The word "Victorian" often arouses images of beautiful ladies being courted by smartly-dressed men. Of tea parties, croquet, lacey gloves, carefree afternoons in a carriage, evening balls, big hats, fantastically ornate costumes. Of mostly mauves, creams, deep light blues, and some pale greens all intertwined in a vision of sugar-sweet confections. Of lovely angels with long hair, puffy, round Santa Claus’s, fat little pink-cheeked cherubs. Of bay windows, ornate lace trim on houses, huge balconies and patios, trellis’s, gazebos, rose gardens. Most of all, the very idea of "Victorian" today excites a feeling of romance, of simpler times, of a better life, of honest respect for women and for men. It is almost as though the idea of Victorian is like a pillowy cloud that covers all things bad or ugly with this haze of beautiful perfection.
Victorian Design
Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901, and during that time designers drew from the many influences around them, including history, nature, geometry, theory and personal inspiration, with the end result often being a stunning visual effect. Today, all over the United States, many homes from the Victorian architectural period still stand and are considered among the most beautiful in almost any community. The irony of the Victorian era is that regardless of significant advances in technology, interior designers and homeowners consistently looked to the past for inspiration. You can recreate the stunning style of the Victorian period by following these design basics:
Start With Color
Color is the framework of your new Victorian design, says show host Sherry Ruggieri. There are specific colors in the Victorian color palette and they're the basis for everything you put in your decor later. The vibrant colors are one of the more easily identifiable exterior features of Victorian architecture today. Taking a look on the inside during the first half of the Victorian era, you would find light colored walls except for dining rooms and libraries. The second half gave way to much more vibrant, rich colors such as vivid greens and mahogany brown typically found in bedrooms. During this period, the general feeling was that deep, rich colors enhanced the importance of a room. Create this same mood in your home by beginning with these influential colors.
Bring on the Patterns
Victorian homeowners try to cover every available surface . Think of the complex wall treatments the Victorians loved, then add patterns and textures to the furniture, floor and ceiling. Adding texture to a room was achieved through the use of wallpaper, stenciling and specialist paint finishes such as sponging, marbleizing and spattering. In most cases it is very difficult to distinguish wallpaper from the creative use of textured paint. In the early and mid-Victorian period, complex scrolled floral patterns were favored and primary backgrounds of red, blue and green overprinted with shades of cream and tan were very common. Later in the 19th century, Gothic inspired trellises painted in rich earth tones with detailed leaf and floral work were often used throughout the home. Embossed paper was used on ceilings and friezes in order to offset complicated patterned and colored papers. In many cases the chairs were covered in fabric to match the wallpaper.
Plan for Excess
Victoriana is known for elaborate decorations and motifs, including large sweeping pieces with ornate designs, heavy fabric with intricate patterns, stained glass, china, flowers and lace. Whatever you plan, plan on doing it in exaggerated lengths. A typical Victorian home consisted of smooth plastered walls often in light colors, marble fireplaces usually with heavy gold mirrors above, detailed ceiling cornices, sophisticated pediments over doors, frescoed ceilings and chandeliers. The average drawing room during this period was usually crammed full of furniture, fabrics were used in abundance and every available surface was overflowing with knickknacks. Such displays were a means of showing off their newfound cultural interests, prosperity and status. They were also in accord with the fashionable notion that bareness in a room was in poor taste.
Embrace the Mood
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The Victorian era is all about romanticism, rich dramatic colors, smooth velvety textures and elegant sensuous carvings in dark wood. These are the hallmark of the time and the mood. Furniture was usually made in the darkest woods available, in contrast with the taste of the early years of the 18th century, when satinwood was in style and a light finish for mahogany was trendy. Dark mahogany with a reddish tinge, bog oak, black walnut and rosewood were all used, while the increasing craze for antique furniture inspired makers to stain and darken oak to model the rich, deep hue of the surviving woodwork from the 16th and 17th centuries. Much of the furniture was classic in effect and decorated with carvings of flowers, fruit, animals, remarkable creatures and human figures.
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