British Colonial Decorating

British colonial style of decorating reiterates elegance and refinement at its best. This style of decoration hails from 17^th century English architecture. The period it belongs to was the era between 1600 and 1800. Thus, it means applying a 300-hundred year old decorating style to your interiors. English architecture was highly classy and sophisticated. For achieving a British colonial décor, you will have to do a little research on the kind of lifestyle that existed during that time. However, for your convenience, some of the basic attributes of British colonial style decorating are given below. Read on and get some tips and ideas for British colonial décor.

British Colonial Style Decorating

For British colonial style of decoration, you can use a variety of textures, ranging from wicker and rattan furniture to leather suitcases & sisal rugs.
In case of colors, go for a muted palette of browns, beiges, barn red, golden and creams.
The furniture should be dark wood in color and heavy in structure.
For accessories, you can use large, hardwood candlesticks as decoration.
For art and upholstery, use bold botanical prints.
Animal prints are yet another essential property, which symbolizes royalty.
British culture is also quite closely associated with sports, so you can display sports equipment in your décor to give it that look.
Large plants also add up to the grand feeling of the British colonial style.
Newspaper prints on the walls work good.
Decorative pillows and covers should be placed on the furniture, to give it a regal appearance.
A travel globe is one of the not to be missed accessories, which can be very well used as a corner focal point.
Delicate embroidery like crewel and Jacobean needlework, needlepoint samplers, family portraits and pewter are some other accessory options.
Silver work is also a hallmark of colonial style decorating.
Oriental ginger jars, ivory, and other accessories brought from the Orient by clipper ships were also considered important decorative assets.
The eagle, which is also considered as the new symbol of the Federal government, was used extensively as a decorative accent.

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