British interior design has come a long way in recent years. As a nation, we have embraced our heritage on a larger scale, combining it with our unique, edgy character, and a pinch of international influence.
When it comes to our homes, the current trends for interiors are somewhat contradictory – both old and new aesthetics, a mix of traditional artisan craft and innovative, contemporary materials. As a nation, we like our interiors to make a statement about who we are, with our homes full of items that tell stories and have personality. We are always looking for ways to bring quirkiness, comfort, and cosiness into our homes, while reflecting a sense of quality and smartness at the same time.
British interior designers have a particular talent for layering eclectic ideas, patterns, colours, and visual focus points to provide depth while working with the scale of each room. British style has echoes of our history while celebrating skilled craft and fulfilling the desire to be different. This enthusiastic drive towards originality has encouraged designers, architects, and artisans to push their creative boundaries, developing innovative products that perform to modern standards while still maintaining elegance and balance.
Despite this confident, bold style, homeowners’ favourite thing to do is think about new ways to renovate or change their homes. Constantly scrolling through interior design magazines and looking at books for inspiration. Light, space, and volume are vital elements that British homeowners want to achieve in their homes, while proportion, balance, and style bring cohesion to any form of interior.
At the forefront of interior design.
Thankfully, specialist designers can deliver! By combining British artisanship with quality materials and design innovation, designers have ensured that homeowners can achieve the perfect balance between architecture and interior design in their homes.
In Britain, we have a strong heritage of innovation, industry, and craft. You will often see beautiful spaces lifted by integrated, bespoke features such as fitted shelves, custom-made furniture, traditional cabinetry or bespoke kitchens. We are fortunate to be able to make use of so many talented artisans to provide us with tailor-made features to an exceptionally high standard.
Why should we be celebrating British interior style?
There is an emerging trend for all things quintessentially British. We Brits are beginning to love our heritage a lot more and are starting to select items for our home that mixes traditional British brands with modern tastes. For example, John Lewis has recently released a new collection of Liberty Fabric prints after collaborating with the V&A and have a best-selling print inspired by an English country garden. Sales of William Morris wallpaper are on the rise, too.
British interior design is all about showing our identities and creating spaces that reflect who we are. It’s not about keeping up with the latest trends, it’s about designing interiors that celebrate individuality, and we like to use social media and online inspiration as a means to creating personal ‘displays’ in the home. There is nothing better than stumbling across a new, undiscovered designer on Instagram who seems to get the perfect balance between scale and proportion. More than ever, homeowners choose design brands that they know they can trust to offer quality, and once found, they stay loyal to them.
As a nation, British people love filling their homes with investment pieces that they choose for their quality and durability. We find that individual items in the home often have a strong emotional value to us, whether it is a handcrafted nursery rocking chair or a painting that was once hung in grandmother’s living room. These items are treasured over the years and passed on to our loved ones as heirlooms.
British interior style is renowned because of the way it can reinvent a room through careful planning and thoughtful manner. It does not tend to add ‘quick updates’ to fix a place, instead, homeowners will spend time researching colour schemes, textile combinations, and furniture trends to bring a whole project together. It can be argued that because as a nation we have so many more period homes in comparison to other countries, we understand how essential it is to respect the architectural features and take the whole look and feel of a building into account. We know how to compliment large bay windows, tall ceiling heights, grand staircases, and ornate fireplaces, while still putting our quirky stamp on an interior.
Ever changing, ever evolving.
The beautiful thing about British interior style is that it is continually evolving and changing to reflect the nation’s lifestyles. Spending quality time relaxing at home with friends and loved ones has become more meaningful to the British population, which is seeing more of us purchasing home cinema systems for movie nights and large, cosy corner sofas. As a nation, we are starting to covet dining rooms that promote easy, relaxed family meals. Hosting cocktail nights for friends is becoming a popular way to spend a Friday evening, so home bars, drinks trolleys, and cocktail shakers are having a big revival.
We are also seeing a rise in spirituality, wellness, and mindfulness, which is also starting to be reflected in British interior design. There is a greater desire to feel connected to nature, and homeowners are bringing houseplants into their homes on mass with low-maintenance succulents being the most popular. Retail experts predict that crystals are to go mainstream and designers are incorporating them into bars of soap, home ornaments and scented candles. With tidy homes come tidy minds, and with the rise of Marie Kondo’s Netflix show at the beginning of 2019 came the demand for stylish woven storage baskets, boxes and clothing hooks. Designers and homeowners alike are beginning to look at new ways to stay organised, keep clutter out of our lives and maximise on space.
There’s so much in our heritage to provide inspiration and so much talent around right now, that British interior design looks set to have an extremely vibrant future.
Guest post by James Upton, Managing Director at Westbury Garden Rooms.
Westbury Gardens rooms is the leading British designer of bespoke timber garden rooms and orangeries for people who love the idea of having more space in their homes. Whilst the aesthetic of each individually-designed room is elegant and traditional, the manufacturing process incorporates cutting edge materials and processes to ensure each project will stand the test of time.
If you are looking to embrace British design and incorporate it into your home, get in touch with the team at Westbury Garden Rooms today.
