*Be sure to check out the visual companion to this episode.

Welcome to the sixth episode of The Render, a podcast hosted by Modsy’s very own Alessandra Wood and Maddy Warner, that is all about the untold stories from the world of interior design.

In the sixth episode, Maddy and Alessandra give us a bit of a history lesson on Victorian lifestyles and interior design. This is a group of people whose lives were centered on their homes. As such, there’s quite a bit we can learn from the Victorians about how to shelter in place without losing our minds!

We hope you enjoyed the show! Share your thoughts on this show and your ideas for future ones at [email protected], don’t hesitate to slide into our Instagram dm’s @modsydesign and tune in next time.

This podcast is sponsored by online interior design service Modsy, the impossibly easy way to design your home.

About

Dr. Alessandra Wood is VP of Style at Modsy as well as a design historian with an eye towards the future. She studied design history & theory and is obsessed with applying that knowledge to understand what makes products beautiful/useful/successful, and what inspires people to love those products.

*The source of your next cocktail party banter.

Find out more on Twitter|LinkedIn|Instagram|Website

 

Madeline Warner is the Senior Brand Marketing Manager at Modsy as well as a one-woman content show. A writer and editor as well as a design enthusiast, she’s been working in the design industry for five years and specializes in bringing the expertise of an interior designer to the good laypeople.

*Resident furniture pun expert.

Find out more on LinkedIn|Instagram

 

The Render is edited and produced by Rachael Tellerman. Rachael is a graphic designer at Modsy and is fascinated by the many ways people tell stories. She is also an artist, avid media consumer, and excited to be entering the world of podcasting.

*Makes a delicious baked ziti.

Find out more on LinkedIn|Website

 

Victorian Design History

What is the Victorian Era?

What is commonly referred to as the Victorian era is the period of time that coincides with the reign of England’s Queen Victoria—from 1837 to 1901. 

What are some of the key elements of Victorian design?

Victorians were very spiritual and emotional people who leaned into the romantic and sentimental—which had quite the impact on interior design. When we look at Victorian interior design trends, we see a lot of dark patterns and intricate details. Detailed woodwork and carvings. Tassels. Lots of drapery and wallpaper. Bric-à-brac. Basically, this is maximalism at its finest.

Home As The Center Of A Person’s Life

In the Victorian era and the time periods before it, a home was really the center of a person’s life, in a way we haven’t seen since then. (Until, perhaps, now as we’re all stuck at home!) If you had a farm, you were actually producing what you needed from your land. If you lived in a large Victorian house in a small town or a small city, you might have had a staff that was cooking and cleaning for you—and they were actually the people who might be going out for groceries and supplies. So, much of life centered on the home and the property around it. 

What can we learn from the Victorians about sheltering in place?

There’s a lot we can learn from Victorians, whose lives really centered around their homes. Not only did they design their homes to suit their lifestyle needs, but they also indulged in hobbies and rituals that we could learn from to infuse our daily lives with more purpose and meaning. Here’s what we can learn:

• Find Spaces Of Privacy In Your Own Home: Victorians valued privacy within their home. There was this idea that private time really helped a person develop their own intellectual prowess. Today, privacy is more about having the space you need to work every day and maintain sanity. 
• Establish Realms and Zones: A Victorian home is divided into tons of different rooms—no open floor plans here! The purpose of this was having different rooms for different purposes. While our modern homes probably aren’t set up with so much built-in separation, creating realms and zones within larger rooms can help give our brains context clues of how we can use different spaces within a room for work and relaxing.
• Embrace Routines and Rituals: Since they didn’t have electricity, Victorians were much more in tune with the natural clock than we are. As such, they also had daily routines and rituals that made each day more intentional—opening drapes and shutters in the morning, and blowing out candles and shutting curtains at night. Due to electricity and technology, we don’t have those same built-in rituals. But creating some rituals at the beginning and end of each day can infuse our days with more purpose and intentionality. 
• Take On a New Hobby And Learn Something New: Self-improvement was a big thing for the Victorians. They highly valued learning and having accomplished skill sets. Instead of binging Netflix every night, perhaps we can use some of this extra time for hobbies and learning—both for diversion and for personal development.
• Lean Into Comfort: When you look back at the Victorians, “comfort” is probably not the first word that comes to mind. But their overall lifestyle really was geared toward comfort—just in a very different way than we define it today. And, with all the extra time at home today, it’s really important to make your home extra comfortable and welcoming—so don’t be afraid to make some changes to up the comfy and cozy factor!
• Infuse Your Cloistered Life With Fun And Special Moments: Victorians loved making a big deal out of ordinary things. Case in point: getting dressed to the nines for dinner every night. While we probably won’t start wearing suits and evening gowns for dinner at home, we love the idea of breaking from the norm and layering on something exciting into the daily grind.

Resources

The Victorian Era

Victorian Homes

Bric-à-brac

What makes a house Victorian?

The American Woman’s Home