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The author’s 250th anniversary is the perfect time to celebrate the Regency era’s elegant design cues, writes Florence Hallett
Worcestershire, England | United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty
“To sit in idleness over a good fire in a well-proportioned room is a luxurious sensation,” Jane Austen once wrote to her sister, perfectly encapsulating the combination of refinement, comfort and simplicity that gives Georgian architecture and interiors their timeless appeal.
As fans of the novelist mark the 250th anniversary of her birth this December, enthusiasm for everything Austen shows no sign of slowing. Another much-anticipated adaptation of “Pride & Prejudice” comes to Netflix in the new year. Starring Jack Lowden as Mr Darcy and Emma Corrin as Elizabeth Bennet, it’s bound to set a new generation of bonnet ribbons fluttering.Pemberley, Mansfield Park, Donwell Abbey—cradled in the English countryside, the fictional backdrops to Austen’s masterful social satires are sparingly described, but as alluring as her heroines. “Stepping into a Jane Austen-style home is to enter a world of understated elegance and refined social theatre,” says Amy Boyington, architectural historian and author of “Hidden Patrons: Women and Architectural Patronage in Georgian Britain.”
Worcestershire, England | United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty
Ombersley Court, Worcestershire, built for the first Lord Sandys in around 1730, has a storied Regency history to match the magnificent architecture of its galleried grand hall, oak paneling and library.
The Duke of Wellington was a notable visitor, invited to recuperate here following the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, explains Andrew Barnes of United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty. “To mark this important moment in European history, the Duke’s bedroom on the first floor of the property has been left unchanged ever since,” Barnes adds. “It still has the same silk wall coverings and curtains that were installed for his stay.”
Leinster, Ireland | Lisney Sotheby’s International Realty
It’s a style that has consistently inspired contemporary architects and designers. Ashleigh House, built deep in the glorious countryside of County Kildare, Ireland, in 2002, combines the clean lines and perfect proportions of Georgian living with modern standards of comfort and convenience, including a home cinema, fitness centre and courtyard guest house.The neo-Georgian architecture of 550 Round Hill Road in Greenwich, Connecticut, similarly offers exactly the sort of “large, well-proportioned room, handsomely fitted up” that Elizabeth Bennet famously admires at Mr Darcy’s Pemberley. Combining cozy family spaces and more formal rooms, it brings the spirit of Regency England to a contemporary American home.
In homes he has designed for collectors, Yantrasast carefully balances the needs of art with the owner’s lifestyle. “You don’t want to expose a priceless art collection to the salt air, but you also don’t want to live in a house where you cannot open a window,” he says. The art, he adds, shouldn’t “overwhelm the living.”
Greenwich, Connecticut | Sotheby’s International Realty – Greenwich Brokerage
The expectation of regular hosting is key to all these design schemes, as it was in Austen’s time. “The interiors are sumptuous in their lightness and attention to detail, designed specifically for elegant entertaining,” says Boyington of a typical Georgian home.
“Looking up, one will find soaring high ceilings often finished with delicate plasterwork and ornate cornices,” she adds. “The walls themselves are transformed into elegant backdrops, typically clothed in pale pastel colours, whether through carefully chosen, subtle wallpapers or rich, delicate silken fabrics. And the beautiful fireplaces, which act as a focal point for each room, are exquisitely decorated with classical motifs.”
New York, New York | Sotheby’s International Realty – East Side Manhattan Brokerage
Meanwhile, a true flight of fancy in the heart of Manhattan, 525 Park Avenue is a jewel of pre-war elegance with a dash of “Regencycore,” as it’s more recently become known. With 10-foot-high ceilings, crown moldings and raised doorways, the palatial interior of this 12-room condominium is opulent yet intimate, as suited to formal entertaining as to family life. What’s more, the aptly named Regency Hotel is to be found just across the street.
“Neither gaudy nor uselessly fine”—to borrow Elizabeth’s words—it strikes just the right balance between splendor and elegance. Might even Lady Catherine de Bourgh approve?