The history of British housing design and more importantly Interior Design, has evolved a lot over the centuries. From the Tudors to the Georgians, the Victorians, and the Edwardian's, we’ve seen Interior Design and its features adapt and develop, become accentuated, and then understated.

The 20^th Century brought a range of more affordable housing for the ever growing and ageing population. The beautiful ornate details were scrapped to make homes cheaper to build. Specialist skills slowly faded into the background and were forgotten about. Somewhere a long the way, the detail was forced out to make way for minimalism and simplicity. 

Modern homes being built today give less thought to the look and feel of the building’s interior in the way of character. Assumptions are being made that customers are looking for a ‘blank canvas’ when buying a new home and that spending money on decorative details just isn’t worth doing. 

Don’t get me wrong, there are some amazing Grand Designs in the 21^st Century. Those fortunate enough to have the capital are employing some incredibly talented designers and architects to create the most breath-taking designs.

But what about the rest of the population? As our nation continues to grow and building firms try to keep up with demand for new housing. Somewhere along the way I feel we’ve lost the art of what makes a house unique. When looking to purchase a new build, are we all looking for the 21^st Century minimalist style? 

Do we have to buy a run-down period property and work hard to restore it just so we can have those features we once admired and enjoyed? Cornices, panelling, moulded details, archways, decorative staircases, and hand-crafted details. Will these features ever come back as ‘standard’ for the new build homeowner of the future? What will be available to them when they walk into the showroom at their local housing development? 

Only time will tell I suppose.

I personally am a huge lover of period features, working on a period property is my favourite type of project. I believe more and more are referring to these styles from the past and finding ways to incorporate them into their modern-day homes. Anyone can add character and personality to their house and in my next blog I’ll be suggesting some clever ways in which you can do this. So, stay tuned….

Here's a couple of photos of a recent Georgian home renovation I completed for a client.

Thanks for reading

Caroline Ascroft from CA Interior Designs

www.cainteriordesigns.co.uk    Instagram: ca_interiordesigns      Facebook: @cainteriordesigns