Much of the ‘gold’ and ‘black’ metal in hotels and shops today is neither gold nor painted. It is stainless steel with a PVD colour: a coating so thin you cannot feel it, and hard enough that it is usually the steel underneath that gives up first.
What PVD is
PVD stands for physical vapour deposition. Finished steel parts go into a vacuum chamber, a metal such as titanium or zirconium is turned to vapour, and it settles on the steel as a fine, very hard film. The colour comes from that film: gold, champagne, rose gold, bronze, copper, graphite, black.
The surface underneath shows through
The coating is thinner than a hair, so it copies whatever is under it. Mirror-polished steel comes out as mirror gold; brushed steel comes out as brushed gold. That is why the finish of the steel is decided first, and the colour second, and why a sample of both together is worth more than any colour chart.
What it does well
The colour is part of the surface, not a layer of paint on it, so it does not need lacquer, does not tarnish the way brass does, and keeps its tone for years in normal indoor use. It suits handles, trims, lift panels, screens and furniture frames that are touched every day.
What to know before choosing it
It is made in batches, and two batches can differ slightly in tone, so parts that sit side by side are best coated together. A scratch deep enough to reach the steel shows silver and cannot be touched up on site; the part is recoated. And the shape has to fit the chamber, so very large panels are planned in pieces from the start.
