18 English-Inspired Rooms That Embody Elegance And Warmth
English interior design has influenced style across decades and continents with its penchant for layered rooms that tell a story. With all eyes on Britain as the country mourns the death of Queen Elizabeth II, we explore stateside residences that channel the elegance of posh London row houses and the warmth of modern English country homes.
VERDANT DINING
Photo: Tim Lenz
Midcentury teak chairs surround a custom steel-and-walnut table from Luke Todd Studio in this dining room, which is painted Benjamin Moore’s Forest Floor. The English sideboard dates to the 1750s and the brass chandelier is a 1960s Italian design.
COLORFUL CUES
Photo: Julie Soefer
Painted Benjamin Moore’s White Dove for a gallery-like feel, designer Jon Green’s Savannah living room features a fresh mix of English antiques, contemporary furniture and modern art—including works by Sonia Delaunay and Katsumi Hayakawa—which flank the opening to the dining room. An English Regency-style settee and chair, both by Minton-Spidell, stand alongside a sleek coffee table by DFM.
ARTFUL ANTIQUES
Photo: Cynthia Lynn
Miles Redd’s Brighton Pavilion wallpaper pattern for Schumacher dresses up the dining room, where fine English antiques from the family’s collection are on display. A delicate antique brass-and-crystal chandelier from Visual Comfort & Co.’s Joe Nye Regency line adds to the elegance.
BRITISH INFLUENCE
Photo: Peter Vitale
An antique Persian rug from Carol Piper Rugs grounds the morning room, where a sofa wears Cowtan & Tout fabric from Culp Associates, a tufted ottoman dons Colefax and Fowler fabric and Kravet trim, and lounge chairs are covered in a Classic Cloth check from George Cameron Nash. The custom-printed linen drapery material is by Arena Design.
MIRROR MOMENT
Photo: Annie Schlechter
A pair of Vaughan mirrors hang against Chambord Place’s delicate Bengal Rose wallcovering in the main bath, which the designer describes as fun and lighthearted with a British quirkiness. “It was all white before, so we flipped the script with the blue trim and gave it a lot of energy,” she observes.
ROYAL BLUES
Photo: Tria Giovan
The mirrored dining room wall installed by Goodchild Builders with glass by Dauphin Sales reflects the brass-and-Murano-glass chandelier from Jean-Marc Fray. The Quintus table is from Culp Associates, and Holland & Sherry navy velvet adorns the Baker chairs.
ENGLISH CHARM
Photo: Joshua McHugh
Away from the more formal public rooms, the family spaces in this Connecticut home have a more relaxed, though still very English, feel. Motawi Tileworks tiles in a pattern evocative of Arts and Crafts-era design surround the breakfast room’s two-sided fireplace. The custom dining table, too, is a riff on Arts and Crafts examples and meshes with the rustic feel of the Gregorius Pineo light above; the table rests on a Tai Ping carpet.
PRETTY IN PINK
Photo: Cynthia Lynn
With the walls painted Benjamin Moore Orchid Pink, this living room is demure at first glance but displays an array of style juxtapositions: French bergères upholstered in Lee Jofa’s beloved Hollyhock fabric pull up to a Ming-style coffee table that designer Shelley Johnstone had painted a vibrant green, while a psychedelic portrait of Andy Warhol by Pop artist DeVon hangs on the opposite wall.
COZY CORNER
Photo: Emily Followill
Designers Don Easterling And Nina Nash decided to give this Atlanta guest bedroom a more modern feeling than the rest of the home by selecting Farrow & Ball’s rich Stiffkey Blue for the walls. Black-and-white obelisks purchased at Ainsworth-Noah flank a 1940s English oil painting. The antique chinoiserie chair dates to the early 1880s.
WELCOME HOME
Photo: Emily Followill
The entryway of this Kiawah Island, South Carolina, vacation home was designed to emulate the “living halls” of iconic Shingle-style houses. One of numerous architectural details original to the residence, the inglenook “gives the entry hall a purpose beyond walking through it,” says architect Roger Seifter. Here, a glass bell jar lantern by Formations hangs above a circa-1830 English mahogany table, both from 1stdibs.
WORKING STATION
Photo: Emily Followill
This Charlotte home marries English manor hallmarks with a free-flowing floor plan. The arches of the stair railing are a subtle nod to those found in English Gothic architecture. “But those English manor homes were designed for protection and were dark,” architect Frank Smith explains. “This one is open and full of light.”
READ THE ROOM
Photo: Sargent Photography
The design team chose blue as the star for the more formal living room and the husband’s library; the latter is a modern, Florida-inspired take on the lacquered library Albert Hadley designed for legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor.
TOILE IMPRESSIONS
Photo: Fritz Von Der Schulenburg
In this Southampton residence by Elizabeth Lawrence of Bunny Williams Interior Design, a secluded sitting room cloaked in a pale lilac toile serves as flexible sleeping quarters thanks to a twin bed-sized sofa.
POP OF YELLOW
Photo: Annie Schlechter
Designer Summer Thornton, showcased her penchant for mixing pattern and color in the family room of this Chicago home, choosing Nobilis’ Velours Tiger to recover an existing sofa, a citron-hued Pierre Frey cotton blend for a custom sofa and a vivid blue Clarence House damask for the bergère.
COTTAGE CHARM
Photo: Werner Segarra
In the pantry, cabinetry by Desert Cove Woodworks coated in Dunn-Edwards’ Porous Stone and a lantern from Hudson Valley Lighting Group add cottage charm.
LOOK UP
Photo: Kerry Kirk.
Carlos Ramirez art from Dimmitt Contemporary Art and Romo fabric draperies from Culp Associates punctuate plaster dining room walls by Segreto Finishes. A branchy chandelier from Cox London anchors a custom walnut dining table and chairs in Rose Tarlow velvet from David Sutherland. The rug is Retorra.
A FRESH TWIST
Photo: Peter Margonelli
English country houses and their beguiling mix of old and new inspired designer Tatum Kendrick’s take on her longtime clients’ Hamptons home. In the sun-dappled living room, she juxtaposed a Noguchi sofa from Design Within Reach with a custom neoclassical-style chaise. The pattern of the Arabescato marble fireplace surround echoes the bust of Julius Caesar from 1stdibs.
A FRESH TWIST
Photo: Dominique Vorillon
The round table in the dining room features a built-in lazy Susan. Dan Johnson’s Viscount chair was challenging to find in any quantity above one, so reproductions fill in the rest. The showstopping vintage Murano chandelier sourced from Fabio Ltd. plays off Max Steven Grossman’s captivating work.