Panelled walls, deep skirting, ornate plasterwork, sash windows, grand fireplaces, corbels and coving – all these design details are what really give a period home the wow factor. They can change the proportions of the rooms to look suitably grand and will immediately demonstrate what historic period a property is from.
But what if you’ve bought a house where all the classical character has been removed? Sure, you might want to authentically renovate and repair the existing period details in an old home – getting the original plasterwork remoulded or adding back in a vintage fire grate – but this can be costly.
Or, if you have a new build, maybe you’d like to bring some of that old-fashioned charm into your new rooms? If your home is completely lacking character and you fancy creating a period look, it’s considerably easier (and more cost-effective) to DIY those elements in your fixer-upper property.
Here are some simple ways you can add plenty of period character to your interior without breaking the bank by buying original reclaimed elements…
All images of S.L.F Vintage’s charming heritage-inspired interior
Period panelling
I’ve seen plenty of panelling being put back into period properties and it’s the ideal way to bring character to a blank wall in a newer home. But you don’t need to splash out on original panelling to get the look.
It’s possible to recreate a period interior with decorative MDF wall panels, which can instantly give you the appearance of tongue-and-groove woodwork running around your room to dado height. Likewise, bead-and-butt can be used to bring character to feature walls or up to the picture rail.
For either option, you can choose from oak-faced for a wood-grain effect or can paint it in a heritage colour to coordinate with your decor. This gives a quick result because the panels cover a large portion of the wall at once – no fiddling around with cutting endless lengths of tongue-and-groove planks down to size.
To make the project even easier, you can get panelling and skirting pre-primed and ready to paint, making this a DIY task that can be completed in a day. When finished off with ornate rails and deep skirting boards, you would never know that the panelling wasn’t original to the property.
Fabulous fireplaces
Although it’s lovely to have an original fireplace in your home, don’t worry if the old fire has been removed or if there was never a fireplace in the home at all. You can DIY the look for less, without having to search for an expensive reclaimed grate or genuine tiled fire surround.
Instead, you can achieve a focal point in your room and bring a touch of period charm to the interior with a faux fireplace. You can simply add a mantlepiece and side plinths to create the surround – using modern mouldings and painting them with a heritage colour to match your decor. This is an ideal DIY project for smaller spaces, as you can craft the fireplace to fit the space you have available.
There are some factors that make an original open fireplace less appealing, such as having to clean out, rebuild and light the fire each day, plus the smoky smell that sometimes escapes and the layer of ash dust on your furniture. So why not consider an electric fire or freestanding bioethanol fireplace?
You can get the look of a real fire and the cosy warmth within the room without needing to do any large renovation works to uncover an original hearth. Plus, you’ll save money every year on having to get the chimney swept. Simply stack some decorative logs beside the fireplace and it’ll look gorgeously authentic.
Wonderful windows
One of the things about old properties is that the windows, although gorgeous, tend to be draughty and inefficient. When you heat your home, much of that warmth is sucked straight out of the sash windows or French doors.
So, why not make your home cosier and more suitable for keeping the cold British winter at bay? However, when you’re renovating a period property and need to replace your windows and doors, you don’t have to splash out on an authentic repair of the period windows or a complete reinstall.
With the paint finishes available nowadays, it’s possible to paint your existing PVC doors in heritage colours to make them appear more authentic. Plus, an energy efficient windows company will be able to recreate the vintage look so that you can get like-for-like windows to keep the period charm. Or if you have a new-build property, you can even add more character by adding stylish panelled or sash windows.
The exception to this is if your property is listed or if you live in a Conservation Area with rules to follow on the exterior look of the property. In this case, you should check what renovations are possible within the rules and ask the window company to make authentic windows that adhere to any guidelines you need to stick to.
When you’re DIYing your old fixer-upper house or are trying to add character to your new build, it’s possible to achieve any period style you like by simply using vintage-style fixtures in modern materials. These will cost much less than buying original reclaimed pieces and you’ll be able to achieve a seamless heritage look in a fraction of the time by installing and painting them yourself.
Let me know in the comments below if you’ve updated your home with any period-style features, I’d love to now what you saved money on and how you DIYed your decor. 🙂
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