Change a shiny gold finish to a beautiful antique brass patina with just a few simple steps. Using Rub n' Buff in layers with this technique will create a genuine-looking aged finish.
These gold bells and stars are now one of my very favorite Christmas ornaments.
If you are decorating your Christmas tree too, you might love this technique to elevate cheap Christmas ornaments. We also love our DIY Tree Topper glass glitter star that I made a few years ago. I even have several free printable Christmas ornaments.
When I found these gold bell ornaments, I loved them but I didn't love their shiny finish. I knew I wanted to tweak the finish a little bit to make them look more like genuine antique brass.
I had high hopes and was thrilled with the results. It honestly turned out better than I expected.
Supplies
- Item with Gold Finish (I used these ornaments and I love these ornaments too)
- This Gold Rub n' Buff
- This Black Rub n' Buff
- round sponge brushes
I really like this combination of colors and think it is a near perfect match for a realistic antique brass finish.
How to Change Shiny Gold to Antique Brass
It is really easy to change a shiny gold finish to a beautiful antique brass with just a few different steps:
- First, clean the surface of your gold item. I just rubbed the outside with a clean, dry towel.
- Squeeze a little dot of the gold Rub n' Buff onto a round sponge brush. If you prefer, you can squeeze some onto a square of wax paper and dab from there. I prefer just squeezing it directly onto my brush.
- Tap the brush all over the outside of the shiny gold surface. I like to dab somewhat haphazardly to let the finish be uneven and even let peeks of the gold surface shine through.
- Once finished with the gold, grab a clean round sponge brush. Tap a tiny bit of black Rub n' Buff onto it.
- Tap the black in areas of natural aging, unevenly. Blend and rub into the surface. Remove any excess with a clean paper towel.
I love the way they turned out and have plans to repeat this on other pieces in our home. I love the look of the perfect antique brass patina but it is so hard to find sometimes. It is nice to be able to recreate it whenever I need to.
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