{"id":30269,"date":"2024-02-16T13:11:53","date_gmt":"2024-02-16T12:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/19cea6f7-3ed5-4b70-8816-5b2e73f3be26"},"modified":"2024-02-16T15:36:37","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T14:36:37","slug":"a-mid-victorian-terraced-house-filled-with-inherited-antiques","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/a-mid-victorian-terraced-house-filled-with-inherited-antiques\/","title":{"rendered":"A mid-Victorian terraced house filled with inherited antiques"},"content":{"rendered":"

Inherited antique pieces and a love of art and textiles, passed down to Posy Gentles from her mother and grandmother, play a vital role in her welcoming home. Feature Francine Raymond; photographs Jody Stewart <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Friday, 16 February 2024 at 12:11 PM<\/p>

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When garden designer Posy Gentles arrived at her mid-Victorian<\/a> terraced house in Faversham in 2008, with four children between the ages of eight and 15, plus a vanload of inherited furniture, she entered a different world: a well-mannered interior of stripped pine woodwork and a kitchen embellished with pale blue and yellow paintwork. <\/p>

She could have let sleeping dogs lie and settled in with her family but, instead, she decided to shake things up. \u2018I love my surroundings to have an edge and a sense of humour with splashes of surprising colour,\u2019 she says. \u2018I needed to imprint my personality, so I immediately bought masses more vintage furniture<\/a> and accessories on impulse.\u2019<\/p>

Posy has always loved interior design and has written books on quick and easy upholstery, table settings and unearthing flea-market<\/a> finds. All of her children are creative, too, and have contributed to the house\u2019s character. They helped Posy with the renovations, including decorating the circular window above the dining table \u2013 a clever replacement for a leaking roof, painted with gold-leaf embellishment by Posy\u2019s daughter, Minna, and her friend, Max Candeland.<\/p>

Items are regularly bought and sold. Some are distributed among Posy\u2019s children, who in turn deliver their own artworks. \u2018I\u2019m a maximalist,\u2019 Posy says. \u2018I started young, as a child, and I buy a lot: online, from Faversham markets, from local dealers, from friends\u2026 But I buy too much, and I never seem to have time to edit. I\u2019ve also inherited furniture from both my parents and it\u2019s impossible not to integrate these memories, too.\u2019<\/p>

You might also like <\/strong>Decorating with antiques<\/a><\/p>

Posy inherited a love of fabrics from her grandmother, who was a decorator and lived surrounded by vibrant colour and astonishing pattern in nearby Broadstairs. She encouraged Posy to collect embroidered cushion covers, quilts, vintage curtains and clothing. From her mother, who bought and commissioned the stunning figure paintings by David Lloyd RA that now hang in nearly every room of Posy\u2019s house, Posy inherited a love of art.<\/p>

\u2018Pattern, texture and colour, especially colour<\/a>, are all important elements in my home,\u2019 says Posy. \u2018Those particular shades of 1930s pink and leaf green, with Farrow & Ball\u2019s Tanner\u2019s Brown, look good with antique furniture. And I like to use Farrow & Ball\u2019s Fowler Pink, a shade favoured by decorator John Fowler, which has an orangey, terracotta tone. But I don\u2019t like anything too tasteful. I like to surprise as well.\u2019 <\/p>

Her eye-catching use of mosaic mirror tiles on the stairs up to the attic probably fits into this category. She was inspired by her creative plumber and kitchen designer, Nick Kenny, who worked on the bright orange bathroom<\/a> and used zinc panels recycled from Parisian rooftops on the side of the bath, and geometric patchwork tiling to spell out her children\u2019s names in Morse Code along the top edge of the wall. These creative touches also encouraged Posy to venture on her own tiling journey in the kitchen, using cheap tiles arranged in a patchwork.<\/p>

On close inspection, there are collections to be found on almost every surface and shelf. Posy collects animal decorations and is often given stuffed, china and wooden animals, as well as fabrics and cushions featuring animals. \u2018I feel I need to rescue them,\u2019 she says. She also has a collection of old postcards featuring volcanoes that she had framed and then hung on the landing, and she always buys cheap round mirrors if she spots one at a car boot sale.<\/p>

Floors, meanwhile, are covered with old rugs<\/a>, a lifetime of books are piled around \u2013 and read \u2013 and chairs are fat and comfy: everything in the house creates a restful backdrop. This backdrop also gives Posy the perfect opportunity to be as creative inside as she is outside, at work in her clients\u2019 gardens. posygentles.co.uk<\/a><\/em><\/p>

Posy Gentles\u2019 pretty sitting room is dominated by a fire surround in painted slate. The mirror above was bought at an antiques fair. The Arts and Crafts chairs and desk belonged to Posy\u2019s father, and the fireside chairs and bookcase belonged to her grandmother. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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On the sofa at the back of the sitting room, Posy has covered a cushion with a fabulous seaside-print fabric from her grandmother\u2019s collection. The other cushions are made from an old coat. The painting by David Lloyd is of Posy\u2019s son, Edmund, and his dog, Charlie. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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The latex artwork above the piano in the music room is by Posy\u2019s son, William. It sits next to a case of frogs\u2019 legs in test tubes from a science lab and a signed photo of Vita Sackville-West. The Jacobean chest belonged to Posy\u2019s great-uncle. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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Posy used mirror tiles to cover the stairs up to the attic. The painting on the left-hand wall is by her daughter, Minna, and the series of images above the bookcase on the landing are from a collection of postcards featuring volcanoes. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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Posy has used her imagination to transform her kitchen as cheaply as possible, preparing the carcasses with Zinsser primer before painting. The handles are from eBay and the cooker was found on a building site. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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The dining room features a fabulous circular window above the table, which is covered with a Zoffany fabric. The Ercol dining chairs were found on eBay and the Royal Crown Derby Olde Avesbury china belonged to Posy\u2019s mother. The painting of Daphne, a water nymph in Greek mythology, is by David Lloyd and the fish painting is by Christopher Oldfield. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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Posy\u2019s mother\u2019s collection of Chinese plates is displayed on the dining room wall. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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The large 1930s bed was painted with chalk paint. The hanging and cushions were made from a Zoffany fabric bought on eBay. The quilt was a present from a friend, the lamp came from Posy\u2019s father and the gown is from India. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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Posy in her garden. – Jody Stewart –<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
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