Question about Georgian houses

Joined Nov 2015
6 Posts | 0+
UK
I am a writer and in my book the Georgian house in question is painted. However, upon searching Georgian houses I could not find one that was painted. Is it believable or even possible that a Georgian house would be painted?

Also, does anyone have a cut away diagram of a Georgian house? A very large house? preferably a three floor town house, I have been searching for a while now and had no luck :deadhorse:

Thank you.
 
Joined Sep 2013
6,844 Posts | 688+
Wirral
I am a writer and in my book the Georgian house in question is painted. However, upon searching Georgian houses I could not find one that was painted. Is it believable or even possible that a Georgian house would be painted?

Also, does anyone have a cut away diagram of a Georgian house? A very large house? preferably a three floor town house, I have been searching for a while now and had no luck :deadhorse:

Thank you.

I'm far from being an expert on it but I think it wasn't unusual for buildings (I'm not saying houses necessarily!) of that era to have a painted stucco finish.
 
Joined Nov 2015
6 Posts | 0+
UK
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It is but I still want it to be historically correct and it's colour is important to the story.

I am also trying to work out the floor plan of the house, which is causing me grief as it is a task of which I have no skill or experience T.T
 
Joined Sep 2013
6,844 Posts | 688+
Wirral
It is but I still want it to be historically correct and it's colour is important to the story.

I am also trying to work out the floor plan of the house, which is causing me grief as it is a task of which I have no skill or experience T.T

You've aroused my curiosity now - it seems that if stucco were painted it was to imitate Bath or Portland stone. There's a Georgian Group that might know a tiny bit more than I do!
 
Joined Mar 2013
4,420 Posts | 4+
Scotland
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Yes, if the property was faced in stucco it would generally be given a lime wash, although not always. Some early very fine stucco facings were left self-coloured. Stone faced properties that through time and maintenance became stained or patchy would be given a lime wash also, although sometimes the wash could be so translucent it was very difficult to tell it from the stone.

For a blue house, I'm not sure, although I see no reason why some individual might decide that is what is wanted. In general terms though, I think you'd have to step out of the Georgian style (which ran up as late as the 1860s I think, so Georgian style in the Victorian era) and find a time when it was subsequently in fashion to do this to the already existing façade.

In terms of how the Georgian town house was laid out and functioned, there was a TV series a few years ago now that might be floating around youtube. I think it was called The Georgian Town House or similar.

Good luck.
 
Joined Nov 2015
6 Posts | 0+
UK
Thank you. The house was built in 1755 and painted blue because it was the favorite colour of the wife of the man who had it built.
 
Joined Mar 2013
4,420 Posts | 4+
Scotland
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Thank you. The house was built in 1755 and painted blue because it was the favorite colour of the wife of the man who had it built.

So he sneakily put ground azurite in the lime wash;).




He must have really loved his wife, but maybe not so much the builders, copper carbonates can be slightly toxic, but I suppose as long as no one decides to start licking the walls afterwards it should be okay.
 
Joined May 2013
4,450 Posts | 1,178+
Albuquerque, NM
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A lot depends upon where, when and what sort of Georgian house you are focused on.

At the top o'the heap were the large country houses in England from about the 18th century onward. Georgian houses tend to be very symmetrical with imposing facades. Two architects tended to dominate; Christopher Wren, and Palladio. Curved features, like oval rooms, barrel ceilings, and window openings, were common. The most common building material was dressed stone, or brick. The model Georgian Country House was made to impress the wealth, power and fame of the property owner.

Country gentry expected large numbers of guests with their large retinue of servants to be provided for. The basement was primarily a work space where the servants, hidden from view, did the endless work of keeping those old houses running effectively. Kitchen, scullery, laundry, pantry, and the servant's table were basic. Hidden stairways and elaborate bell systems were used to minimize the presence of the house minions. Below stairs anything more than periodic whitewashing would be rare.

The main floor was dedicated to the family's public functions. The front door and entry hall was imposing. The main floor might also have rooms dedicated to: formal dining where large numbers of guests could be seated; a Ball Room for dancing to the music of local musicians; a Library/Study where the Master showed off his importance to visitors and servants; a Drawing Room used for casual gatherings to sew, listen to Chamber Music, and play games. These rooms were elaborately decorated, but colors and forms tended to be subtle expressions of the owner's place in Society. These were the most formal and elaborate public rooms of the house where curved and oval and round rooms would most likely have been found. Where the servant's stairs were hidden, the grand staircase(s) were meant to be marveled at as they curved upward to the second floor.

The second floor contained the Owner's Suites of rooms, and a large number of guest rooms ... often in a separate wing. The size, location and decor of guestrooms would be assigned to guests according to their place in society. The assignment of bedrooms was also a part of the elaborate game of flirtation and extramarital shenanigans that went on during visits that might last a whole season.

The Family's private apartments were comfortable for the time. The Mistress might have her private sewing or reading room, where only her most intimate friends would be invited, and from which she would rule the House and its army of servants. The heir's rooms would be second only to the Owner's, and probably nearest the formal staircase. Daughters would occupy apartments furthest from the stairs and access. Nurseries were on the second floor connected to smaller bedrooms for the wet-nurse and/or nanny. As much luxury as possible would have been lavished on the Owner's Suits of apartments. The Master's apartments would have been more likely to reflect the family's personal tastes, so eccentric wall papers, and paint choices might have been more likely.

On the third floor were the private rooms for the servants, and they also were assigned according to the servant's rank in the household. Cook, Butler, and the owner's personal body servants, along with private secretaries, tutors and etc. would have the pick of the best rooms. The lowest ranking servants might be consigned to the attic in rooms only large enough for a single bed and chamber pot. These servant's quarters weren't fancy. The better rooms might have their own fireplaces, a window, and a cast-off carpet. Whitewash would be the normal paint, and some rooms might not have even had that.

Close to the main house the stables, blacksmithy, and etc. were kept out of sight. Stable hands slept in the barn. The Estate Manager and head Grounds Keeper might have their own small cottages. Landscaping for the Georgian Country House was extremely important. The most sought after landscape architects was named "Capability" Brown, and his principles were widely copied. "Capability" would literally move a small hill from one place to another, create "natural" rivers and lakes, or install a forest to enhance the view of the House as it was approached by visitors. Only a wealthy person could afford Capability, but the number of lesser lights were available for those with fewer resources.

I've spent a bit more focus on the Great Country Houses, because they were the model for more modest properties in the country, and the town houses that a family might live in during the "Season in the City". Whilst Daddy was attending Parliament, his sons might be visiting the low dives where wine, wenches and bad companions could be found. This was a season for daughters to shop for the latest fashions and learn the newest songs and dances, while Mother assessed promising matrimonial matches. The family would spend evenings at the Theater, or throwing elaborate parties for their peers. To accomplish this, they had to approximate the grandeur of their Country Estate in the crowded City. Beautiful landscapes here were public rather than private. Riding wasn't to the hounds, but to see and be seen along fashionable avenues and parks. The pied de Terre during the Georgian Period was itself a model for what ambitious city dwellers thought of as Posh.

Stone was the preferred building material, but modest copies were often of stucco, wood sometimes painted to mimic stone or brick. The style found favor in the overseas colonies, but there brick and wood predominated; the houses were smaller and less class conscious, and; the natural landscape with a few enhancements were more common. Again the colors tended to be muted, but not always. When first visiting Mt. Vernon, one is struck by the vibrant bright paint that the Washington's preferred. The difficulty in lighting homes during the late 18th and early 19th century might have made bright colors in rooms more extensive than we generally think was the case.
 
Joined Dec 2011
3,514 Posts | 750+
Late Cretaceous
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The BBC have something about it;

BBC - Homes - Design - Georgian

the interiors of Ditchley House (1722)

Gallery - The Ditchley Foundation


interior picture of Paxton House, Berwick ( built 1758-1766)

80.8-Inside-House-Image-5-1024x400.jpg




Georgian town houses, 1st, 2nd and 4th rate
georgian-town-houses-rates.jpg
 
Joined Nov 2015
6 Posts | 0+
UK
I am referring to the outside ^^

Thank you for the links, they are very helpful for my stately home ^^
 
Joined Sep 2013
7,435 Posts | 6+
Ireland
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Limerick City is mostly Georgian

23648_110568952297996_7144903_n.jpg


Sacred1.jpg


OConnell_Street%2C_Limerick_%285587139288%29.jpg
 
Joined Aug 2013
4,706 Posts | 85+
Europe
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I am a writer and in my book the Georgian house in question is painted. However, upon searching Georgian houses I could not find one that was painted. Is it believable or even possible that a Georgian house would be painted?

Also, does anyone have a cut away diagram of a Georgian house? A very large house? preferably a three floor town house, I have been searching for a while now and had no luck :deadhorse:

Thank you.

There are a few photos of houses in Lyme Regis that look like they might have been painted here in the link
https://greatacre.wordpress.com/tag/georgian/page/2/

"It used to be the Tudor Hotel and, as the name implies, it’s a Tudor house, built in the early 17th century, but it has a typical Georgian style facade."
p1050208.jpg


"A particularly important example is Belmont House on Pound Street at the junction with Cobb Road."
2012-07-15-17-35-25.jpg
 
Joined Jul 2013
13,906 Posts | 1,507+
San Antonio, Tx
It is but I still want it to be historically correct and it's colour is important to the story.

I am also trying to work out the floor plan of the house, which is causing me grief as it is a task of which I have no skill or experience T.T


Honestly, just Georgle Georgian Architecture, or Georgian Residential Architecture. Georgian residneial architecture from an exterior point of view was usually rigorously symmetrical about a central exis leading from the entrancewy. I hate break it to you, but my suspicion is that most substantial Georgian residential architecure was basically of masonry contruction with porches and trim being white pained wood, as well as window trim. Maybe there's a distinction between British and American Georgian that I'm not so familiar with. While I'm reasoinably sure the British used stucco, stucco is more of a French exterior material.

Incidentally, there might be a stone lower floor upon which brick exterior walls are mounted to make a rusticated look. I do know that some original American Georgian buildings that still exist (such as at Washington & Lee University in Virginia) were painted brick buildings with white porches, white columns, white window trim, etc.

Since much of Lindon is Georgian architecture, you shouuldn't have too much trouble finding examples.
 

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