Classic British Furniture Styles: 4 Worth Mentioning

British furniture is known for its elegance and immense grace. The reason behind its sophisticated aura is rich ties with British cultural history.

Even though modern times have undergone many changes and the fashion style and sense completely transformed, we can still see a glimpse of that old cultural richness in British furniture. 

Not just today, but British designers in ancient times made products that remarkably stood out from their counterparts in other regions of the world.

This shows that the immense attention to detail and timeless designs have always been part of British furniture history as they are today. 

Inspired by how old British furniture history is, we decided to showcase some of the furniture styles of old that were used in making exceptional furniture pieces. 

1. Carolean or Restoration style British furniture

It is a style that rose to heights after the restoration of the monarchy after King Charles II took over the reign of Britain. It was the time that lasted from 1660 to 1685 and so did the Carolean style. 

The style took inspiration from French and Dutch decoratives during the time of King Charles’ reign because he brought french and dutch inspirations from his time of exile there. The key elements that represented this style were carvings, velvet upholstery, floral marquetry, gilding, and walnut.

2. Jacobean Style

This furniture styling became popular during the time of King James I reign from 1603 to 1625. This style was more focused on making the furniture that would last longer and less focused on the comfort level. The key characteristics of this style were large and boxy furniture. The famous materials of which the furniture was made during this era were oak and pine. 

3. Elizabethan Style

This era of Queen Elizabeth that lasted from 1533 till 1620, was the era directly influenced by Renaissance time. Therefore, the furniture that was made during this highly spoke of the renaissance style.

This era worked as a bridge between the gothic era style and the classical style as the furniture that was influenced by the gothic style gradually took the influence of classical aspects.

The Elizabethan era is famous for having furniture that was ornamented with heavy decorations and carvings. The legs of tables were typically bulbous and furniture was usually adorned with inlaid fruitwood work.

4. Rococo Style

Originating from France and Germany, the style lasted about 40 years, from 1730 to 1770. The key features of the style were broken rock or shell motifs, hence the name rococo which means rock or shell in French. The materials that were used in this furniture were typically oak, marble, mahogany, ash, walnut, elm, inlay, and beech. 

Terence Conran Furniture

Terence Conran is a modern name that is famous for making contemporary and comfortable furniture in Britain. He has been in the business for 6 to 7 decades and has seen all the drastic changes occurring in the furniture styling.

Therefore his product provides the solution to the one main problem that was common in the old furniture style, which is lack of comfort and simplicity. His products are made of natural and authentic material that only gets better with time.  

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