Modern Manor House-The New Lifestyle Design
I have seen many trends in design come and go and I have always felt that trying to decorate your home to follow a “trend” is fruitless. Inevitability that style will fade and go away and then you’re left with a bunch of unwanted pieces you now have to throw away or sell.
Modern Manor House is really and truly a fabulous movement. It’s actually more of a slide into a classy traditional home style. A “grown up’ look if you will.
What is it? A modern take on an English or French country home. So Think of a large home on a large parcel of land. Usually several thousand sqft in size. A manor house has lush gardens and classic interiors. Paneled wood walls, antique rugs, Classic furniture & Art. Think topiaries, urns, leather chesterfield sofas and chairs, marble top with ormolu furniture pieces, classic federal antiques, English scrub pine in non-formal areas, black and white checkered floors, warm tones on the walls and of course we can’t discuss modern manor house style without adding Restoration Hardware as a source. RH really has amazing pieces. They create their stores in such a way that they tell a story and transport you to another place. They usually choose some amazing spaces to use as their show rooms so if you have an opportunity to visit a restoration hardware show room. I highly advise it. The ideas you can gain from simply visiting the store are endless.
The modern manor house style is Indicative of an old English /French/Italian home with a modern twist on it. This style, I believe will be one that makes us feel more comfortable, more at home. It provides that old money feel of collected and inherited pieces passed down through generations with some modern pieces and textures mixed about.
So how do you get a look?
Well, ideally, you would like a several thousand square-foot large home in a château style set upon a sprawling 20 acre estate… ok..um yeah most of us don’t have that.. so the next best thing? Turning to what you don’t have for inspiration on what you want.. Research the style and find a home style that’s similar to yours for your inspiration. Walking up to a Home that’s done in a modern manor house style would consist of seeing potentially some deconstructed granite or marble walkways, with large steppingstones, perfectly manicured shrubbery, terra-cotta planters and pots, large in scale. White, or a stone home even a brick home with black trim accents and brass hardware detail. Of course you need urns! Lots of urns! So you can pick up cast-iron antique ones and several shops or online or you could also cheat by going to Home Depot or Lowe’s, and purchasing some black plastic ones. These can be faux painted to give the illusion of age. Or left alone as is. The idea is to give you the look on a budget without having to spend your children’s college fund.
You can purchase topiary plants that are live at Home Depot or Lowe’s. You may even be able to find them at your local garden center. However, they will be costly. Topiaries are an expense but in my opinion, they are 100% worth it. Of course if you would rather not purchase a real plant, you can always make your own topiary. Making a topiary is super simple you can go on Amazon and purchase a large 12 inch sphere of a moss ball or a boxwood ball or Maybe your local Home decor store has some. Check the clearance isles of HomeGoods or Marshalls or HomeSense. Sometimes the stores can have leftover spring decor utilizing the topiary form on discount. All we really need here is the ball. Of course if you happen to luck into finding a complete topiary in the correct size, then kudos, grab it and take it home! Then you simply need a pot, some expanding foam, and a stick. Any stick will do as long as it’s pretty straight. What I like to do is take the sphere, stick it on top of the stick, and then place that inside a container like an old used plastic flower pot, and then Fill that flower pot with a little bit of gravel on the bottom and then surround the rest of the stick with the expanding foam. Once the expanding foam hardens, it will continue to keep the stick in place and then you can set that entire thing down inside your urn, and fill in with like gravel or even Spanish moss whatever you prefer.
Topiary or boxwood plants expertly manicured, just use elegance and stately style outside of the home or anywhere in your garden. You will instantly elevate the front of your home by adding one on either side of your front door, and if you happen to be lucky enough to have double front doors oh girl, you’ve got gold!
The next thing we need to think about after you get past the front door, which, by the way, if we’re going full manor, house would be fabulous in a gloss black finish :) just sayin…
Colors are the next thing we need to think about in manor house style. You will see a lot of creamy Interiors mix with warm wood tones. Greens, Browns, Taupes for some rooms, and for others, there will be even warmer colors on the walls where the woodwork in the form of door jams, doors and baseboard moldings, as well as crowns will be painted in the same color as the wall or even in a black or mocha black color.
Go stand in the room you’re thinking of redoing. Let the room tell you what it needs. I know this sounds corny, but it works. Stand in the center of the room look around the room, look at the walls look at the way the traffic flows through the room. What do you need in the space? What is the space lacking? Is there an area where some shelving would make sense? Do you need more storage? See if there’s any areas that require more lighting or a mirror, perhaps to draw light from the other side of the room? What kind of rug should the room have? Is it a high traffic area? Do you have children? Do you have husbands? Lol , every room can speak to you if you listen. Start with a base and go from there. If you have a rug, you absolutely love and want to use in the space you’re working in look at the colors of the rug and then choose your wall paint next. If you do not have a rug yet then choose your wall paint first. You want to start with a good base and build out from there. Create a mood board or gather together images and place them all together on a tray pick out the ones you like the best and see how you can apply those to your space.
Here are a few colors I just love….Great colors are Behr Sculpters clay and Black Mocha Benjamin Moore has White Dove and Revere pewter which look amazing together and Farrow and Ball Cornforth white and Ammonite, Dimpse & Slipper Satin, Off Black and Railings I mean really any Farow and Ball color, they are just the top of the top as far as I am concerned for paint.
On a Side note on the subject of colors….
Most decorators subscribe to the 60 30 10 process which is 60% of your room would be the primary color 30% would be a secondary color And 10% would be an accent color. Now this 10% accent color can be brought in in the form of furniture. Using this method, you will achieve a well-balanced room. Just an FYI
This style is where luxe kitchens shine with statement marble and classic cabinetry and gold or brass shelving hardware or no shelves at all. It’s about a clean and refined kitchen. On the walls in formal areas, even in hallways, think of the board and batten or framed out areas on the wall using decorative moldings and trims. All painted the same color as the wall. Think of wall murals or statement wallpaper.
The accessories in the room are a mix of both modern and classic antique pieces. There are many different ways that you can decorate in the modern manor house style. Truthfully, the main goal of this style is to feel homey, but curated…. And also to be comfortable. This style is all about elevating your space while keeping it feeling like a home. It is some thing that will last. Whether you go dark or light or a mix of both it is a classy transcending style that will last.
I think that it’s incredibly easy to create some amazing style in your home without spending a fortune. There are so many hacks you can do to achieve any look without breaking the bank. You have to set a budget and figure out within that budget What are the most important things to you. What will give you the biggest impact? That’s where you should start.
For instance I always tell my clients when we’re working on the kitchen do not skimp on the hard surfaces. It is not worth it to try to save a few bucks on the solid surfaces. The bulk of your budget on the kitchen should really be in your cabinets and your countertops. The next should be the flooring, then the appliances, then the lighting then the hardware. I like to think of my kitchen like a really well put together outfit. If the base of the outfit doesn’t look right, it doesn’t matter how much jewelry you put on... so get your base right. It’s a lot easier to go out and source vintage or antique, lighting or go to outlet centers to find a one off fabulous light fixture for your home then it is to go try and piece together make two items. If you’re going to go big and redo, a kitchen, then go big. After all kitchens and bathrooms will sell a home.
So these are just my ideas and thoughts on The Modern Manor House style of decorating. Add to it your own flair or take away key points that work for you and your home. Remember your house is where you live not where anyone else lives so make it your own. Do what makes you happy and don’t follow trends because you don’t know what else to do. Sit down, think about what your needs are, think about what you love and you can create your own modern manor house whether you have an actual manor house or you have an 800 square-foot home…Home is home no matter the size
Now go out there and make some topiaries, clean up the weeds in front of your house and decorate inside like the devil!!😉
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