This is what happened to me recently when a friend came over to see us from Europe and was on the lookout for some home renovation ideas. The first thing that came to my mind was why on earth would someone from Italy wish to get ideas on home improvements from the UK when Italy has some of the most beautiful homes in the world. It seems that this particular friend had a few things in mind which she had seen on a previous visit and wished to look further into the matter.
The only problem was that she only had a vague idea of the area in which this particular antique shop was located and we had very little to go on. In the end we visited about nine shops selling restored antique furniture and fittings within a five mile radius and eventually found most of the things which she wanted, from a selection of the shops. The thing that really surprised me was the way that she knew in detail the various bits and pieces which I had never given a second thought to, such as which type of a brass hinge was on a door and which period the bath taps were from.
Apparently brass hinges are the best for doors because of their strength and resistance to erosion. You need to remember that the hinges of a door are the one thing that must be of good quality and structure because the whole weight of the door is supported on the brass hingesand since a door is used so frequently, if you skimp in this area, you will have trouble later with the door falling and ruining the wall also. You also need to ensure that you use the correct thickness of brass hinge for the weight of the door which it will be supporting and also remember that certain doors such as the front door and bathroom door will be used a lot more than the backdoor or the door to the guest room.
A brass hinge is not only sturdy, but it is attractive to look at and come in a variety of styles and finishes such as contemporary and period such as Victorian or antique look. The thing to remember with brass hinges or any type of brass hardware is that after a while it will lose the shine unless you make sure that you keep it polished regularly. This can be done with a soft cloth and a special liquid which will restore the original shine to the brass hinge, just by using a gentle polishing action.
