Spring Guide: 5 beautiful country home decor ideas for your mews house
It has felt like an exceptionally long winter, but now we are seeing true signs of spring with sunny days, blue skies, bulbs appearing and tree blossoms making a show. Even if you live in the city, this is a great time to refresh your mews home and introduce country home decor ideas for a new and revitalised look.
We’ve put together a ‘S.P.R.I.N.G’ guide to offer stunning country home decor ideas for your mews house.
S is for… STYLE
P is for… PATTERN
R is for… RULES
I is for… INDIVIDUALITY
N is for… NATURE
G is for… GARDEN
S…Style
Style is a matter of personal taste. When it comes to country home decor ideas, it’s important to introduce what you like, rather than simply following what is considered ‘in fashion’ or ‘on trend’. Many homeowners do not want their mews home to feel like a typical London townhouse; the truth is, it isn’t. Mews houses occupy quiet, cobbled streets with a village-like atmosphere that stands in contrast to the usual frenetic urban pace. Mews residents may divide their time between living in London and the countryside, drawing inspiration from their rural second-home retreats. Owners often appreciate the idea of bringing a touch of the English countryside into their London mews home.
Country-comes-to-Town
The beauty of incorporating country home decor ideas lies in their versatility; favouring architectural design and original features found in London mews homes. A traditional mews will often have retained some period details, such as decorative architraves and cornices, possibly a fireplace, and even the odd original reminder of the mews’ equine heritage – cobbles, brick flooring, stables, or old garage doors. All of these provide a characterful backdrop for introducing either a modern country or a more traditional English country interior design, whether you want to simply refresh one room or take on the entire house.
Bringing style with notes of spring into your mews home is as much about connecting a love of the countryside and the outdoors with your living space. City dwellers who are also country lovers will an authentic home that feels inviting, comfortable, and is full of personality. Good style and well-executed design are about creating harmony between the occupants’ lifestyle and the bones of the mews property.
P…Pattern
Both a modern country style and a traditional English country house feature patterns of varying sizes, a colour palette of pastels and richer shades, and panelling to add depth and interest. Depending on your personal preference, patterns may lean toward more abstract print designs or classic, country-inspired weaves and motifs. It’s all about deciding what you like and what will best complement your interior for maximum effect.
Pattern Layering and Combinations
Layering different patterns and textiles is an important technique in modern country and English country style. Nowadays, patterned wallpapers and fabrics have replaced the trend of using grey and keeping it plain. A Country style embodies a sense of fun – a cheerful combination of earthy colours, warm tones with pops of colour. The freedom to mismatch things works well in this situation.
Patterns have the ability to bring any room to life. Layer patterned cushions on a plain sofa with soft throws, or introduce patterned lampshades. A striking or whimsical pattern looks particularly effective on a large headboard or a versatile ottoman. Checks and stripes are a wonderful combination, with plaid cushions, rugs, lampshades, and even napkins offering seasonal versality, depth and warmth to a room.
Fabrics bringing colour and pattern into your space play a huge role in creating a country interior. Traditional English country style veers towards richer colours and intense strong patterns, including chintz, William Morris textiles, embroidered or upholstered sofas, and antique Persian rugs. An easy way of incorporating country home decor ideas is through natural fabrics – think cotton and linen in spring and summer and swap for wool and tweed in the colder months. A more neutral backdrop ensure these fabrics make a statement and it doesn’t take long to change the designs seasonally.
Florals fully embrace the country style by linking the indoors to nature. Use nature-inspired prints on soft furnishings and upholstery, and choose vintage patterned window dressings and wallpapers. If you’re hesitant about using a lot of pattern, you can introduce floral accents in the form of seasonal tablescapes, flower arrangements and artwork. Our property for sale on Hamilton Close is a perfect example of how combining floral patterns helps you achieve a cottage look.
Palettes for Country-Inspired Decor
Once you’ve decided what country home decor ideas you want to add to your home, your colour palette should reflect a sense of warmth to make the interior feel inviting. You don’t need to go all out with bright, bold tones; simply consider warmer shades on the colour wheel. Colourful walls or woodwork provide an opportunity to choose fabrics to complement the room. Layering two to three colours creates a welcoming and cohesive look throughout a room, and you can continue the style throughout the mews property. This instantly provides character and depth while allowing your decor to remain flexible over time.
Choose a colour palette inspired by the countryside and one that helps to bring the outside into your home. Many country houses embrace colour and pattern, creating a charming vintage look and feel. Vibrant, rich shades of blue, green, red, pink, and purple are often influenced by an English country garden. Don’t be afraid of colour as it is the key to revealing the charm of an English home. If you prefer more of a more modern finish, a muted palette of warm neutrals will create an inviting environment.
A neutral palette need not be boring; the key is to find shades that work within your space so consider the aspect of your mews and the amount of natural light it receives. Earthy neutrals include creams, beiges, taupe, and soft warm greys. Consider what colours might complement these, such as muted tones of sage green, mustard yellow, warm terracotta, or duck-egg blue.
R…Rules
There is no rulebook when it comes to country interiors. Without strict guidelines, there is room for freedom and joy when it comes to mixing and matching styles from different eras. If you’ve spotted a vintage sideboard you love, there is no reason you shouldn’t place it alongside a contemporary sofa. What’s crucial is careful sourcing and curation to unify a mismatched look and bring character to your home. If you’re looking for country-style decorating ideas, you’ll find many examples of vintage furniture or patterns sitting alongside modern furniture. Once you find what you love, there’s many country home decor ideas that really can change the look and feel of your home.
Bedside tables and lamps can be different and mismatched kitchen chairs can be a mix of antique finds and new pieces. Creating a traditional English country interior is about maximalism rather than cleaner lines of minimalism and building a collection of antique and inherited pieces that sit in a thoughtfully ‘cluttered’ way.
I…Individual
For Book Lovers
There’s no better way to decorate a mews home than by showcasing your book collection. Highlight your favourite authors, gather titles on subjects that fascinate you, or collect beautifully bound vintage editions. Display them colour-coded by spine or arrange them on coffee and side tables, ottomans, bookcases, and even dressing tables. Don’t hesitate to place books on a surface that can accommodate them. Books invite you to curl up and enjoy the cosy atmosphere of your private space – perfect when overlooking the English countryside or indeed, in the beauty of your mews house. Simple country home decor ideas that don’t cost a lot of money to invest in.
On Display
Don’t be afraid of adding open shelving and storage, as this is a great way to inject your personality into the home. Sculptures, figurines, vintage ware, antique glass and other knick-knacks you love can add three-dimensionality to your walls and shelves.
Making a Statement
One standout piece can make a real statement, setting the country tone in a living room. This could be an ornate armchair, a vintage trunk as a coffee table, or a much-loved Chesterfield sofa. Similarly, having a focal point such as a fireplace or a wood burner adds instant cosy country charm. The modern country kitchen aesthetic deploys the art of mixing materials and textures. Imagine having a classic AGA standing near sleek modern appliances – a clever juxtaposition of functional and style, and a true modern country kitchen statement.
Clever Lighting
Using brass accessories when you introduce lighting into your mews house will bring a further layer of warmth. Brass light fixtures, picture lights and table lamps with patterned fabric shades come together to offer an intimate, cosy atmosphere. They work beautifully with wood and neutral shades, and brass accents such as cupboard handles, chair legs, or antique and vintage pieces will elevate your space.
Nature
Embracing the countryside and replicating it in your mews home can be done by adding natural materials and textures. To maintain a natural, organic feel, introduce woven textural details such as wicker, rattan, and jute in chairs, storage baskets and rugs. Surfaces can be transformed using exotic slabs of marble or other interesting stone, creating an eye-catching feature while elevating a simple space. Over time, these natural materials age beautifully and add plenty of charm to your home. Avoid trends when choosing bathroom furniture and sanitary ware, instead invest in classic timeless pieces.
Why Wood Works
Wood is a key material in English homes and an integral material, adding character, interest and warmth. From wooden cabinets and ceiling beams to original floorboards, different wood elements are found in almost all period homes. For a traditional look, consider exposing wooden beams, using an antique wooden desk, highlighting an elegant sideboard, using antique side tables or a farmhouse dining table. For a more rustic aesthetic, source reclaimed wood panelling or open wooden kitchen shelving. Incorporating wood, as in the case of this luxury renovation project at Russell Gardens Mews, not only enhances a property’s character, but also brings a timeless quality to your space.
Joinery is Furniture in Itself
One should never underestimate the impact or value of excellent joinery. Choosing joinery and selecting the right style will transform a plain space and also sets the tone of the room, making it appear traditional or contemporary. The mouldings you select, and whether you choose oak or paint the timber for bookcase shelving, utility areas or dressing spaces, are key features of a modern country aesthetic that enhance your home’s look and feel. You can have a look at Lurot Brand’s design/architectural services consultancy here and do contact us if you’re looking for advice on country home decor ideas for your mews home.
Attention to Detail – Floors and Walls
Flooring and walls will reflect the character and history of your mews house. You may be fortunate enough to have some original features in place. Exposing brickwork or stone walls not only adds a country feel but also highlights your home’s heritage. Natural types of flooring such as wood, flagstones, or slate work best when opting for a country-style interior. Any original features in your mews are always going to be the foundation of your interior style, making your home unique.
G…Garden
Bring Nature Inside and Out
If you love the idea of making an impact using a nature theme, consider decorative wallpapers – William Morris designs featuring art nouveau florals are enjoying a renewed popularity. You might introduce leaf motifs on cushions, lampshades, curtain fabrics, or even chinaware to weave a thread of nature throughout your home. English landscapes and still life paintings of flowers are another way of bringing greenery into your space.
Nature on the Doorstep
The joy of living in a mews is that you’re never far from green spaces – the Royal Parks, garden squares, canal towpaths or peaceful churchyards are within easy walking distance. This means that you do not have far to go to find inspiration seeing nature and the changing seasons. On a walk you might gather wildflowers, wild herbs, pretty foliage and twigs to create an arrangement for your home using a favourite vintage vase. Dried lavender in an enamel jug, or fresh potted herbs, chilli’s and peppers will connect you with the outdoors and bring an air of modern country.
Mews with Outside Space
Some mews houses have the advantage of their own private outdoor space – a courtyard, garden, or even a roof terrace. These residents have the opportunity to continue the modern or traditional country feel outside. They can create a cottage garden or adapt this classic style. Perhaps, adding a modern twist using sleek landscaping and modern planters softened by romantic, informal planting, or experimenting with vertical green walls. Herbs and flowers can be grown on the smallest of window sills or balconies, as seen in this charming two-bedroom property in Bathurst Mews.
Even for those without their own private garden space, living in a mews street feels being in a rural idyll. So many of the mews are adorned with wisteria-clad walls and entrance arches, flowering jasmine that gives off a heavenly scent, or delicate ferns that wave to passers-by in the spring breeze. Residents put on a display of window boxes planted with geraniums and seasonal blooms and lots of clipped bay trees and large planters with olive trees transport you to a quaint alley in Provence. Abundant greenery lining mews streets also create a lush and nostalgic sense of pastoral calm.
A Village Affair
Mews residents delight in the village-like backdrop they share with neighbours and locals. The quiet, cobbled enclaves are a natural place for residents to make friends and socialise. In the warmer months, residents in mews like Sussex Mews West will gather on benches for sundowners and a catch-up. Several of the mews hold annual barbecues and street parties that have been going for years. Lurot Brand’s longstanding ‘Mews in Bloom’ competition is testimony to the passion mews dwellers share for gardening and keeping the country style alive in their local community.
The unique spirit of the mews resonates with its residents, who often describe living in a mews ‘like being part of village life.’ The inviting atmosphere on the outside is echoed inside their homes. Making your mews home a comfortable sanctuary for relaxation and joy should be the priority. An updated country house style tweaked for a sophisticated yet practical London mews home is the perfect antidote for a busy modern life and country home decor ideas can simply add to the charm of an already beautiful home.
