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Victorian architecture reflected its time’s cultural and social values in several key ways. This reaction against uniformity culturally represented a desire to reconnect to England’s medieval past and Christian heritage. The Victorian era witnessed advances in science and industry, but Gothic Revival architecture suggested a longing for earlier spiritual certainties. Stained glass, stone carvings and spires reaching to the heavens reflected this.
Why are Victorian style homes so popular?
Find out what makes this style unique and the history that has let these homes stand the test of time. True Victorian enthusiasts might embrace the inspiration of the era, bringing in some of the preferred textiles, colors, and architectural details to create a home that feels like a blast from the past. Others may prefer a more modern approach, sprinkling in some Victorian-inspired pieces to add character and visual interest to an otherwise fairly standard, modern space.
What are the different types of Victorian houses?
On interiors, mass production also enabled affordable, patterned wallpapers. Two of the most common types of Victorian homes are Queen Anne and Italianate. "Queen Annes, with their asymmetrical feel, often showcase wrap-around porches, steeply pitched roofs, a turret, and two to three stories," says Mize. This style was usually built between 1880 and 1910, and it was especially popular in the United States, specifically with middle and upper-class white people in California and in the northeast. During the 18th century, a few English architects emigrated to the colonies, but as the British Empire became firmly established during the 19th century, many architects emigrated at the start of their careers.
Victorian House Paint Colors
These nooks, crannies, and living areas are part of the signature Victorian style. Doorways and window molding are often intricate, and the ceilings are high and sometimes feature unique designs or framing. Those dreaming of statement chandeliers or ornate molding will deeply appreciate Victorians' thoughtful architecture. Similar to Gothic Revival, Romanesque Revival Victorian homes take inspiration from European churches with their arches and turrets.
Timeless Fusion: How to Blend Vintage and Modern Design According to Experts
This Victorian house accentuates its features with a colorful exterior paint combination and curved woodwork of all shapes and sizes. The ornate spindles and knobs found on so many Victorian-era houses, especially Queen Anne homes, were inspired by the decorative furniture of English designer Charles Eastlake (1836–1906). When we call a house Eastlake, we're usually describing the intricate, fancy detailing that can be found on any number of Victorian styles.
Some chose the United States, and others went to Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Normally, they applied architectural styles that were fashionable when they left England. Several prominent architects produced English-derived designs around the world, including William Butterfield (St Peter's Cathedral, Adelaide) and Jacob Wrey Mould (Chief Architect of Public Works in New York City). Picture a dollhouse – a colorful exterior, several stories high, gabled roof, highly decorative details, maybe even a tower – and you’ve just envisioned a Victorian style home.
The 1876 William Hayes Perry residence is considered by many to be the first proper “mansion” built in Los Angeles. He hired Kysor and Matthews, the revered architects of Pico House, to build the two-story Greek Revival Italianate at 1315 Mount Pleasant, in the then-fashionable suburb of Boyle Heights. The outside aesthetics have often been compared to a tiered wedding cake, and the rather dark interior features a fine marble fireplace and rich wood floors.
Often more asymmetrical in design, Queen Anne style homes feature wrap-around porches, balconies, towers, bay windows, pitched roofs, highly ornate trim, and brightly painted exteriors. Victorian houses are renowned for their unique and distinctive design choices, hence why they’ve remained so popular. One of the most prominent characteristics of Victorian houses is their emphasis on intricate detailing featuring elaborate woodwork, decorative trim, and complex fretwork. You’ll notice that Victorian-style houses don’t shy away from craftsmanship, as these houses feature asymmetrical designs, with various projections, turrets, and gables adding to their already visually dynamic exterior. Victorian houses are well known for their dramatic, steep-pitched roofs, often adorned with decorative shingles.
Victorian houses are architecturally commonly referred to as the Victorian Style but this "style" is really a period in history. The Victorian era roughly corresponds to the time when Queen Victoria ruled Britain (1837 to 1901). During this time, industrialization brought many innovations in architecture. There is a wide variety of Victorian styles, each with its own distinctive features. Her reign spanned several decades, specifically from 1837 to 1901, and during that period, there were a few major styles that became popular.
By the end of the 19th century brick manufacturing techniques led to fine-quality machine-made bricks. They were still expensive so were usually reserved for façades, with the cheaper common bricks used on the sides. His work has appeared in GQ, Conde Nast Traveler, Playboy, Vice, and Architectural Digest, where he also worked as the local news editor. Inside, the rooms are quite traditional, with small spaces creating cozier atmospheres as opposed to larger open floor plans.
The U.S. followed suit 50 years later, after the expansion of the railway, which created land availability for suburban development, and on the heels of the Industrial Revolution, which made manufacturing of house parts possible on a mass scale. For the first time, people could have houses wherever they wanted that would look like whatever they wanted. It seems that our love affair with Victorian homes remains as inexhaustible as our love for the Queen herself. And while she may no longer be sitting on the British throne, the houses erected during her reign remain popular monoliths of that bygone era.
Queen Anne homes, along with Italianate homes, are widely seen in San Francisco—a result of it being a “boom town” during this time period. The city’s most famous are undoubtedly the “Painted Ladies,” a block of Queen Anne-style townhouses painted three or more colors (you know them from the opening credits of Full House). Queen Anne and Italianate homes surged in popularity in the United States in the mid-to late-19th century, spurred on by the 1876 Centennial International Exposition (the first official World’s Fair).
If you need to replace your windows, or you wish to reinstate more appropriate windows where the original has already been removed, ensure you match the original designs to maintain the delightful aesthetics intended. Technological advances saw changes in the construction of sash windows, with moves away from numerous panes to the ever more common two-paned sash. The finest of houses went one step further to demonstrate their wealth by further reducing these to just one large pane.
Atelier Cho Thompson layers Victorian architecture, New Haven topography, and Korean design for hotel Co.House - The Architect's Newspaper
Atelier Cho Thompson layers Victorian architecture, New Haven topography, and Korean design for hotel Co.House.
Posted: Mon, 22 Apr 2024 13:18:51 GMT [source]
A range of bonds were used in the period, from Rat Trap to the revival of English bond, with its alternate courses of headers and stretchers. Bands of decorative brickwork were also widespread, bringing life to the frontages of Victorian homes. The tendency of Victorian builders was to use asymmetrical arrangements, rather than the rigid order and balance seen as a prerequisite of building in earlier periods. This is especially seen in country houses, as they lessened their desire to impose themselves upon the landscape.
This American Foursquare house (with Richardson Romanesque influences) was designed by famed architect Frederick L. Roehrig in 1895. One of the oldest surviving Roehrig houses, it was situated on the ultra-fashionable “Millionaire's Row” in Pasadena. A reaction to fussy Victorian styles, American Foursquare emphasized boxy lines, “honest” carpentry and plain facades.
When thinking of Victorian color palettes, you might immediately picture the vibrant Painted Ladies and other colorful Queen Anne-style homes. However, those hues were the exception rather than the norm — as Love To Know explains, a muted color palette was more common. Victorians favored dark, moody, saturated earth tone hues in shades like brown, green, dark reds such as maroons, and dark yellows such as gold or ochre tones. If you absolutely adore Victorian structures that have a hint of a spooky vibe, your Victorian style of choice just might be Gothic Revival.
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