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Patina of Zinc

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Oh how my neck aches whenever I return from a buying trip in France. The French always say you can tell a tourist, because they are always looking up. After 33 trips, you would think the wonder of it all, would have subsided. NOT! The windows, the roofs, gables, downspouts, over-door decorations and moldings make my heart flutter. I am having an affair of the heart, in France, a love affair with ZINC.

My eye is now trained to always be on the lookout for that soft pale grey milky patina that may present itself as a window frame, a roof finial, body bucket, or a small piece of ornamentation.

Zinc is just another one of those wonderful things that can only be found in Europe in it's natural state.

Europeans wanted a material that would last (a zinc roof lasts for 100 years) and something that would endure harsh weather conditions. Many European cathedrals and old buildings still have the original roofs.

Natural zinc has a shiny metallic appearance which after about 18 months, becomes dark grey and matte. With age it continues to patina and has a somewhat chalky appearance. Also, no need to worry should it get scratched, in time it will repair itself. It is also lightweight and was easy to mold into elegant designs and architectural shapes.

Zinc is also safe. It does not rust and is a very natural material. Your body also needs zinc, so there was no need to worry about drinking collected rain water.

Zinc is a wonderful interior design element, because it has texture and the muted grey colour works with any palette. It works to bring the outdoors in and has a pure look.
So many ways to use it. The next time you are looking for an embellishment over a door, fireplace, or interesting border, consider antique zinc.

I always have pieces of zinc. Trim, window frames, watering cans, flower pots and roof finials.

If you want to get creative, I also have a large selection of zinc fragments that are great to use to embellish window treatments, include in wall treatments, or to use above pictures.