People ask me all the time: "What’s this made of?"
They hold one of our birds in their hands, feel the weight of it, run a thumb along the edge. And then they ask, sometimes suspiciously, sometimes just curious:
"Is it gonna rust?"
Short answer?
It’ll develop a patina.
Long answer?
That’s the point.
Meet Corten Steel
Corten steel isn’t like the cheap stuff you get from big-box garden centres. It’s not spray-painted. It’s not coated in fake bronze or plastic sealant.
It’s real steel. The kind that forms a protective surface rust... called a patina... that saves the bird from rusting away.
Sounds odd, right? But it’s clever stuff. The patina isn’t a problem... it’s the solution.
Corten is what’s called a weathering steel. It’s designed to live outdoors. When it’s exposed to the elements, it forms a thin layer of surface rust that locks in place, creating a tough outer shield that protects the steel underneath.
Ha… think of it like a scab on a cut... ugly at first, but healing you up.
Why We Use It
When I started Metalbird, I wanted to make art that lasted. Not something you’d hang on the wall for a season, then toss in the bin when the paint peeled.
I wanted to make birds that could live outside for years. Birds that would stay put in the wind, fade naturally into their surroundings, and tell a story as they aged.
Corten was the obvious choice.
It’s the same stuff architects use for outdoor sculptures. You’ll find it on bridges, building facades, and art installations all over the world. Google it. It handles rain, snow, frost, baking sun... whatever the sky throws at it.
And instead of falling apart, the patina seals the steel, and it just gets better with time.
Rust That’s Meant to Be There
We’re used to thinking of rust as bad. Something that ruins your tools or eats the bottom out of your old Hilux.
But Corten’s surface rust... its patina... is different.
It’s meant to happen. And it’s meant to stay.
That rich, natural patina tells a story. It says: "I’ve been here a while."
It says: "I’m part of the landscape now."
It’s not shiny or showy. It’s not about perfection. It’s about weathering with grace.
Steel That Ages Like We Do
One of the reasons people connect with our birds is because they change over time... just like we do.
When you first put a Metalbird up in the garden, it’s clean and silver. After a few weeks in the weather, it starts to darken. A month or two later, it’s deep brown, with a protective patina that locks in place and keeps the bird strong.
It doesn’t stay static. It becomes part of the place it lives.
That’s life, isn’t it? None of us stay shiny and new. We age. We weather. We carry the marks of where we’ve been. And if we’re lucky, we get to do it gracefully.
Corten steel honours that process instead of fighting it.
Proudly Made Local
Every Metalbird is cut, shaped, and packaged locally. We’re not importing flat-packed silhouettes from some offshore factory.
We use NZ and Australian-made Corten steel for our New Zealand and Aussie birds. In the US, we use American-made steel. In the UK and Europe, we’ve got local suppliers too.
It costs us more to do it this way. But it means we get to:
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Support local steel producers
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Keep our carbon footprint lower
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Make sure we’re using top quality material, not the cheap stuff
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Stay hands-on, so we know exactly what’s going out the door
We could have gone the other way. We could have used pre-painted, pre-treated metal that stays looking new. But that wouldn’t have been honest. That wouldn’t have felt right.
Metalbird is about art that belongs outdoors. Art that weathers, but never weakens. That’s why every piece starts with Corten.
It Outlasts Trends
Garden art goes through fads. One year it’s solar-powered gnomes. The next it’s resin mushrooms or plastic butterflies on springs.
That stuff’s fine if you like it... but it usually ends up in landfill by the time the next trend rolls around.
Metalbirds? They’re not trendy. They’re timeless.
They develop a patina in place. They blend into the environment. They don’t fade, crack, or break after one winter.
People buy them as memorials, gifts, or markers of moments because they know the bird will still be there ten years from now... maybe a bit more weathered, but still standing.
It’s not about being flashy. It’s about being solid and real.
Is It Safe for Gardens?
One question we get a lot is:
"Does the rust hurt plants?"
Short answer: nope.
Corten steel is safe for gardens. The surface patina stays put and doesn’t leach nasty stuff into the soil. It just settles in, locking down, and lets the plants do their thing.
In fact, lots of people install our birds in veggie patches, flower beds, or beside memorial trees. They’re part of the landscape, not something that harms it.
Why We Love It
At the end of the day, Corten steel is like the birds we make... it’s got resilience built in.
It weathers. It changes. It lasts.
And that’s why we use it. Not because it’s easy. Not because it’s cheap. But because it tells a story of belonging, ageing, and staying put.
It outlasts trends. It outlasts packaging. It outlasts the shiny stuff that breaks before the season’s over.
A Metalbird in your garden will still be there, years from now. Patinaed? Yep. Worn in? Absolutely. But standing strong, holding space, and telling the story of a life lived outdoors.