Why choose Historic Design Consulting to help you select historic paint colors for your Victorian era home or business?

For more information about historic paint colors for your Victorian or Arts and Crafts era home or business, please visit the Historic Design Consulting Website today!

There is an abundance of colorists, consultants and other professionals who specialize in Victorian-era paint colors and ornament for historic homes.  This can make selecting a consultant who is right for you and your historic architecture difficult considering their varying levels of training, education and expertise.  Historic Design's color consultants, however, have a unique background which includes academic training in architectural history and building conservation as well as hands-on experience in restoration which distinguishes us from others in the field.  

Unlike colorists whose backgrounds are in decoration and design, Historic Design's consultants are grounded in a graduate level education in history and architectural history.  Like any good historian, we start our research with primary sources and period color palettes rather than rely on modern authors and paint manufacturers to tell us how people painted their homes and businesses.  We know which pigments painters used and when. We know how architectural styles and aesthetic ideals evolved during the 19th century and how color palettes reflected these changes. We know that colors used on an 1850s Italianate home might not be appropriate for a 1905 Colonial Revival or Shingle Style home.    

19th century card with paint chips from Lion Brand.  Historic Design
 Consulting has a collection of primary sources like period color
samples which we use to select our period-correct color palettes.

In short, we use the same materials and literature that painters used in the 19th century to write custom color reports for our clients.

John W. Masury's 1881 book on house painting.  Period literature offers
an instructive account of 19th century painting practice and theory.  

Our expertise in architectural history is complimented by our training in building conservation. Building conservation is the discipline of preserving and restoring historic architecture. This includes a thorough knowledge of historic building materials and construction methods as well as the best practices to preserve them. 19th and early 20th buildings present challenges that are unique to historic architecture and a background in building conservation is necessary to preserve these building's distinguishing characteristics.  

Historic Design Consulting has a library of period photos which we use to determine correct
color placement. 

Historic Design Consulting also benefits from hands-on experience in building maintenance and restoration.   Although academic training is important, there is no substitute for actual experience in paint preparation, window restoration and building repair.  Our expertise in modern maintenance methods as well as 19th century carpentry and house joinery using Civil War era tools and techniques makes Historic Design Consulting stand apart from other consultants and colorists.  

To get your own historic paint color report for your Victorian era house or business, visit our web page at www.historic-design.com and click on the Paint Colors button in the Our Services Menu.

The Second Empire Style

Many 19^th century building styles, including the Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival and Italianate, were inspired by historic precedents and featured antique details such as lancet arches, brackets and classical architraves.  Around the middle of the century, however, some Americans opted for a more “modern” style which emulated fashionable designs current in Paris.  This modern style, called the Second Empire, proved to be especially popular in the Midwest and Northeast following the Civil War and many examples remain in small towns and large cities alike.

One outstanding example is the Early Mansion, a 1875 house built by D. Carr Early in Sac City, IA.  A native of Freeburg, OH, Early pre-empted a quarter section of land near Sac City in 1857 and prospered due to his investments in a local bank and railroad.   He built a grand home in the fashionable Second Empire style and had its furnishings delivered via ox cart from Fort Dodge, IA, which was 60 miles distant across the open prairie.  

The 1875 Early Mansion in Sac City, IA.

   What distinguishes the Second Empire?  First and foremost is the mansard roof.  This dual-pitched roof design, named after the 17^th century French architect François Mansart (1598-1666), allowed more efficient use of attic space.  The design proved so practical that many existing buildings with traditional roofs were remodeled with the mansard.  High style examples of the Second Empire often feature towers, elaborate molded hoods over windows and brackets along the cornice. Despite being considered a “modern” style, its detailing (apart from the mansard roof) closely resembles the picturesque Italianate style popular since the 1840s.  

Closeup showing the elaborate porch, brackets and window hoods.

Another fine Iowa example of the Second Empire style is the Harker House in Storm Lake, IA.  This cottage was built by 1875 by J. M. Russell for $500 dollars.  Although smaller than the Early Mansion, the Harker House features many of the same design elements.  The Harker House has been preserved as a house museum with many of its original furnishings thanks to efforts of Russell's granddaughter Nora Harker.  

The 1875 Harker House in Storm Lake, IA. 

You might ask "What exactly does the name Second Empire mean?"  The Second Empire refers to the regime of Napoleon III who ruled France between 1852 and 1870 (the First Empire was, of course, the regime of his uncle Napoleon Bonaparte).  One major project of Napoleon III was the modernization of medieval Paris into a modern capital city capable of supporting its burgeoning population.   Napoleon III tasked Baron Haussmann with renovating the old city and, over the following decades, virtually all of medieval Paris was demolished and replaced with the grand boulevards and buildings we recognize today. The design for many of the buildings built in Haussmann's new Paris was based on Renaissance precedents and incorporated the Mansard roof. The Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1855 and the International Exhibition in London in 1867 popularized the new style and it was to become popular in style books in the United States.

To visit the Harken House, check out their web page  or visit their Facebook page.