Burnished beauty

A touch of shimmer and shine for a shabby chic look.

Texture is a vital part of any complete and cohesive interior design.

While textured surfaces and effects such as plasterwork, limewashing, natural wood, raw textiles and concrete staining have become popular ways to introduce variation in finish, it’s not all about touch. Visual texture is just as important, which is where shimmer and shine has an important part to play.

Adding a touch of metallic or another gleaming surface need not mean all-out bling and over-the-top ornate finishes (though it can, if that’s your cup of tea), it can mean a simple note of burnished sheen that reflects enough light to break up a monochrome colour palette or add a hint of luxury and glamour.

These softly burnished notes are also a beautiful way to honour, or re-create, a sense of ‘wear and care’ in your surfaces. Polished surfaces that speak to plenty of use, our current love of upcycling and repurposing favourite furniture pieces and the increasingly popular Japanese wabi sabi concept of honouring impermanence and imperfections.

A mix of flat finishes with metallic and gloss touches adds depth and visual interest to a simple colour palette. Rear wall painted in Resene Cloud, with headboard in a base of Resene Chicago topcoated in Resene FX Metallic Pure Pewter. Floor painted in Resene Half Cloud, light fitting in Resene Half Gravel, side table in a base of Resene Copyrite with Resene FX Metallic Proton topcoat, vase in Resene Proton, ball and DIY artwork in Resene Pure Pewter, bowl in Resene Cloudy and candlesticks in Resene Copyrite and Resene Pure Pewter. Duvet and matching pillowcases from Home Republic, charcoal pillowcases from Adairs, cushion from Freedom, metallic flowers from Flux Boutique. Project by Vanessa Nouwens, image by Bryce Carleton.

Working with shimmer

When it comes to experimenting with notes of shimmer and shine, Resene colour expert Amy Watkins suggests starting by considering how much light is available in your room, both natural and artificial, and let that guide the products and levels of shine you work with in that space.

“When any light hits a metallic or shiny surface, it is going to intensify. So, if you have bright open space you might want to choose a subtler shine product such as Resene FX Pearl Shimmer which offers a subtle, shimmering glazed finish.

Top tip: Resene FX Pearl Shimmer can be used over any paint colour to create a pearlescent effect. The effect will be more subtle over lighter colours.

“By comparison, in a darker hallway you could go for a bolder shine finish by painting the walls with Resene FX Metallic paint or one of the wallpapers from the Resene FX Metallic Wallpaper Collection.”

Amy suggests trying a metallic colour like Resene Burnished Orange for a warm copperised and subtle metallic finish that works well as a highlight with deep Resene Warmed Brown or dark charcoal Resene Fuscous Grey for autumnal cosiness.

“When mixing different textures with a shimmer look it’s important that the undertones of the colours relate. If you want to use a shade like Resene Burnished Orange in a room, look for textures that have a brown or slight terracotta undertone so it will complement the metallic feature,” Amy says.

Resene colour expert Meryl Southey says it’s also important to consider what ambiance you want your finished room to have before committing to a gloss or metallic scheme.

“Silver, for example, is an achromatic colour, so when paired with other achromatic colours such as black or white, it will create a sleek, elegant interior. Try a soft approach with shimmering grey Resene The Ritz paired with a charcoal such as Resene Night Magic and Resene Quarter White Pointer.”

The best advice for experimenting with shiny or metallic surfaces in your space is to treat them as highlights, at least initially, to make sure they don’t overpower the room, Amy says.

“Usually with a shimmer feature, it is just a feature. That means one or two elements of a room can have this shimmer effect with the rest of the space going to a regular paint finish, wallpaper or stained timber.”

Subtle gold flecks add authenticity and glamour to this marble-like paint design. Wall painted in Resene Sea Fog with painted topcoat colours in Resene Hermitage, Resene Moon Mist, Resene Quarter Sea Fog, Resene High Tea and Resene FX Metallic Gold all mixed with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium. Skirting painted in Resene Cod Grey, floor stain washed in Resene Colorwood Breathe Easy, cup in Resene High Tea, hooks in Resene Hermitage, small planter in Resene Moon Mist and book in Resene Ashanti. Matt, cushion, throw and bench from nest-direct.com,basket from H&M Home. Project by Moneuan Ryan, image by Bryce Carleton.

Go for gloss

Opting for a glossy finish to painted surfaces is another excellent way to play with touches of shimmer in your room. Upcycling a decor piece such as a vase, a chest of drawers, side table or an ornate picture frame can often be enough to reflect light and make the items pop, particularly in a monochrome room or when using a palette of layered, tonally similar neutrals.

Try a decor feature or door frames and trim in Resene Enamacryl or Resene Super Gloss tinted to Resene Sea Fog for a high-shine and durable finish, against walls in Resene SpaceCote Flat or Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen tinted to Resene Alabaster for a white-on-white finish that is sophisticated and glamorous.

Typically, lighter colours will have a higher Light Reflectance Value (LRV) than darker colours, which will also have an impact on the level of shine in your end result. You can find the LRV of Resene colours on Resene colour charts or in the online Resene colour library, www.resene.com/colour.

This doesn’t mean dark colours won’t give you enough shimmer in a gloss finish, it may just be more subtle. This can be a really effective way to break up darker monochrome spaces for the eye. For example, try walls in deep violet blue Resene Lucky Point in a low sheen finish for a luxurious suede-like finish then add a headboard or chest of drawers in a high-sheen version of the same shade. Add a splash of rich, orange-red Resene Lusty in a high gloss light fitting or picture frame for extra drama.

Top tip: Paints that are higher gloss are usually easier to clean that lower sheen paints, but they will more clearly show up any surface imperfections. Gloss levels will also change depending on the angle they’re viewed from as well as light levels.

Metallics in the right colour combinations add high-impact shimmer. Try the Resene FX Metallics wallpapers over larger areasas they will be less likely to show up imperfections in the surface. Back wall in Resene FX Metallics Wallpaper Deep Space, with right wall in Resene FX Metallics Wallpaper Blast Grey 3 and front left wall in Resene FX Metallics Wallpaper Magma. Floor stained in Resene Colorwood Bark, vase on table in Resene FX Metallic Magma and side table and jug in Resene FX Metallic Blast Grey 3. Dining suite and console from Bauhaus, artwork by Justine Summers from endemicworld. Project by Amber Armitage, image by Wendy Fenwick.

Look down

Floors can be a good place to experiment with some shimmer and burnishing. Get creative with a painted floor using Resene Walk-on tinted to your favourite shade. This satin finish of this product means you get a subtle gleam with a reduced risk of slipping. Use two colours to create a faux-tiled look or go for a block colour that offers dramatic contrast to your walls.

To get a beautiful, burnished gloss from your wood floors, stain them with golden tones of Resene Colorwood Natural, Resene Colorwood Dark Rimu or Resene Colorwood Oregon - depending on the wood type and natural colours of your floor. Resene ColorShop experts can help you choose the best shade for your floor type.

Once the stain is dry, finish your floors with Resene polyurethane that will add a beautiful gloss, semi-gloss or satin finish while also protecting the wood.

Instant burnishing

Burnished surfaces - those that look well worn, so hints of smoothness with subtle shine, or worn metallic layers peak through - can lend spaces a ‘lived-in luxury’ or shabby chic feel that is both inviting and comfortably glamorous.

In a perfect world, that look might come from years of living with luxury velvet and suede fabrics and ornately decorated walls, but for those who haven’t inherited an historic beloved family mansion, Resene wallpaper or Resene paint effects can create a similar effect.

Try the worn opulence of Resene Wallpaper Collection IF2-023, with the hints of a gold pattern glimpsed through a patina of faux aging. This works particularly well in a cosy study or bedroom.

For more a bolder modern shine effect try the teal faux tiles of Resene Wallpaper Collection M34901, which makes a particularly stunning headboard-style backdrop with walls tinted to Resene Deep Teal.

Visit your local Resene ColorShop for everything you need to bring burnished beauty into your home.