Open shelving places vintage ironstone ware, French towels and cookbooks within easy reach of the chef.
Priscilla George admits to being a 21st-century woman with the tastes of the 18th century’s Marie Antoinette.
“Give me silk, velvet, a little sparkle,” she says, laughing.
There’s plenty of sparkle — and past centuries — in the historic Fan home George shares with her husband, Thomas. With more than 30 years of experience in interior design, George has mastered the art of incorporating style with comfortable living. She’s already declared that future grandchildren will be taught how to coexist with antiques.
“We affectionately call [our house] The George Museum,” she says. “We love our stuff, and we live with it and don’t worry about it. When the grandbabies come, I’m just going to say, ‘These are pretties, and we don’t touch them.’ ”
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Instead of flowers, George dresses her Thanksgiving table with a mix of natural, faux and vintage materials.
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The glass-front cupboard houses favorite books and special mementos, as well as George’s office supplies.
The Georges’ 1903 Georgian house isn’t as large as the 18-acre property with two houses they once occupied. But it is larger than the Fan condominium they loved but left in 2020 as their family grew to include adult children’s partners. With nearly 3,000 square feet and 12-foot ceilings, the move gave them more room for belongings that had been in storage.
George and her husband have lived in England twice and, more than a decade ago, purchased a second home in the Loire Valley of France. Their Richmond home is filled with pieces large and small that either came from Europe or have European flavor.
In the dining room, a marble-topped French buffet dates to the early 1900s — and is a perpetual challenge for movers, but it practically holds dining ware. In the family room, a corner Victorian cabinet displays leather-bound French books from the 17th and 18th centuries, and nearby wood shelves from the Victorian era display a photo of George’s grandfather as a toddler. A picture frame made of plaster, purchased from a French antique shop and showing the wear and tear of its age, was crafted by Vincent Van Gogh’s frame maker.
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The eclectic mix of furnishings in Priscilla George’s dining room reflects her modern take on French country style.
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Custom Scalamandre panels trimmed with antique silk tassels create a dramatic frame for George’s office window.
Throughout the house, small items catch the eye. In the front room, which serves as an office and has comfortable chairs inviting a tête-à-tête, the fireplace mantel sports crystal mustard pots from England, which George found while rummaging through a “car boot sale” — our equivalent of a flea market. The pots’ accompanying spoons came later. “For me, it’s the thrill of the hunt,” she says. “It might take a year and a half to find what I want, but I will.”
George’s collection of feves, miniature porcelain figurines traditionally used in France for Ash Wednesday king’s cakes, is carefully placed on side tables and shelves. “I call them my people,” George says, laughing.
Her modern French country style is evident in the furnishings, decorative objects and fabrics, but her color palette in this residence is muted. “I haven’t wallpapered much [here],” she says. “I really chose very soft colors on the walls this time. We have so much artwork — the artwork is the standout.”
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Vintage suitcases that belonged to George’s grandmother remind her that travel is a gift.
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A collection of 17th- and 18th-century leather-bound French books in a Victorian-era cabinet
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George likes to create dramatic window treatments by combining the inexpensive with the luxurious.
Window treatments throughout are updated versions of luxe coverings that might still hang in Europe. The kitchen window sports a Roman shade in a fresh paisley pattern, with a cornice-board valance in leopard print, “which has never gone out of style,” George notes.
The front office has custom Scalamandre drapes that are nearly floor to ceiling but don’t cover the whole window, a cost-saving strategy. Trimmed with antique silk tassels, the approach creates a dramatic frame for the streetscape view.
“Give me silk, velvet, a little sparkle.” —Priscilla George
Throughout, George has created meaningful “vignettes” — artful arrangements of various items, grouped so they can be appreciated as a whole while inviting closer inspection.
In the family room, a luggage rack holds two suitcases that belonged to George’s grandmother. George says the placement serves as a testament to her family’s love of travel and also a reminder that the ability to go somewhere else is a gift. “We’re blessed to be able to travel these days, because people do it all the time now,” she says. “Back then, it was a big deal.”
Her desk, topped by a piece of found marble she had cut to size, has above it a glass case with mementos as well as office supplies. On the wall to the side hangs a painting once owned by one of Napoleon’s generals, a fact George unearthed through research. “It’s fun to think about: Who owned that? Who used it?” she says.
Toulouse, George’s beloved Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, reigns over the living room from an antique Louis XVI gilded armchair.
For this year’s Thanksgiving celebration — as she does every year — George will extend the table, no matter the number of guests, and decorate it with what she has at hand, thoughtfully arranged.
“People don’t think they want to sit down to a pretty table, but the funny thing is, the minute they come in, they’re like, ‘Oh, this is so nice,’ ” she says. “It takes more time to do the dishes afterward, but so what? We really need to enjoy the moments we get. We have learned a lot from the pandemic. Now, when we get to sit in the backyard and have drinks with friends, it’s a big deal. It is a big deal to see people.”
