I would give it a horizontal brushed finish (or machine swirled) and
then have it etched and thick clear anodized. The etch time should be
about 3 minutes to give a somewhat matte finish. On 6061 I would say
to use a thin (.0005"-.0010") hard anodize which would give a nice
medium gray color. On 2024 the results of hard anodize are less
consistant so I recommend a thick standard anodize instead. At a
thickness of .0005"+ the color will coume out a light gray with some
goldish undertones. I think it looks good, but if you don't like it
you still have about the best paint base you could imagine.