“mannered, yet casual…comfortable…nameless of period…a ‘fantaisie’ expressing the personality of its owner.”
-John Fowler, c. 1937
Few interior design styles have endured as long, or as gracefully, as the English country house style. This style is comfortable, encourages using furniture from a variety of periods (usually made with dark woods) and expresses the personality of its owner often through their collections. Even if you don’t live in Blickling Hall (pictured above) you can still incorporate the three key pillars which are comfort, dark woods and collections into your home in an eco-friendly way.
English Comfort: Design That Invites You to Stay
As MacLachlan (1998) has noted, the English have a penchant for comfort. They achieve this comfort by making use of a lot of upholstered furniture, including foot stools and ottomans, cushioned window seats and breakfast nooks, accent pillows and throws. Most sofas will have loose cushions. Windows will almost always have drapery. Sometimes even the walls are upholstered!
The furniture is often amply proportioned, and it is always grouped to facilitate conversation (Musson, 2021). Even in a small living room, there may be a lot of furniture squeezed in to make sure there is a space for multiple activities in addition to conversation such as playing games, playing music, writing letters and reading. It is not unusual to have a fully upholstered chair in the bathroom.
Antiques and vintage pieces from a variety of periods are encouraged in the same room which is inherently eco-friendly (Shaw, 2021). Even mixing and matching from different countries is embraced. However, if you are purchasing furniture that was upholstered for the US market between 1976 and 2013 it will have unhealthy flame retardants in the cushions, so you’ll want to replace them with natural latex or CertiPUR cushions.
Dark Wood Furniture: A Centuries-Old English Tradition
Although there are exceptions, dark woods have generally been the choice of English furniture makers since the Queen Anne period (1702-1714). During that period walnut from France was admired for its close grain and magnificent warm tones. However, later in the 18th century a disease struck the French walnut trees and the English furniture makers turned to another dark wood, mahogany, from the Caribbean and Central America (MacLachlan, 1998).
Fortunately for those of us living in North America, domestic hardwoods such as walnut are considered eco-friendly because they are not currently endangered. For other new woods, such as mahogany, you’ll want to look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification to ensure the wood has been sustainably harvested and is not contributing to deforestation.
The one fairly consistent exception to the English preference for dark woods is in the kitchen. There they generally prefer lighter woods such as pine and/or painted woods. In North America Eastern White Pine is considered sustainable by the US Green Building Council.
Collections: Make Your Home Unmistakably Yours
The final element to the English country house style is to proudly display your collections whether they are pebbles, brass candlesticks or architectural drawings (MacLachlan, 1998). Collections make your home personal and expressive. The only rules in starting a collection are to follow your heart and group items together. The English rejoice in decorative items even if they are no longer used in modern life, such as dinner bells or a beloved grandmother’s inkwells.
Collections can adorn mantelpieces, kitchen shelves, hutches, windowsills, side tables and walls. Plates frequently serve as wall décor. Very small items, such as tiny shells, can be displayed in glass fronted cabinets to reduce the need for frequent dusting. Painting the back of a cabinet a strong color can be a very stylish statement (Shaw, 2021).
Bringing It All Together: Your Eco-Friendly English Home
The English country house style is more than a design trend. It’s an approach to living that values history, personality and comfort over fast furniture and throwaway décor. That makes it one of the most naturally sustainable interior design approaches available.
To summarize, the three keys to creating this style are to focus on meaningful collections, responsibly sourced dark wood furniture and a lot of upholstery!
Image Attribution
The South Drawing Room at Blickling Hall, Nadia MacKenzie, photo, National Trust.
References
MacLachlan, C. (1998). Bringing It Home: England. NY: Clarkson Potter.
Musson, J. (2021). Romantics & Classics: Style in the English Country House. NY: Rizzoli.
Shaw, R.B. (2021). Perfect English Style. London: Ryland Peters & Small.