As co-creator and co-host of the Instagram account @MyConsideredHome I like to bring to your attention interior books which Justine @harpcottagestudio and I think you’ll love and which mirror the ethos of My Considered Home. This month’s book; Faded Glamour by Pearl Lowe is an interesting choice as most of our book choices to date have had natural organic undertones. This time we’ve stepped away from this and have decided to review something far more bold and colourful. This book is an overdue acknowledgement that a considered home is far more than purely natural and organic. A considered home is about carefully choosing, selecting and curating the things which go into our homes and turning our backs on mass consumerism and current trends.
It comes as no surprise that Pearl Lowe’s book is full of fabulous vintage fabrics and textiles. She is after all a textile and interior designer with a passion for vintage interiors. Pearl’s early career was as a musician but she turned her attentions to interiors and fashion in the early 2000’s. In this, her latest interiors book, Pearl explores her own Faded Glamour interiors style along with other faded glamour home owners such as Alice Temperley and Marianne Cotterill who all share as similar, yet individual interior design aesthetic. It’s a book filled with vintage layers, large windows and bold design statements.
Faded glamour to me conjures up images of a timeworn, faded version of 1920’s decadence, luxury and opulence; with velvet, lace, chandeliers, crystal ware and flamboyant wallpaper. I envisage unveiling a home which has stood still for 100 years. There’s a romanticism and nostalgic charm to my interpretation of faded glamour. It’s feminine, elegant and soft. Pearl’s interpretation takes it one step further.
In the opening introductory chapter Pearl summarises her own interpretation of Faded Glamour; ‘I’d say that it’s gloriously decadent yet well-lived-in decorating style. I think of rooms that are elegant yet whimsical at the same time. Precious pieces of antique furniture that have become slightly battered over decades while holding their allure become more charming when playfully juxtaposed with more contemporary, colourful pieces from a flea market. It’s the point when eighteenth-century mahogany wood meets 1950’s plastic retro; where chintz sits alongside animal print and sultry velvets; rococo suddenly goes a little rock ‘n’ roll; and a freestanding 1970’s Anglepoise lamp sets it all alight. Rooms that are opulent and grand, yet loved and lived-in; houses with a story to tell beneath their patina. That to me is very much the essence of faded glamour’
In Faded Glamour, along with Pearls gorgeous eclectic home she presents others home too all of which share a love of antique and vintage. I love most of the interiors in this book with the exception of possibly one which is falls outside of my own interior comfort zone. It’s encouraging to see an insight into homes which are brave, bold and creative; all oozing personality in abundance. What most strikes me is each of the houses featured are all incredibly individual and carefully curated; without a doubt the epitome of a #myconsideredhome. All houses featured benefit from large rooms and big windows; I feel this has to be a prerequisite for a faded glamour interior. It’s not a look which easily translates to a smaller country cottage but certainly elements can be taken and adapted.
Textures, layering, colour and mismatch all play their part in a faded glamour interior. Each interior decision carefully made.
Buy Faded Glamour by Pearl Lowe - Click here