Do you live in an Arts and Crafts house?

[SarfE4sticated]

If so, how have you decorated? I am stalking an A&C house at the moment and plotting how I will decorate/furnish it. There seems a lot of furniture aimed at 'loft-living' 'mid-century' and Victorian style houses, but not much suitable for an Arts and Crafts house. I wouldn't want to turn it into a shrine to William Morris, but it would be nice to buy a few pieces of furniture that would fit in. Heals has a few pieces but nothing too exciting. Where can I find inspiration?
It's only a 3 bed house so nothing palatial.

@jt05 I bought a copy from Amazon - so looking forward to reading it in a few days!

I'm obsessed with Arts & Crafts style and wish I lived in a proper A&C house (mine is Edwardian, and has some A&C-inspired fire surrounds etc, but as they're mass produced they aren't "true" A&C!).

Aesthetically it's all about craftsmanship (obv) and an almost rustic simplicity.

For all the socialist ideals of the Arts & Crafts pioneers, ordinary people could never afford hand-crafted furniture and fabrics, so lots of things were mass-produced in the style and can still be found in antique shops and auctions for affordable prices. Tudric pewter and oak furniture with simple carvings and brass or copper handles are typical.

White walls with heavy, almost tapestry-esque curtains and fabrics (it was supposed to evoke a fantasy of the medieval).

As well as William Morris, Liberty, Heals etc, you can look at some 20th century craftsmen like Robert "Mouseman" Thompson, and I tend to think that anything hand-crafted fits in with the style, even if it's modern. Studio pottery and stained glass, for example, is relatively inexpensive (well, compared with paintings anyway!).

Outside, Gertrude Jekyll-style flower beds and romantic gardens with nooks and corners are classic.

@SarfE4estacated a place in Jasper Road, Crystal Palace usually has a selection of Ercol stuff, some of it quite reasonable, my dd got a fab ercol sideboard for 245.00 they also sometimes have some have some nice oak furniture, small bookcases desks etc.
Another good place is the old fire station, in West Wickham opposite the new Lidl, always worth a look at, I often go & have a mooch & have picked up some really good bits n bobs.

There's a beautiful arts and crafts guest house in a town near us. It's called Maplehurst - their website may give you some ideas.

www.maplehurstguesthouse.com/arts-crafts/

Depending on where you are OP you could visit Wightwick Manor or William Morris’s House The Red House for inspiration.

For a modern twist check out Timorous Beasties wallpaper and fabrics.

I would trawl the auction rooms if I were you as there is lots of A &C stuff around and although I like it a lot I reckon people can’t quite place it and it’s undervalued. you don’t have to keep it dark wood of course.

Ercol will work well too as mentioned upthread

We have an Ercol console table and it works really well.

A&C oak furniture isn't usually that dark anyway - the Ercol-style from the 30s and 40s is, but that's a bit later than the Arts & Crafts period.

Late 19th and early 20th century Arts and Crafts furniture is usually a lighter, golden oak - it looks gorgeous against plain white walls or simple wallpapers.

@Girlwhowearsglasses I love Timorous Beasties prints, thanks for reminding me, possible a little above my paygrade though.

I'm looking forward to hunting for pieces in local antique places, will definitely go the Red House and the places you recommend @dontcallmelen it's never a chore to go to crystal palace.

Thanks everyone :D

@RealityHasALiberalBias you have worried me that this house may not be a true A&C house - how would I know? EA details say it was built in 1901. Not that I would really mind but good to know...

Oak darkens over time btw so oak features in an Edwardian house are going to be darker.

@SarfE4sticated 1901 is definitely the right period (mine is 1904), but Arts & Crafts refers to a very particular school of architecture and design, not just any house in that period (though many houses borrowed from the style and design motifs).

Arts and Crafts architects wanted to hark back to what they considered to be a vernacular English rural style - usually it’s distinguished by low pitched roofs, tall chimneys and a vaguely medieval aesthetic, plus use of local, traditional materials.

Most of the true Arts and Crafts houses are in the South East, and on the whole were built to order for individuals, rather than being whole estates like my house is part of (a typical red brick, bay windowed semi).

But, like I said, my house has Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau features on the fireplaces, as the motifs and designs were mass-produced as the style became popular. We’re going to have William Morris wallpaper in the hall and landing (bird and pomegranate) and I’ve got an ever-increasing collection of A&C furniture! I can pretend I live in a Lutyens-style house...

There are suburban estates in the South East that were built very much in the Arts & Crafts style in the early 20th century actually - particularly the Metroland estates in the Home Counties:

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro-land

If I pm you a link will you have a look?

I’d love to,send it over!

We live in Metroland and our house was built by the Metropolitan Railway but is on a newer section of the road. It is ‘arts and crafts style’ -ish but the older houses are nicer. A lot of our original features have gone (I am looking at our living room fireplace and weeping as I type) but we do have lovely high ceilings to console me.

I have ordered that book :)

Sarah give my regards to Rossetti!
Enjoy the book. The A&C era is my favourite design movement. Did my thesis on the Pre Raphaelites and associates.

I actually chose the name after this

goo.gl/images/1HGFAv

That link doesn’t work.

Sarah Siddons (as well as being an 18th century actress) is also the name of a locomotive (presumably named after the actress). I chose it because I’m slightly tragic and like trains. Hope this link works

goo.gl/images/2mnZPA

Bloody hell, that doesn’t work either. I give up.

Our house was built in 1926 and is a kind of mix of commuter-belt art deco and edwardian - I've always thought of it as Arts & Craftsy. It's wide & on 2 floors plus modern loft extension as opposed to tall & thin Victorian. Bits of subtle stained glass & a lovely tiled hall floor but light oak bannisters with square newel posts. I like to think it can take any style of decor. I have lots of mid century stuff (60s Danish sideboard etc) but also a Victorian chesterfield sofa that my mum gave me. My personal style is pretty eclectic and I like to think the house complements this (or perhaps it just looks a mess!)
Just go with what you like!

Irian - extremely interested to hear about your grandfather, W Tarrant. Some of the best estates in Surrey were built by him, St George’s Hill and Wentworth. Tarrant houses are always described as such and are well known and sought after. He was a very well known quality builder.

I live in a v old house that was given a makeover in 1924, so I have some A&C detailing.

You may find Pinterest helpful, and check out 1st Dibs website for some beautiful stuff to drool over.

Liberty has some lovely A&C stuff - their classic fabrics, etc and they have a department in the Regent Street shop.

Thanks bubbles. Someone wrote a book about him recently and came to see my mother. It really brought it home to me that there is a whole world of history in our families that we often know very little of. My grandfather died when my mum was 3 so maybe that is why I new so little of my mum's side of the family.

Look up charles voysey houses - these are arts and crafts - he also designed furniture and fabrics.