How to Decorate in an Early American Theme

Solid wood pieces and simple fabrics will complete your early American look.

Popular from the early 1900s to the 1960s, the early American style of decorating is perhaps the last example of a style that was almost universally followed in homes in Colonial times. Featuring fabric crafts, wood furniture and simple fabrics, early American was a style that the average housewife of the time could pull off successfully. Create your own retro early American style easily by using a mix of attic or thrift store finds and new purchases and crafts.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Paint your walls white, ecru, eggshell or some shade close to that family. Paint the door and window frames the same color, or use a lighter shade or a stark white for a subtle accent. If you would like to wallpaper the walls for more color, use a small all-over print in blue, red or green. Keep the woodwork in the same light shade, even if you use wallpaper. For a different decorative touch, stencil a design around the top of the wall instead of using a wallpaper border, or as a chair rail design.

2. Fill the room with solid wood pieces of furniture. The furniture should have cutouts piercing the panels, scrolled edges or turned legs. Early American furniture rarely has straight lines on its face, but will offer curves and rounded edges everywhere possible. Search thrift shops and attic storage spots for the most authentic samples of this furniture genre.

3. Add ruffles where you can throughout the room. Purchase or sew Priscilla curtains with deep ruffled edges, and add lampshades with ruffled bottoms. Concentrate on deep colored fabrics for the most part, but add light colored sheer curtains underneath the darker fabrics. Use plaids or chintz-style flowered fabrics.

4. Use knickknacks and decorative pieces made of pewter or copper. Find decorative table lamps, candlesticks, plates and bowls or candle snuffers in authentic materials or good reproductions. Display these items on mantlepieces, bookshelves and side tables. Include a large clock on the wall, either a cuckoo clock or another wooden version.

5. Add a final decorative touch with fabric crafts, either purchased or homemade. Cover your floors with braided rugs or hooked rugs. Toss ruffled pillows on all the chairs and couches. Cover beds with patchwork quilts and fold one over the arm of a chair. Add baskets to hold magazines, for catchalls or to display collections of small objects like keys.

References

• Antique Home Style: Colonial and Traditional Style
• Decor Medley: Americana Decorations