dolls house source information

The Victorian Drawing Room

The Victorian Drawing Room became the most important room in the Victorian house. It took its name from being the room to which ladies “withdrew” after dinner leaving the gentlemen at the dinner table to talk, smoke and enjoy other manly pursuits.

Drawing Rooms tended to be furnished in a predominantly feminine style. It tended to be grand, luxurious and elaborate. Plasterwork and mouldings would be intricately decorated to enhance the whole room and not just the walls at eye level. The Drawing Room was typically the most expensive room to furnish. Metre upon metre of luxurious material was used to swag the large windows. It might be fringed and draped for curtains, upholstery, tables, mantel pieces and even architectural mouldings.

Designs might be chosen by the lady of the household. Drapery, plumages and floral designs were prolific. If she were an adept seamstress, her talents might be put to use in this room. Her tapestry or embroidery talents could be on displayed here in middle class homes. If the house was large enough to have a parlour and a drawing room, needlepoint might be relegated to the parlour or to the lady’s sitting room.

The drawing room would be crowded with furniture. There would be plenty of seating in a variety of styles, arranged in small groups around the room. Multiple small tables, etageres whatnots, cabinets, cupboards and shelves would display collections of photographs nick nacks and ornaments. There would be vases, urns, trinket trays, pot plants, stuffed animals, flower arrangements.

Sofas and parlour chairs were fashionable between the 1850’s and 1890’s, clustered around an ornate and heavily dressed fireplace complete with overmantel or mirror. An overly large mirror could reflect the room back, making the parlour seem even larger that it really was. Other room accessories might include:-

Fire screens

Canterburys

Plant stands

Work tables

Writing tables

Paintings

Footstools

The Oriental influence became very popular, a good example of this is the blue and white willow ware china.

The family’s wealth and social standing might be displayed through a collection of artistic and aesthetic objects in the drawing room. These might include:-

Glass

Porcelain

Vases

Figurines

Miniatures

Dishes

Hence, display cabinet with glass doors, open shelving units, curio cases sideboards and whatnots and tables were all popular ways to display such collections