How to Bring Home Regencycore

You needn’t be a fan of Bridgerton to love Regencycore. If you do watch Bridgerton, though, you already know what Regency style is all about: elegance and opulence.

The English Regency spanned only a decade, 1811-1820. This was when George, Prince of Wales officially handled royal duties for his father, King George III, when he was incapacitated by mental illness. But the Prince of Wales had already been an influential figure, in politics and in style, for years prior. And when George III died in 1820, the prince became King George IV, reigning for another 10 years until his death in 1830. So when people talk about the Regency aesthetic, they’re really talking about the style of upper-class Brits during the first several decades of the 19th century. 

At this time the sun was shining bright over the British Empire. That’s why Regency interiors featured Egyptian obelisks, Indian chintzes, chinoiserie, and other far-flung elements layered atop neoclassical symmetry. Then there was the fact that Prince George was quite the spendthrift. There’s no better testament to his extravagance than the Royal Pavilion & Garden in Brighton, England. This was not a man who entertained the concept of “less is more.”

Photo credit: Royal Pavilion & Garden

The elements of Regencycore

Now that we have the history lesson out of the way, let’s look at the features that define the Regencycore interior and how you can incorporate them into your home.

Millwork and moldings

Ceiling medallions, cornices, carved friezes, picture frame and crown moldings: These rival heaving breasts and longing glances for prominence in Bridgerton. Adding just one of two of these architectural features will infuse a room with Regencycore sophistication. Because not enough people take advantage of the ceiling as a room’s fifth wall, we suggest adding a rosette to dress up your ceiling. While they’re most commonly used in conjunction with chandeliers, they don’t have to be; you’ll find many medallions without a center cutout. They can also cast classic elegance onto a contemporary light fixture.  

Photo credit: homewithmila

Pastels and gold

While there are the occasional jewel tones, pastels dominate the Regencycore palette, from mint green and Wedgwood blue to champagne pink and lemon chiffon. These hues ensure that nothing competes with the lavish gold accents. In addition to ornate gold picture and mirror frames, a Bridgerton-style room might feature lamps with gilded bases, golden appliqués on furniture, and even gilded moldings. At the very least, swap out any silvery door handles or drawer pulls for golden ones—the more ornate the better, of course.

Photo credit: Belvoir Castle

Floral fantasia

Beyond the requisite floral arrangements, depictions of flowers appear on upholstery, wallpaper, artwork, and tableware. Patterns tend to be dense with blooms and foliage, in keeping with the overall “more more more” philosophy of Regency style. If a settee upholstered in floral chintz is too much for you, start with a throw pillow or two. 

Elaborate window treatments

The Regency homes of the Bridgerton crowd had towering windows within double-height ceilings. As if their sheer size weren’t impressive enough, these windows were dressed in lavish velvet draperies puddling on the floor and extravagant swags. While all this fabric did have a practical purpose—those drafty rooms can get very cold—they also reinforced the sense of opulence. 

Swags are very polarizing, but even minimalists can incorporate a dash of Regencycore into their room with the addition of velvet, silk, or other high-quality curtains. On sunny or warm days, pull the curtains back with tasseled tiebacks to let in the natural light while still nodding to Regency chic. 

Also, draperies aren’t just for windows in Regency interior design. Hang them from the curtain rail of a four-poster bed, or attach a rod above your headboard and let curtains hang over each side; for extra panache, cover the rod with a cornice. Another DIY option is to attach two swing-arm curtain rods on the ceiling, each extending several inches beyond a side of your bed or daybed, and drape fabric over them to create a canopy.

Photo credit: Tucker & Marks

Furniture ornamentation

Since the Mid-Century Modern era, streamlined furniture free of extraneous embellishments has dominated decor. Regencycore is a reaction to that minimalism. Sofas, chaises, and chairs flaunt curvaceous wood frames carved with acanthus leaves, rosettes, and lion’s heads. Table pedestals and legs boast reeding, fluting, scrolls, and claw feet. And if some of this ornamentation is highlighted with gilding, all the better!  

Crystal

Multitiered chandeliers dripping with crystal prisms, pendalogues, and chains were de rigueur in Regency homes, and they still denote Old World sophistication today. Hanging a crystal chandelier above even a Mid-Century Modern Tulip table or a farmhouse-style table is a foolproof way to welcome Regencycore into your home, and to refresh your style in a way that will never go out of fashion. 

Photo credit: paigelavergnehome; photo by Andrea Kinnear

Not ready for a major commitment or expenditure? Try crystal sconces. Or a crystal vase or paperweight. Or crystal drinkware (opt for lead-free crystal if you’re worried about lead leaching into your beverage; technically lead-free crystal isn’t crystal at all, but it looks just as, well, crystalline and feels just as weighty). Any room, whatever its aesthetic, can benefit from some sparkle.

Regency stripes and damask

Along with floral prints, these patterns exemplify the Regencycore aesthetic. Regency stripes originated in India, as is evident from their alternative name, Bengal stripes. Thicker than pinstripes and thinner than awning stripes, these are typically displayed vertically and feature alternating dark and light colors. Sometimes thinner stripes in a third color are added, or the paler stripes might be adorned with a floral motif. 

Photo credit: jenconnell.home

Technically damask is a fabric rather than a pattern. Dating back to China nearly two millennia ago, damask has the pattern woven into the fabric via dual techniques that make the fabric durable and reversible. Today, however, damask is associated primarily with the ornate two-tone motifs that incorporate flora and fauna, along with crowns and scrolls with an almost geometric repeat.

In a Regency home, one might see damask wallpaper and Regency stripe upholstery in the same room. Introducing just one of the patterns in a low-commitment way—damask pillows, a Regency stripe tablecloth—will nonetheless bring a dash of Bridgerton into your home. For a more playful take, consider a traditional damask pattern in an extra-large scale or Regency stripes in unlikely colors (hot pink and lemon yellow, anyone?).

Chinoiserie

George IV was a huge fan of chinoiserie, a  European interpretation of Asian design elements, from pagodas to ginger jars decorated with koi and lotuses. A black lacquered cabinet adorned with gold detailing and, on its doors, fanciful Eastern landscapes is perhaps the ultimate Regencycore chinoiserie furnishing. Chinoiserie wallpaper panels or murals lush with chrysanthemums, storks, bamboo trees, and other icons of the style exude Regency sophistication too. Or you can start by adding foo dog bookends to a shelf or a lamp with a blue-and-white jar-shape body to a room.

Photo credit: amandaseend; photo by James McDonald

Nothing but the best

Crystal chandeliers, chinoiserie, and canopy beds are emblematic of Regencycore. So are sinuous chaises (ideal for dramatically collapsing onto), rococo gold mantel clocks, and oversize oil paintings of ancestors hanging from gilded picture rails. But of all the hallmarks of Regency design, high quality is perhaps most important. Even if polyester, plastic, and plywood had been around in the 19th century, they wouldn’t have been present in a Bridgerton home. Velvet, silk, linen, and jacquard were the fabrics of choice; furniture was crafted of mahogany, rosewood, zebrawood, and ebony.  

So while the Regency aesthetic leaned heavily into excess, quality was just as important as quantity. The same holds true for today’s Regencycore. And that makes the look easier to adopt than you might think. Just one sumptuous velvet-upholstered settee, a few crystal candlesticks, or a set of silk sheets is enough to bring the luxuriousness of Bridgerton to your own abode.  

Palazzo can help you decide the best way to introduce Regencycore into your home, whether you want a little or a lot. Simply load a photo of one of your rooms into the Vinci design tool followed by a Regency-style inspiration photo, then let Vinci work his magic. From there you can tweak the results to your heart’s content.

Photo credit: design by Palazzo

Sherry Chiger was formerly the head of editorial at One Kings Lane, where she produced a leading interior design blog. She also writes on decor and other topics for numerous other sites and publications.