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8 Ways to Tap Into English Gent Style
As crisp as the click of a walking stick, British gentleman's style can give any home a more dapper look
I'm a British born Interior Design devotee and marketing professional living in the USA. I moved from London to Atlanta (via New York) where I work in marketing, co-host a weekly interior design radio show, write (and obsess) about design. Follow me at www.martinelouise.com
I'm a British born Interior Design devotee and marketing professional living... More »
A true English gent has a decidedly dapper, tailored style. Savile Row, a street in London's Mayfair, has been famous since the 19th century for its array of traditional men's custom tailoring stores. The clean style of Savile Row can easily translate to your home — see how with the ideas below.
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by Elizabeth Reich
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| 1. Tufted leather and herringbone. A tufted brown leather chesterfield sofa oozes English style. Mix in some upholstered side chairs in a classic herringbone-patterned fabric for two traditionally British looks in one room. |
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| 2. A touch of wallpaper. We English have an ongoing love affair with wallpaper. To keep it subtle, just paper one wall or under a chair rail. Pick a neutral color scheme and a traditional or graphic pattern to keep it masculine. |
| 3. Crisp tailored sheets. Every English gent knows how important it is to have a crisp, clean tailored shirt ready to go. Steal this look for your bedding by using freshly starched, crisp white sheets. Choose something with simple piping to finish the look. Try to find 100 percent cotton, a high thread count (200 or higher) and a good-quality (long) thread such as supima, pima or long-staple Egyptian cotton. |
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4. Pinstripes. The London city boys in the financial area love their pinstripe suits. Channel your own pinstripe suit by upholstering a tailored sofa or chairs in a dark pinstripe fabric. Try dark gray with cream pinstripes or add a little color with something in navy and green, like on this sofa.
Accent the dark fabric with bold colors in mustard, burnt orange or deep red.
Accent the dark fabric with bold colors in mustard, burnt orange or deep red.
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| 5. Neutrals with a subtle color. Stick to a neutral palette, like the grays, creams and beige shown here. Black accents help ground this scheme, and the dark red velvet sofa adds a splash of color. |
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| 6. A British bulldog. A dog is every Englishman's best friend, especially a British bulldog. Add playful bulldog artwork or dog silhouettes to your scheme — this works great in kids' bedrooms too. Solid dark walls and pinstripe curtains keep the look masculine. |
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| 7. Textured layers. Textured layers make you want to immediately sink into a room and relax. Take a classic leather sofa and try mixing layers of pillows in wools, velvets, silks, linens and cottons — all in a similar neutral palette. Heavy tailored wool curtains (in plain fabric or a pattern of clean lines) will make the space feel extra cozy. |
| 8. Tailored, upholstered bed. A neat upholstered bed frame gives a very tailored finish to a room. The gray striped fabric puts this bed firmly in a gentleman's world. Keep the bedding neatly tucked into the bed frame. You can still layer pillows, but try a long bolster instead of lots of fluff and layers. These wall-mounted lights take clutter off the bedside table and provide focused task lighting for reading. |
Ideabook published on Oct. 19, 2012.
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Love the ideas!
the_misfit - yes, you're absolutely right its houndstooth - my mistake - I should have zoomed in a little closer (I might need an eye exam soon). The dog in the illustration is a mutt I think - maybe a boxer, mixed with a st. Bernard or something - who knows?!? A British Bulldog is just a suggestion, but any dog will do. Brits also love Labradors, Beagles and Jack Russells.