The Talk of the ‘Ton’: How to Recreate the Wonder of ‘Bridgerton’ in your own Home

If you haven’t already watched the glorious Bridgerton, or even if you aren’t a fan, then you now have another excuse.  The Houses!  Bridgerton filled our 2019 Christmas and the gloomiest January of 2020 on record with much needed colour, love, music, corsets and some outstanding interiors. There has been much speculation on the beautiful architecture, with wisteria in permanent bloom, Wedgwood blue hues and opulence in abundance.  What is not to love! And we cannot wait for the return of season two to grace our screens in two months time, 25th March 2022.

The picture gallery @somerleyhouse was beautifully restored and repainted pre lockdown and in our ‘Drab Green’, which is far from drab and drenched here in light looks in fact lighter. “It is a spectacular room, one of the finest, built around 1850 it houses a mixture of old masters, English history paintings and portraits” @edward_bulmer  “Many still here and displayed on the original slotted iron strap hanging system and now splendidly set off by our ‘Drab Green’”.

A timeless colour which is the ultimate backdrop for ‘love’, paintings, gilt frames and most woods too.
It is a fabulous room for a party as shown in @bridgertonnetflix where it was used as ‘Somerset House’ season 1, episode 3.

“We must continue our ruse until I’ve found my match.”

Daphne Bridgerton

“Me, unavailable; you, desirable.”

Simon Basset

Edward Bulmer uses ‘Drab Green’ a lot and explains the provenance of the name –

“Drab referred originally to an un-dyed cloth (from the French drap) and its use in colour terminology came to mean a lightish brown. C18th century accounts refer to drab green and we have taken this idea to mix a beautiful brown green in defiance of its name. I have seen this colour used by clients to create really grown up rooms with depth and self-assurance. Early on it was used as an all-over colour for panelling and just as then it can be a successful tone for a scheme that treats walls and trim as the same.”

@somerleyhouse is a house and estate of outstanding proportion, designed by the Wyatt brothers and now open for film locations @bridgertonnetflix @thecrownnetflix private parties and weddings. The owners have lovingly restored it and from the state rooms to the bedrooms it is sheer interiors indulgence and an absolute must see @somerleyhouse
If you missed @bridgertonnetflix then we’d wholly recommend re watching, just for the paint of course!

‘Tawny’ in the hall @somerleyhouse in the guise of Somerset House in series 1, episode 3.

‘This suede chic colour takes over where Buff has left off with a stronger mix of the same pigments. It is a timeless deep beige that can be used as a wall colour or for the trim as well’

Edward Bulmer

Did you spot the house in @thecrownnetflix too? Perhaps a weekend of sheer interiors and home inspiration!

Transport yourself to the ‘Ton’, from ‘Duck Egg‘ to more vibrant Wedgwood hues, we have a selection of blues especially for you.

“For a true regency feel, try Pea Green, Brick, Brimstone, Lavender and Fair Blue, Wedgwood Blues or Drab Green. But how did the Regency palette develop, and how did such an explosion of colour come about?”⁠⠀
⁠“Chemistry,” says Edward Bulmer, “It underlies the attraction between Bridgerton’s will-they, won’t they lovers, Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Bassett, the Duke of Hastings, just as it was the driver of colour availability in the Regency period. The Prince Regent loved interior design and employed all the greatest makers and the latest materials. The understanding of pigment chemistry – mainly how to extract reliable colour from minerals – took off in the early 1800s. The Regency period was one of richness in furnishing at the affluent end of the scale but in general paler shades coexisted with this.” ⁠⠀

How do you choose colours for your period property? Every age has used colour to adorn interiors.

We know this from illustrations, accounts and old paint layers. Much research has been done into historic colours and there is a wealth of advice now available to recreate period schemes. Until the early C20th these colours were all made with natural, earth and mineral pigments.

The discovery of crude oil changed all this as petro-chemicals and colourants were developed. Today modern paints can simulate old colours but they are not able to replicate the appearance of old paints.

If you want all the benefits of period colours we offer the answer!  We can help you find the perfect colour for you period property. No other paint range is completely derived from natural pigment, used by artists for centuries.

The last George, as regent and then monarch, set fashionable decorating alight – he could not stop and the height of his love of the exotic can be seen in the Brighton Pavilion! This was the era of the specialist house painter and paints were expected to deliver colour as well as the effects of all sorts of rare and costly veneers, marbles and bronze. The mainstream would have adopted the colour palette that came out of this and certain novel colours became fashionable as advances in paint chemistry made them affordable (yellows are the classic example). Rooms were painted more architecturally, as the prevailing sensibility favoured the antique credentials of Grecian rather than Roman culture.

• Plain White through to Clay, Ash Grey, Lead Colour, Inferior Grey through to Sky Blue, Sea Green through to Cerullian Blue, French Blue, Aquatic through to Verdigris, Invisible Green, Tea Green through to Celadon, Warm Stone through to Ochre, Nicaragua  through to Lilac Pink.
• Use our natural wall emulsion paint which has a matt, wonderfully chalky finish for your walls and ceilings.  It is easy to apply, has excellent coverage but is extremely durable.  As there is no plastic in our paint it does not form a film on the surface of the wall so it is super breathable and perfect for use over lime plaster.
• Use water-based eggshell on wooden panelling and other wood or ironwork, including radiators.  Natural water based eggshell paints are the highest quality paints for protection and they are easy to apply, dry quickly and uniquely allow historic woodwork to breathe.