Our Modern Victorian Home

When I saw that famed interior designer Emily Henderson wrote a blog a few weeks ago introducing Modern Victorian style, my jaw dropped. "That's my style! That's my style!," I kept shouting in my head.

(Look through Emily's article to get the full grasp of what Modern Victorian style is--she explains it WAY better than I ever could). 

Rewind to last year when we decided to purchase our current home, I immediately began designing the rooms on my computer. One of the first rooms I worked on was our hearth room. I began by pairing a victorian sofa with two modern, blue velvet arm chairs, and started building it out from there. ​

Some people online told me I was crazy for such a pairing, but I had a vision. (I even told them the style was called Modern Victorian, not knowing that it would be introduced the following year as an emerging style!). ​

Our master closet chandelier from Spain!

Our Historic Home

Our house is a three-story Queen Anne Free Classic style home built in 1900 (it was recently added to the National Historic Registry, which pretty much means it's now protected for life). It has the original front door with initials in the glass from the original owners, a wrap-around porch with two original stained glass windows, and restored Doric columns. 

The interior has the original pocket doors, restored original Douglas Fir wood floors, marble fireplace with original woodwork, and the original gold wallpaper in the two-story foyer. It screams history. 

In other words, I had to do this house justice. ​

​So, how do you achieve the Modern Victorian style? Here's how I implemented it...

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Modern Victorian style is all about mixing antique pieces with modern ones. This white leather, victorian sofa is the statement piece of the room. I covered it with modern pillows with a variety of textures to mix the old with the new (lots of velvet, a pop of leopard, etc.). 

You'll also see the pairing of old and new with the floor lamps, which flank the victorian sofa, and the mirror. The mirror I found at an antique store; it's huge, heavy and gives me all the Great Gatsby vibes!

In this room, the walls are covered with this ornate, original gold wallpaper and is lit by the original light fixture. 

So, I added this blush pink 1926 arm chair and paired it with a simple navy blue chaise lounge. Who doesn't love a good chaise?

Also, if you haven't already noticed, velvet is an integral part of the Modern Victorian style. The beautiful thing about velvet is you can find plenty of antique velvet upholstered pieces at various antique stores, and you can also find thousands of modern options through sites like All Modern and CB2. 

Modern Victorian style is about being bold and risky. You cannot be afraid of color. Love two era's? Bring them together. Be adventurous. Have fun. Because the truth is: There are no rules when it comes to interior design.

Your home should be a direct reflection of your personality, the things you love, the places you've been, the stories you have, etc. 

If something is beautiful to you, display it proudly! If you love purple and want to make a room in your house consisting of nothing but purple, do it! Tone-on-tone is part of the Modern Victorian style anyway ;)

So, do you like this style? Let me know what you think in the comments!

​XOXO, Courtney