By John Linden
Interior design, furniture design, lover of all things chic in home decor.
If you’re looking for a great way to utilize fun textures and handmade aesthetics within your bedroom, living room or kitchen design, you may want to consider finding some metal.
Here are a reasons why metal wall decorations will improve your living space, no matter where you live.
Finding Metal Wall Decor
It’s not hard to find stylish metal wall art. Any thrift store or antique shop in your area should have some gems. If you’re not keen on antique shops or simply want something brand new, there are a bunch of websites that carry it. Here are 3 stores that we like.
1. Hobby Lobby
HL has a TON of metal signs, cutouts and other decorations for your home. They’ve got stuff for the kitchen, the porch, bedrooms and even the mancave.
Visit Hobby Lobby Online
2. Kirkland’s
Kirkland’s is another go-to place for all of your metal wall art needs. We love this vintage metal bike cut-out.
Go to Kirklands.com
3. Amazon
Honestly, you can never go wrong with Amazon. A lot of independent retailers distribute their goods through this site. There’s a lot to browse through here.
Go to Amazon
Where to Find Contemporary Metal Wall Art
Metal wall are typically comes in two varieties.
1. is wall decor that’s made for the outdoors by large retailers.
2. is metal wall art, which is typically made by metal artisans.
As you can guess, the second type is more custom, unique, and interesting that the first.
Over the years, I’ve worked with a few metal artisans that are worth mentioning.
Many of these studios work on custom projects only, so please be aware that their work is often much more expensive that off-the-shelf metal wall art.
Stefani and Co a metasmith in Michigan
Metalsmith in the NYC Area
Primarily lighting but also metal work in NYC
Why Metal Wall Decor?
Whether your decorations are made from copper, steel, bronze or aluminum, metal tends to come in beautifully muted colors that will look great with all of your furniture.
Bronze, for example, is usually a light blue-greenish color that compliments wooden chairs, floors and tables very nicely.
Aluminum is usually a shiny silver that looks fantastic in any room, highlighting the furniture it is placed next to.
Unlike a painting, which may clash with the other colors occurring in your room, metal tends to come in muted tones that go well with any design scheme.
No matter what the color pallet of your room is, there will be a metal wall decoration you’ll love.
When to Choose Metal Wall Decor
There is a reason why antique shops often specialize in selling items made from metal.
It looks great in any space! Whether you’re living on a farm or in a modern-style apartment building, you’ll be able to find a piece of metal decor that suits the existing style of your home.
Rural homeowners, after all, have always had a knack for using scrap metal like old weathervanes, wrought iron fencing and even tractor gears to create beautiful wall art.
City dwellers tend to prefer more minimal and modern-style wall pieces.
Large, flat panels of aged steel or polished aluminum can often be the perfect addition to the wall of an apartment.
We Love This DIY Abstraction
You don’t have to be a professional welder to make your own metal wall art.
Spellbinders actually make affordable die cut machines that you can use to cut thin sheets of metal into shapes of your choosing.
This piece, from Houseful of Handmade, was created with a few sheets of metal, a plywood panel, and some chestnut-colored lacquer.
The metal panels were cut into hexagonal shapes and arranged on the wood in a harmonious abstract pattern.
Their Platinum 6 model only costs around 75 bucks, too, and the possibilities are endless.
It’s the perfect starter tool for anyone who wants to start making their own metal wall art.
Vintage Metal Wall Decor
Metal wall decor is a lot easier to make than it might initially seem. Sure, it can be a bit heavier than wood but don’t let that stop you from using it to decorate.
This tile triptych piece was actually created using hollow aluminum tiles (which are much lighter than steel or bronze). The DIY-er who made them simply mounted a couple of chains to each one and strung those chains from a metal hanging rod. It looks fantastic and it’s very easy to assemble.
In this piece, the tiles have been painted with a few thin coats of latex paint. They’ve also had a layer of antiquing wax applied to them, which gives them that aged look. Wax is available at nearly every Home Depot or Lowe’s and is super easy to work with. If you’re into that vintage-style aesthetic, we strongly recommend a project like this.
RefinedInspirations Customized Artworks
The best thing about metal artwork is that it looks just as good inside as it does outside. You can display a metal piece over your couch to accent your rustic living room or hang one on your front door to accessorize your home’s exterior.
RefinedInspirations specializes in custom metal artworks for the home. Their pieces come in an endless variety of designs and styles. One of their specialties is metal address signs that you can hang on your front door or mount to your mailbox to let people know where you live. They also make customized name signs so that you can brandish your home with your family’s last name.
These signs don’t just look great, either. They’re also made with a fine powder coating to ensure that they survive in any climate.
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