By Jess McBride, Houzz
If you’re a fan of warm metal tones such as brass, bronze and especially copper, rose gold might be the right look for you. Rose gold introduces more than just a metallic sheen to your decor — its pinkish hue adds a soft touch that works equally well in modern and traditional settings. Here are a few of the ways you can introduce rose gold into your home.
First, what is rose gold? Copper could easily be confused for rose gold. Another warm-toned metal, copper happens to be the substance that makes rose gold appear, well, rosy. Pure gold ore emerges from the ground a brassy yellow, but it rarely makes its way into jewelry cases or fixtures in that form. It’s simply too malleable and soft to be of much functional use, even for jewelry. Most gold products are actually alloys, mixtures of metals whose chemical and structural properties reinforce one another and add strength and durability. Rose gold is an alloy containing a little silver and a lot of copper.
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Pair it with other metals. Because rose gold contains gold as its base metal, it forms an attractive alliance with golds and metallics of other hues. Here, we see rose-gold-colored bar stools across the aisle from a truer gold tabletop. Both are balanced by a canvas of white and sunlight so that their metallic sheen is the driving force of the space.
Pair it with cooler shades. Setting rose gold against a backdrop of gray keeps its pinkiness in check. And limiting it to small accent pieces like pillows and bowls means you won’t be locked in to the look if you tire of it.
Pop it against a black backdrop. Rose gold touches brighten up this darker color scheme. All the accents are strictly rose gold, which helps to reinforce the minimalist aesthetic while adding plenty of warmth to counterbalance the stark black and white.
Combine it with wood. The beauty of rose gold is that it also coordinates nicely with wood tones — in fact, almost any wood tone will do. When pairing the two, keep the rest of the decor light and toward the cooler end of the spectrum, for reasons already mentioned (notably, balance.) Especially appealing about this space, at least to a flower lover like me, is the way the pink blooms draw out the daintiness of the rose gold accent tables.
Sophisticated bling. Rose gold is potent stuff in decor, as are sequins; put them together and you’ve got an exercise in dramatic restraint. Here, a rose gold pillow is judiciously placed amid an otherwise monochromatic Champagne-inspired bedroom. It’s just enough, gracefully stopping short of too much.
Match it with metallic wallpaper. As perfectly placed as this rose gold chandelier is, it’s really the metallic wallpaper that steals the show. The look is a reminder to think beyond true metal finishes and ask where else you might sneak a little metallic shimmer into an unexpected place.
Break the rules. And finally, here’s an exception to the rule of using rose gold to accent cooler color palettes. This whole bedroom breathes luxury and glamour and is awash in nonmetallic shades of rose gold. Look to Farrow & Ball’s Calamine Pink or Middleton Pink for inspiration.
Rose gold has a long history in the jewelry market. now, it’s breaking into the home fashion world, and just about everything is offered in the shade: electronics, kitchen gadgets, flatware, barware, hardware, appliances, furniture, lighting fixtures, textiles and more. The combination of yellow gold alloyed with copper results in a warm pink hue. As Rebecca Mead of The New Yorker says, “[It’s] what yellow gold would look like if it suddenly suffered an embarrassment.”
Metal, by nature, is a strong statement in any room, so overdoing it can cause interior chaos. It can either steal the attention or be a softer finishing touch when paired with neutral-colored elements. The beauty of rose-colored metal is that it perfectly blends with any raw, natural material such as leather, marble or wood. Some suggested colors to match with rose gold and bring soft, earthy tones to your home are nudes, peaches, muted eggplants, army greens and ivory.
So how do you incorporate this trend into your home? It’s easy. Rose gold can complement a variety of design schemes, from rustic to modern to minimalist. If you’re not sure about adding rose gold to your home décor, it’s easy to try it out. Designers suggest using the metal in small doses around your home for a subtle pop. This can make the room look more sophisticated, rather than trendy or cluttered.
In the kitchen, try adding rose-gold hardware to your cabinets and incorporating the metal in accent pieces—a tea kettle, a French press, a toaster, a waste basket and a paper-towel holder. This will make a statement without making a space feel too formal. In the bedroom, opt for rose-gold-colored textiles and small pieces like picture frames, candles, clocks and wall art. In the living and dining rooms, choose furniture with rose-gold accents, like a coffee table from Anthropologie or bar cart from CB2. And be sure to focus on lighting; the shade looks especially nice in fixtures because of the warmth it spreads.
A rose-gold pendant light is great over a dining room table, and a lamp makes a great accent piece. When the holidays arrive, rose gold is an interesting element for centerpieces and table settings. You can seamlessly include rose-gold tones in your seasonal decorations, adding an extra touch of warmth. If your favorite pieces aren’t available in rose gold, you can go the DIY route by using metallic spray paint. It’s an easy solution for accent pieces while keeping your budget low.
“Rose gold for me has really become the metal of the moment,” says Josephine Kurtz Green, lead designer and showroom manager of the Kurtz Collection in Wilmington. “It’s a great metallic that we’re now seeing popping up everywhere in home décor. It’s easy to incorporate into any space, whether it’s an appliance or a pendant light fixture in your kitchen or a simple vase in your living room.
Green notes that rose gold is also a neutral. “It will really go with anything but adds a hint of color and interest. I love the reflective quality it has, and it also brings a note of warmth. It can make a big statement used sparingly and can be more of an unexpected metal to mix with your decorating.”
Just because rose gold is on trend doesn’t mean it isn’t timeless. Metals like silver, copper, brass and gold never go out of style, and they’re seasonally versatile. If you love the shade but aren’t willing to part with silver and gold, don’t worry—there’s no using one color, one material or one metal anymore. Mixing and matching gives a unique, chic look to your home. “Decorating is the pursuit of what makes a room more interesting, more harmonious,” says interior designer Nate Berkus. “What can you discover, unearth, combine?”
Done the right way, rose gold can create a calm, soft sense of opulence in any room.