This tiny room, so unsparingly plain to eyes accustomed to an excess of fringe and furbelows, appears in the mid-Victorian "sensation novel" Armadale, by Wilkie Collins. The room becomes a favorite of the young master of the house, Allan Armadale, as well as a player in the novel's convoluted plot. Rooms like it were commonplace additions to Victorian houses, and today remain one of the easiest Victorian-era rooms to recreate in a newer home.
With clever shopping, you can recreate the charm of Armadale's sun room in your own screened porch in a weekend, for a modest price.
Walls and Floors
Plainness is the key to success in your sun room. While Victorian parlors were showcases of all that was excessive, plainness, fresh air, lightness, and simplicity were championed for private rooms. Avoid stark white, which Victorians abhored, in favor of cream, matting beige, sage green, or soft gray. If your sun room faces east or north, choose warm colors; cool colors were preferred for a room that faced west or south.
Wallpaper was used everywhere, and is appropriate if you have "finished" walls. Choose a subdued pattern with small, stylized ivy or leaves. A grasscloth-like texture is also a good choice.
While "matting" was used everywhere for Victorian floors, the matting available today is often an uncomfortable dust trap. You may be better off painting a softwood floor in a neutral color, a bit darker than the walls, and softening it with a simple braided or floral-patterned rug. While you have the painting equipment set up, try a sky blue or sage green ceiling.
Seating
The classic seating choice for a sun room is wicker or rattan. Real Victorian wicker, with elaborate curlicues, is expensive and delicate, but a good deal of perfectly nice contemporary wicker can be found without breaking your budget. (Here in upstate New York, you can buy wicker furniture suites at the grocery store.)
Small-scale seating squeezes into a narrow porch, but spend a bit more for more sturdy and generously proportioned seats if you want to lounge with a good novel. If space permits, add a day bed or a very plainly styled fainting couch. Start with plain or canvas-striped cushions, then pile on the pillows!
