Decorative metal cladding is bringing new life and vitality into interior and architectural design projects with vibrant metals like copper and brass. Interior wall cladding with copper provides a great opportunity for a high impact design upgrade of existing surfaces.
Copper has been used as a work surface and culinary material for thousands of years. These days most people are drawn to copper cladding for its beautiful warm lustre without even knowing of its secret antibacterial and germicidal qualities (more below). Brass, being an alloy of copper and zinc is also imbued with similarly healthy qualities.
Cladding modern kitchen units in copper has never been easier. Our ‘Retrofit Tray' design fits snugly over your existing or new doors and drawer fronts covering all external visible faces and edges for maximum effect. A copper splashback is a great way to add a highlight in this lustrous metal. Kitchen cladding with copper is a fast and practical way to add an ecologically sound surface with a long life and a warm glow to your project.
Simply send us the dimensions of your doors, drawer fronts, end panels, plinths, splash backs, work surfaces or walls that you would like to cover and we can provide you with easy fit covers made from solid copper and finished exactly to the sizes you require. If you send us the facias, worktops of other substrates we will even attach them for you. If you do not already have the substrates then we can provide you with the doors, drawer fronts, or worktops already clad with copper finished to your specification. Choose from a range of raw, polished or aged antique finishes to match, contrast or create copper or brass highlights within your existing scheme. Your copper cladding panels will be made with precision technology and then hand finished by craftsman. Despite all this care and attention to detail, the fitting of your copper kitchen details can be achieved in a matter of minutes for instant dramatic effect.
A Copper splash back is an increasingly popular way to add a small section of interior wall cladding in a decorative metal as a focus point or highlight. Your copper splashback can be created either in large single panels - with or without cut outs for sockets etc - or in a variety of tile patterns. Copper splashbacks can also be finished in our complete range of polishes and antique patinas and then sealed with waxes or lacquers depending on the degree of permanence required. Whilst a lacquer finish will provide a copper splashback with the highest degree of protection, it can sometimes be wiser to opt for a waxed finish in a working environment. We recommend that copper worktops are not lacquered. The best results for the hardest working surfaces are achieved by allowing the copper to evolve naturally and develop a history of your experiences with it. With only an occasional buff with a wax polish a copper worktop that endures all the spills and thrills of a family environment can develop a gorgeously deep and characterful lustre that only improves with age.
Our copper tile patterns can also be made in brass and steel and these materials can be mixed for even greater effect, especially with our geometric tile patterns. Copper tiles present a way to push the interest of the material even further by adding patterns and a sense of texture to the surface. The copper tile patterns can be shrunk of enlarged to suit the size of the space onto which they are placed.
Copper is an excellent material from which to have a worktop make. In fact, if you find the look of it appealing, it is virtually perfect. It is durable, having been used as a roofing materials for hundreds of years. It is extremely hygienic (see below), looks gorgeous and with very little care will continue to improve with age. So if you would like to add some drama and character to your kitchen, in a way that is as practical as it is attractive and economically viable then opt for a copper worktop.
Metal cladding is durable and of high status yet cost-efficient. It offers an aesthetic quality to feature walls by either direct application or being hung a short distance to create a greater depth. Either the whole wall can be covered with interior wall cladding or metal can be used to frame or highlight specific features with edgings and trims. The potential is limited only by the skills and imagination of the designer. When used creatively in concert with other materials, metal cladding can enhance the natural environment of exterior walls, interior walls, chimney breasts, wardrobe doors, as metal wall art and gorgeous vibrant and tactile embellishments. Architraves, work surfaces, splashbacks cupboards and drawers, tables, recesses, bulkheads, skirtings, dados, cornicing, doors, floors, fitted and individual pieces of furniture, can all be enhanced by metal cladding.
Our metal cladding panels are made specifically to suit the project for which they are destined and regardless of the size or shape of the wall they are to cover, can be cut into any pattern of interlocking shapes as creatively or formally as the project requires. A wide variety of textures and additional chemical treatments can be applied to personalise the colours and patterns of your interior wall cladding further
Whether a bright polished mirror finish is required to add a modern touch or a dark patinated and distressed antique textured finish is preferable to match original or bespoke reproduction period interior we can take any metal in any direction.
The metals we most recommend for decorative feature wall and interior wall cladding are brass sheet, copper sheet, bronze stainless steel and zinc. Our bespoke services include the fabrication and installation of copper sheets, zinc, steel & brass sheet. These are the materials we typically apply as interior wall cladding to enhance the impact of hotel receptions, retail establishments, restaurants, public buildings and private homes. Metal is such a versatile material to design and work with as it inspires both modernists and traditionalists with a timeless finish that can be regarded both as contemporary and historically appropriate to period environments even before it is can be tailored to meet individual needs. Copper sheet, and its alloys of brass and bronze have been used decoratively for thousands of years all over the world and are now experiencing a further resurgence in their popularity for use in interior decoration and wall cladding.
Copper is an element and was the first metal to be mined and processed by humans for practical and decorative purposes over 10,000 years ago. It??™s beauty durability, malleability and conducting capacities have lead to human development being intimately entwined with this mystical element ever since. And now almost every aspect of our daily lives are touched by it in some way. In appearance it lends the intense warmth and natural beauty of its colour to a broad spectrum of other metals with which it is alloyed. In its raw, untarnished state its strong and unmistakable pinkish-orange colour brightens all environments in which it is placed and can act as a strong and effective contrast to other rustic, modern or original features. Warm metallic finishes such as copper cladding contrast extremely well distressed woods, stone, concrete and plants in both masculine and feminine environments. Due to their proximity in appearance to that of precious metals such as gold; brass, bronze and copper are often regarded as glamorous metals whether they are used in small or large amounts. Copper sheet in particular can bring an unexpected twist to a design. Copper sheet when applied as copper cladding can add an element of warmth and elegance.
The kitchen is one of the rooms in a house that best lends itself to metal cladding. It is a room that traditionally has found itself populated with a wide variety of metal surfaces. This has mainly been for practical reasons. Metal can be cleaned easily, is non-porous, waterproof and in many cases stain proof. Kitchen cladding is also very popular as a kitchen naturally provides a large amount of flat surface areas, which can be clad. Kitchen cladding has seen resurgence in the use of decorative metals recently with an increase in the use of brass, copper and bronze. For a very long time the largest expanses of metal cladding in a kitchen were in stainless steel, seen on the doors of fridges and as splash backs. Now both those surfaces along with kitchen island units, kitchen cabinet doors, planters, decorative panels and feature walls include metal kitchen cladding not just as a practical solution but often just as a decorative one. Kitchen cladding that uses brass and copper is particularly popular at the moment. We have clad most surfaces available to be clad in a kitchen and can also offer frames and edging details to match, highlight and offset finishes that appear in the kitchen cladding. Variations of metal cladding The decorative sheets we supply and fit for interior and exterior metal cladding include a variety of forms: from flat sheets of metal for direct application to meshes, relieved, embossed, perforated, layered and/or reinforced panels. The surface of the metal itself can be mirror polished, dull polished (satin) and left to develop their own patina or antiqued or bronzed to accelerate the natural patination process by varying degrees by using different combinations and strengths of chemicals for different lengths of time we can make a sheet of copper or brass look 1 year old orange or 5 year old brown or 10 year old verdigris or 500 years old black. We can supply the materials for metal cladding to be fitted by others or a fully fitted service and are always willing and available to help and advise in either circumstance. These pictures show the high level of craftsmanship which we expect expected from our master craftsmen.
A house with a copper sheet wall is healthier than a house without a copper wall. Copper sheet is imbued with remarkable properties that make it lethal to the type of micro organisms that pose a threat to humans, making it an ideal material for interior cladding. Any dangerous fungi, germs, bacteria or viruses or other pathogens that are proving hard to contain that are accidentally brought into a home will be killed off almost immediately on contact with copper which posses no threat at all to humans.
Whilst it is looking stunning and acting as a germ exterminator a home, work or hospitality environment copper sheet used for interior cladding will also protect your brain from electro-magnetic and radio frequency interference and regulate the temperature of the property by absorbing and radiating heat evenly.
One of the most attractive features of copper cladding is that once you think you've got over the initial excitement of its existence, it will change its appearance, sometimes before your very eyes. Copper cladding has a deep lustre, which catches light in different ways depending on the angle at which the light strikes it. More so than interior cladding treated in more conventional ways a copper cladded wall will look different at different times of the day, especially where it is struck buy direct light sources such as spotlights, ambient lighting or the sun. Copper cladding brings a wall to life in another way too. Whilst it is a stable element that does not require painting and will not rust, it is subject to slow oxidisation and natural atmospheric patination. This means that it will change overtime. New copper cladding, (if not pre-patinated or antiqued) is a shiny pinkish colour this slowly fades through a darker orange to a dull brown. Occasional polishing can prevent halt this process and return the copper cladding towards its original state. Whilst it is always possible to strip off the oxidised layer to the bare copper or brass completely a more attractive appearance can be achieved by more gentle polishing that allows some of the atmospheric patination, and marks accumulated over time to remain to a degree to build up a highly attractive finish that belies the history of the copper cladding.
Highly polished copper cladding can be lacquered to remain that way but will not have the opportunity to take on the character that bare copper that gets the occasional wax polish does. The light colour and reflective nature of polished copper cladding mean that it reflects most of the light that reaches it making it appear to glow as it throws back the light from its surface subsequently imbued with its orangey hue. This all adds up to making copper sheet one of the most attractive materials for metal interior cladding.
Steel cladding in the form of stainless steel has been the ubiquitous finish for the walls of industrial and professional kitchens worldwide for over half a century. Steel cladding is however used in a variety of decorative applications. The most suitable steels for exterior cladding are stainless steel and Corten. Coreten oxidises to form a layer of orange rust that seals the surface m, protecting the metal from further degradation. Hot rolled steel has been popular for interior cladding of shops and hospitality venues for its industrial look for several years and is continuing to rise in popularity. Hot rolled steel cladding has the advantage of showing some of the history of its production on its surface. The majority of the surface of hot rolled steel cladding is a dark grey/blue colour but if the sheets of this material are carefully chosen then beautiful shades of blue and purple can also be seen. Hot rolled steel is still regarded as an industrial grade material so provides excellent value for steel cladding. Other types of steel cladding where a less industrial and more futuristic look is required, can be achieved with stainless steel that has been rolled with patterns or coloured with a wide variety of colours and processes.
We guarantee that you will be more than happy with our decorative grilles and outstanding levels of customer service. If you have any queries, please get in touch.
