, in the 'bath'.

Remove from the 'bath', shake off excess moisture and put them on a dark, ungreased baking sheet for about 20 minutes, in a 450 degree oven.

If they aren't dark enough to suit, submerge in the soaking solution again for about 10 minutes and bake again.

Do you like the look of a little veridigris?   I have found that if you take the pieces out of the oven, hot, and dunk them off in the solution again, shake them off and let them air dry, a lovely blue green patina will form.  I have achieved some lovely results especially with filigree, this way.

When dry and cool, you can buff them out a little with a soft rag but....be careful not to remove any of your patina...unless you want to!

Then seal the pieces front and back with a clear, matte lacquer sealer just as you will find in any crafts or hardware store.  Don't use gloss sealer unless you want a shiny look, as it will sort of destroy the vintage appearance.   Remember!  YOU HAVE TO SEAL BOTH THE FRONT and the BACK of the piece.

Of course this lacquer is usually aerosol-based and you need to apply it with adequate ventilation.

Here are a few more ideas on what you can use to patina brass:

A mix of Miracle Gro, water and Novacan black from a stained glass supply can provide a fabulous and quick patina.   This is not non-toxic, however.

JAX patina chemicals work amazingly well, and quickly.   These are toxic chemicals, though, so you must read and follow the directions carefully.

Liver of sulphur.....a pinch in warm water.    Degrease and heat the brass, then dip in this solution until you get the look you want.   This is not non-toxic, but it is less so than the two above.

ACRYLIC PAINTS and PAINT PENS...who would have thought!  You can achieve amazing results if you experiment.  To enhance your look, you might try products like Rub and Buff, or Renaissance Wax.

Do you have a little dremel tool with a buff, or a buffer in your workshop?   A little tripoli on the buff, worked into raw brass that's been degreased will shine the high spots in the piece, and antique the crevices;  it's really pretty.

ALL OF THE ABOVE METHODS MUST BE SEALED.   The fastest way is the matte can lacquer.   If you are doing alot of the material, do it outside, with exhaust, or better yet in a little paint tent that you can construct out of a box or old newspaper.  Wear a respirator, you don't want that sealer in your lungs.

I just haven't found a paint-on sealant yet that I really like that keeps the matte, vintage look, so I prefer the can.

We sell LOTS of wonderful raw brass made from vintage tooling, the same way as it's been made in the trade for years.   It's less expensive than plated product and our is always a bargain.   What is so wonderful about finishing it yourself is that you can make the finish TOTALLY your own, you can play around with several methods and find your own steps in finishing your brass pieces to a perfect turn UNIQUE TO YOU!

HAVE FUN!

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