Creating rooms from scratch

Creating Rooms from Scratch

I enjoy creating a room from scratch. However, when creating a room from scratch there need to be historical influences, otherwise it's not going to quite work. This is a difficult thing to do as you have to look at things without completely trying to copy them. You need to have an interpretation of a space.

My Approach

I like to have many shades and colours that I somehow make work. I almost make myself colour blind and not completely conscious of the colours. I don't allow myself to panic by being slightly colour blind. You want your rooms to look as if they happened overnight. If there is a slight clash, that is ok.

The History of Your Home

You need to be aware of your home, yet you shouldn't be too worried about it. I don't view an eighteenth-century home as only being lived in during the eighteenth century. Each home has gone through different scenarios during different periods. Different people would have added their mark to your home. Your home has been lived in by different people and generations and it needs to reflect that.

Your Assignment

Begin to research your home, finding out the following key questions:

• When was your house built?
• What was happening around the time it was built?
• What period features does it have?
• What period features did it have that have since been removed?

Discover More

If you want to learn more about your home and how old it might be, check out the following resources. You may find the following pages helpful if you are trying to discover how old your house is.

#### United Kingdom

• Check the records of the HM Land Registry.
• Examine the architectural style and characteristics of your properties.
• Consult your local library for records.
• Check Historic England's National Heritage List for England.
• Take a look at the survey attached to your mortgage, as it may provide you with information about the age of your home.
• A helpful website for determining the age of your house is How Old Is My House.
• You can find historic properties in England on the 1862 Act register.
• For those in Scotland, CANMORE provides access to national records.
• Ordnance Survey maps.

#### United States

• Ask your county registrar for the tract index for your home.
• Consult your local library and archives for census records.
• A site like the Historic American Building Survey can help you determine the year a house was built.

Architectural Periods

Tudor

1485 – 1560

Key characteristics: Steeply pitched gable roofs. Wooden beams on the outside of the house. Tall and narrow casement windows.

Areas with significant Tudor architecture include: East Anglia, Dorchester on Thames and Chilham (Kent).

Elizabethan, Jacobean & Stuart

1560 – 1713

Key characteristics: Flat-fronted, brick-built, elaborate fireplaces, large windows without arches.

Areas with significant Elizabethan, Jacobean & Stuart architecture include: Shropshire, Sevenoaks, Hertfordshire and Liverpool.

Georgian

1714 – 1790

Key characteristics: Terraced townhouses spanning two to four storeys. Fanlight (window) above the ground floor door. Built around garden squares.

Areas with significant Georgian architecture include: Bath, York, Edinburgh, Chichester, London.

Regency

1811 – 1820

Key characteristics: Tall and thin windows. There are delicate curves in the ironwork of the balconies.

Areas with significant regency architecture: Brighton and Hove (East Sussex), Victoria, Pimlico (London), Mayfair (London) and Cheltenham.

Victorian

1839 – 1901

Key characteristics: High ceilings and large windows. Fireplace in every room. Coloured brickwork.

Areas with significant Victorian architecture include: London, Bristol, Winchester, Liverpool, Weston-super-Mare & Portsmouth.

Edwardian

1900 – 1918

Key characteristics: Red brickwork. Parquet wood floors. Ornate decorative details and high ceilings. Herringbone oak flooring.

Areas with significant Edwardian architecture include: Surrey, Lewes, St Albans, Hampstead (London).

Arts & Crafts

1880 – 1914

Key characteristics: Asymmetry, use of stylised flowers, Celtic motifs. Smooth and sleek facade.

Areas with significant Arts & Crafts architecture include: Chipping Campden and Sapperton.

Art Deco

1918 – 1935

Key characteristics: Flat roof. Plain doors with a geometric fanlight. Smooth and sleek facade.

Areas with significant Art Deco architecture include: Manchester, Brighton, Leeds, Ascot, Hastings.

The 1930s – Semi

1918-1939

Key characteristics: Redbrick and Mock Tudor gables. The front room is of a hall and there is a second living room.

Areas with significant 1930s semis include: North London, Oxford, Surrey, Kent and West Yorkshire.

The 1950's Post-war House

1950s

Key characteristics: Built from concrete, wide windows, a concrete tiled roof, flat roofs, open plan fitted kitchens.

Areas with significant 1950s architecture include: Dagenham, Buckinghamshire and Sheffield.

The 1970s Terrace

1970s

Key characteristics: Light-filled spaces. Spacious gardens and garages.

Areas with significant 1970s architecture include: Somerset, Manchester and Lancashire.

The 1990s New Build

1990s

Key characteristics: Modern twist on traditional English cottage features. Largely semi-detached, lower ceilings, driveway and garages.

Areas with significant 1990s architecture: Hampshire, London, Devon and West Sussex.