Posted by Gardening | Posted in Garden Statues and Yard Art | Posted on 10-10-2011
How 2 renovate an Edwardian home with contemporary interior design colours
This article will explain how to recognise some Edwardian interior design features. Lists of the colours and detailing used in Edwardian homes will be included. Some tips on how contemporary interior design selections can be made to enhance yet keep the integrity of the house intact will be discussed.
Firstly determine design features
The first thing is to determine the interior design features of the house. Many houses are said to be a certain style. But when the details of the house are surveyed they often reveal a mix of styles. This is especially so in residential interior design.
Edwardian homes were first created in the early 1900s in England. King Edward took the English throne in 1901. He had a short reign of nine years. The style was influenced by the Queen Anne a style of architecture and interior decoration popular in England from about 1700 to 1720. The style became popular around the world. The US, Australia and other countries used the features of Queen Anne to create a number of interior design variations of the style.
How to recognise the exterior features of the Edwardian house
Walls
- Usually of red faced brick
Roof
- Slate with terracotta edging or Marseilles terracotta tiles
- In country areas of Australia corrugated iron roofing was used and painted a tile red colour
- Broken roof lines with many gables
Chimney
- Red brick chimney stacks with brick corbels and motifs
- Terracotta chimney pot with hat
Paint colours
- Shades of green or cream to buff were the most popular outdoor colour schemes
- Mid buff and beige was also a common colour combination during this era
- Deep Indian Red was used on window sills
Doors
- Often had many panels painted in red oxide or forest green with
- Asymmetrical sidelights
Windows
- Double Hung
- Leadlight windows
- Colourful stained glass in Art Nouveau patterns
- Window sashes were often painted cream
Gutters
- Gutters and down pipes were painted in darker colours
Veranda
- Floors were either cement render, encaustic tiles or ttessellated tiles
- Veranda brackets were usually painted off white
The interior design features of the Edwardian bathroom
The bathrooms of the Edwardian era were usually simple affairs. Walls were tiled with small white rectangular tiles laid in a bricklike pattern. Floor tiles were often white mosaic tiles, with feature tiles of black. You can find an image of an example of an Edwardian bathroom at the Creative Buzzing
A list of Edwardian bathroom features
Floor
- Small mosaic white tiles
- Tessellated tiles in octagonal and other shapes in a number of different patterns
- Black and white tiles in checker board patterns
- Marble
Walls
- Small white rectangular tiles in brick like fashion
Vanity
- Timber cabinets or wash basins on legs
- Sink White porcelain or enamelled cast iron
Bath
- White porcelain or enamelled cast iron often free standing
WC
- Toilets were placed in separate room
- Timber seats and cisterns or decorative cast iron cisterns
Shower
- Attached above bath with semi circular surround
- Separate shower area place on flat porcelain or marble slab with water proof curtain
- Huge shower rose and semicircular pierced piping
- Heated towel rails
The wall above the tiling, the cornice, ceiling and joinery were usually painted white. Sometimes a dado placed about 2100mm from the floor was used and painted in the BS381 107 colour called strong blue or harbor blue.
Renovating the Edwardian bathroom
When working on a heritage building it is best to honor the integrity of the house. This can be done while at the same time bringing an up to the minute interior design look. Edwardian bathrooms tended to be small. So using white wall tiles in a rectangular shape in a larger size would work well with the style of the original bathroom yet have a contemporary twist. The colour of the floor tiles and feature wall tiles could pick up the colours of any existing stained glassed windows.
Using feature wall tiles in horizontal lines and painting the ceiling a darker colour would make the small bathroom with high ceilings appear wider. Painting all the joinery and cabinet doors white, a white bath and a white sink would also add to this illusion of more space. Matching the colour of the bench top to the darker floor tile will also create another horizontal line. Some sample boards have been created and can be viewed on the Creative Buzzing
Renovating Edwardian bedrooms
The interior design in bedrooms during the Edwardian era often had floral stripe wall papers in green, blue and pink. For example Coles & Son's Rose du Barri a floral stripe pattern in shades of green, blue and pink was popular. Also popular were the Cole's Moirés wallpapers.
Interior decorators during the Edwardian era painted walls in the bedroom in a number of different colours; pink beige or apricot or milkshake or arctic blue. Magnolia was often used on the mouldings as was green with the cornice and ceiling painted white. The joinery in the bedrooms could also be painted a light bronze green or grey green or pale cream. Sometimes these surfaces were French polished or varnished. Listed below are some British Standard colours used during this era.
Bedrooms colours
Walls
- Pink Beige
- Apricot
- Milkshake
- Arctic blue
Feature Mouldings
- Magnolia
Cornice
- White
Ceiling
- White
Joinery
- Light Bronze Green
- Grey Green
- Pale Cream
- French polish
- Varnish
Edwardian living rooms
Living areas during the Edwardian era Interior doors had four or more panels with high lock rails and stained glass fanlights were often placed above interior doors. Skirting boards were deep and moulded. Fireplaces had cast iron grates with tiled panels and timber or marble chimneypieces. Mirrored over mantels were often placed over timber chimney pieces.
Some typical colours
- Wedgewood Blue
- Magnolia
- Service brown
- Buff
- Blue grey
- Buttermilk
- Off White
- Sky (Grey green)
- Vanilla (Pink Beige)
- Quarry Grey (Green)
- French Grey
Interior decoration during the Edwardian era saw the dado disappear while the picture rail remained in fashion. A frieze was often used with the body of the wall decorated with wallpaper. Papers were often in the Art Nouveau style. Sometimes distemper was used on the body of the wall. Stenciling was going out of fashion but still used. Plaster paneled or pressed metal ceilings in subdued colours were the vogue. However joinery made of pine was often painted vanished or stained in darker colours. The Edwardian house appeared light, fresh and simple compared with the fussy bold dark coloured highly patterned interior designs of Victorian times.
About the Author
Rosena works as an interior design, retail and visual merchandising tutor for Australian College QED. She I has also worked for the Retail Traders Association of Victoria as a Retail Trainer. Rosena has a Diploma in Interior Design, Post Graduate Diploma in Public and Community Health and is a qualified trainer. She also works as an interior design consultant, creates designer art work and is the Australian agent of Sample Board a new cool FREE digital mood board editor for the creative industries.
Antique French Art Nouveau bronze floral design inkwell
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