Interior Design Hints And Tips For A Period Property

Generally the way you decorate your home is completely down to personal taste and personality, however, when it comes to a period property it’s important not to go overboard in order to retain some of its original character and charm. The traditional style is something that’s very exacting and if not done right your home will be neither here nor there in style terms.

The traditional style of a period property is considered typically English because of its grand scale. High ceilings, cornicing and multiple floors is what makes a period property what it is so it’s essential to leave them intact. When it comes to decorating though you’ve probably got a lot more free reign than you might think.

When you’re decorating a period property it’s important to consider colours and traditional styles and avoid the modern, minimalist look that’s so popular nowadays. Generally if you’re following a traditional style then although furniture will generally match there’s no huge focus on symmetry, which is at the centre of all design when decorating following a modern style.

The main features of traditional style are comfort and warmth; the decoration is generally pretty calm, nothing is out of place and furniture will generally match throughout a room. The furniture will generally look pretty outdated but it will be comfortable too. When decorating in a traditional style everything should have a place and everything should be in its place, you should also avoid bright, eclectic designs as these won’t fit well with the rest of your living space.

A lot of traditional furniture and accessories look as though they’re antiques, the truth is that the majority aren’t and are in fact great reproductions that have been bought for a much lower price than an antique original would have cost.

Dark woods and leather are hugely popular in traditional, period properties so avoid light materials such as plastic and glass and opt for large leather sofas and wooden staircases to finish off your traditional look.

Although dark woods and other materials are favoured for furniture the colours of the walls of a traditionally decorated home are generally pretty neutral - although you will see some exceptionally dark or light colours used every so often too.

In a traditionally decorated house you’ll tend to find that the furniture surrounds a central piece such as a coffee table or a fireplace so rather than having furniture placed around the edge of rooms it’s not uncommon to see furniture positioned in the middle of a room.

Traditional décor includes everything that makes you feel comfortable at any age and there’s nothing that would surprise you and there’s nothing showy about it, in fact it’s amazingly simple fashion.

Essentially if you want to decorate your home in keeping with its origins then you need to move away from the showy tastes of today and choose something much more plain, simple and unassuming to make visitors feel comfortable and relaxed rather than overwhelmed at the contents of your house.

In order to maintain the traditional style that she’d managed to create in her Victorian property Eve Simmons bought an oak stair case from stairshop.co.uk