I remember on a sunny January day, as my husband and I were driving home from our mini-moon (thus termed because we didn’t get to take our full honeymoon until summer–teacher schedule!), we were dreaming of all the possibilities for our house and how to turn it into a cozy and lovely home together.. Mind you, this home currently had no ceiling (boo asbestos!), no insulation, and one wall taken down to the studs… but a couple can dream, can’t they. How to add English charm to a builder’s grade home?
As we mentally looked past the structural work that needed to be done, we envisioned how we would combine our design aesthetics. In a moment of creative revelation while trying to describe said design aesthetic to Andrew, I dubbed my style “English Gentry Family Fallen on Hard Times,” and the name has stuck in our family ever since! That was almost three years ago.
But what does this aesthetic look like?
I want you to picture an established English family (in the 19th century, preferably) living in their manor house. They’ve spent generations curating and collecting; however, this family has recently lost a great deal of income (perhaps an entailment to a dreaded cousin like Mr. Collins from Pride and Prejudice). Maybe they’ve even had to move from their ancestral home to a pokey cottage, rustic farmhouse, or quaint vicarage (think the Dashwoods in Sense and Sensibility). They have beautiful pieces, but they are worn and well-loved. There is an air of frugality and finery.
Funnily enough, the pokey cottage or farmhouse that the Dashwoods dreaded would be a dream house for me! But I live in a 1960s builder’s grade home that was devoid of interior character when we first moved in. Instead of wishing away the blessing of my home or always hoping to find that dreamy century-old farmhouse, the Lord has been reorienting my heart and working with me on gratitude and contentment for where he has placed me in this present moment. After all, our homes are beautiful places of safety and love for our families, yet at the same time our homes are also meant to be missional: they are spaces where we share God’s love and his kingdom with friends, neighbors, and strangers. Wherever we can create spaces we love to be in and share with others.
For me, a house wouldn’t feel like home without a flair of English style! Here are ways I’ve designed my builder’s grade home to have that classic British charm… on a budget, no less!
How to Add English Charm to a Builder’s Grade Home
Collect real art (but while you’re waiting, use prints)
An art collection creates a curated, aged look in spaces; however, real art takes time to accumulate when you don’t have hundreds to spend. Even on Facebook Marketplace, auction sites, and estate sales, art can be pricey. To accomplish the collected feel that an art piece can give, I use a mixture of real paintings (usually acquired for $10-$50 secondhand) and free prints that I download from art museums (click HERE to see free art downloads that Janelle has found for us!).
A hack I use to make the art prints look more realistic is to print them matte or, if I want to splurge a little, I will send them to a shop and print them on canvas (Office Max and Staples will print to canvas). Mixing original paintings with prints is the budget-friendly way to fill your home with glorious art! The interplay of real antiques and affordable reprints (both in vintage/antique frames) helps a space to feel elevated and grounded in history. If you don’t have family heirlooms, try thrift stores, estate sales, garage sales, and auction websites. Your patience and frugality will likely pay off!
Add seasonal beauty by picking (or buying) flowers
What is more British than having a cottage or kitchen garden and being able to fill your home with fresh flowers? If you have your own garden or are able to have pots or raised beds in an apartment, you can hit both the finery and frugality of English style! In late winter and early spring, force bloom bulbs inside to get a taste of what awaits. Bringing the outside indoors helps a home to feel fresh and inviting. This bouquet was from a dear friend this past week.
One word: transferware!
Blue, green, red, purple, black, brown–transferware comes in a variety of colors and designs. Pick your favorite color, design, and shape and start collecting! Some transferware pieces can be really pricey, especially for rare patterns or types (such as soup tureens with lids); however, I have found groups of transferware at auction going for $10-$15 for several plates… a steal! I currently collect blue and white transferware (I am Janelle’s daughter-in-law, after all!) and green and white transferware. I hang my transferware plates on walls to add English charm, but I also use transferware as coasters, a cat food dish, decorative layers in design vignettes, and, most recently, a lovely place to put hand and dish soap on my kitchen island. So you can see that this is practical as well as beautiful!
Old books
I have always loved old books! Think about the decades or sometimes even centuries of history and life moments wrapped up in the covers of these tomes! An antique book collection gives off a learned yet grounded vibe to a room, and I believe that no room is complete without a stack of them. Use books to add height to side tables, place them under lamps or potted plants, or create a grouping on a shelf.
Pattern!
Here are two pattern combinations I’ve created that are pleasing to my eye! What do you think?
I am still learning the art of effectively and beautifully marrying varied patterns in my spaces. Mixing patterns creates visual interest and helps a home feel cozy and layered, as if this has been your ancestral house for centuries! Wallpaper, lampshades, throw pillows, quilts, rugs, and embroidery can all contribute to the aesthetic power of pattern, whether Great Aunt Margaret actually stitched that embroidery or not. Fabric and embroidery can be expensive! I have stitched my own embroidery (there are cheap kits on Amazon, or you can freestyle your own design! Pinterest has many ideas).
For curtains, I try to use natural fibers. I find that linen or cotton tablecloths work well and often are cheaper than their natural fiber curtain counterparts! Sew on pleat tape and voila! Curtains! I used Target to buy tablecloths for the curtains in my living room when I first moved into this house, and I loved them! I recently repurchased the same tablecloths after shrinking the first set in the wash a couple of weeks back (oops!). I found the quality of this round’s tablecloths to be disappointing, regrettably. I have used thrift stores, auction sites, 123stitch.com, and Quince to buy natural fiber fabrics for use around the house. They have reasonable prices!
For English style, be bold! Combine a plaid with a delicate floral with a gingham, with a Persian rug, all in one room. These patterns have different scales, and they can work together beautifully! Try to have ONE cohesive element that marries the patterns together. It could be a color, groupings of objects with certain patterns, intentional placements, etc.
Wood details
Finally, something I’ve been longing to do but have yet to do… wood accents to create character that newer homes often lack. Adding board and batten, beadboard, and moulding brings dimension and texture to bare walls, appearing as if the room has aged and settled in layers. As far as the budget goes, buying and painting high-quality wood can be expensive; yet, if we’re intentional about where we use these wood details, they can have an incredible impact for a reasonable cost. Board and batten in a kitchen provides a cottage look and more room to style objets d’art and paintings if you add a ledge! Add beadboard to a small bedroom with wallpaper above it to create a charming hideaway that Anne Shirley would swoon over. Creating craftsman moulding around windows and doors makes them appear substantial, well-crafted, and antique.
Let’s be real… Not all of us want to live like we’re from or live in homes from the 19th century (I’ll take the vote, thank you very much!), but I hope that these thoughts inspire you to get creative and bring beauty to where God has planted you–whatever your definition of beautiful is!
Tell Me More!
YOUR TURN…
How would you characterize your own individual style?
Peacefully Yours,
Faith
