Silver Adds Rich Touch To Home Furnishings

Interior designers have taken a shine to silver, both highly polished and brushed, and it is showing up in cutting-edge projects in decorating magazines.

“If gold was the color of the ‘80s, silver is the color of the ‘90s,” Dominique Browning of House & Garden said. “It is a little more discreet and restrained than gold. Yet, you feel you are in the presence of something rich.”

The high-end market includes a mirrored dressing table in an Art Deco style, a decorative Venetian wall mirror, a Capri silk fabric, and a mercury glass ball.

But there is plenty to choose from in mass-market retailing. At Pottery Barn stores, for example, there are a galvanized metal magazine rack, $59, and storage bins, $69 for four.

Laura Alber, catalog director for the Pottery Barn in San Francisco, said the items were adapted from accessories found in trendy boutiques.

For the walls, if a shade of gray or white won’t do it, Ralph Lauren can help. His Duchesse Satin paint includes seven silvery hues.

Linda Blair, an interior decorator in Scarsdale, N.Y., suggests putting a silver accent near a window or a lamp, or where it can reflect candlelight or firelight.

Traditionally, silver is used with cool colors such as blues and grays. But Blair likes to combine it with warm colors such as yellow, red and pink. Silver and white is a classic combination, but silver also is a fine foil for cream, beige and taupe.

For accessories, a mix of silver finishes creates interest. Blair groups family photos on a tabletop in frames of pewter and antique and shiny silver. Gold and silver are a good mix if the metals are dull rather than shiny.

Blair’s one caveat: “Don’t even think of covering an entire sofa with a shiny metallic fabric.”

Instead, cover an accent pillow or two and add a small silver table.

“There is a cheapness when you use too much,” she says.