A Designer’s Guide to Choosing Finishes for a Historic Home

One of my favorite parts of designing an older home is choosing the finishes. It’s also one of the places where I think people can get a little stuck.

When you’re lucky enough to live in a home with history, there can be this feeling that every new decision needs to match what would have been there originally. The tile needs to look historic. The plumbing fixtures need to feel historic. The lighting needs to look like it could have been installed 100 years ago.

But that’s not really how I approach it.

I love the character of old homes, but I also believe they should work for the people living in them today. My goal is never to turn a home into a museum—or to create a brand-new room that looks like we tried very hard to make it “old.”

Instead, I want the new pieces to feel comfortable alongside what was already there.

Start With the House

Before I start thinking about tile patterns or faucet finishes, I look at the home itself.

What details are original? What materials repeat throughout the house? Is there beautiful dark millwork? Original oak flooring? Arched openings? Built-ins? Leaded glass? An old fireplace surround that immediately catches your eye?

Those details give us a starting point.

Every older home has its own personality, and I think the best renovations respond to that rather than working against it. Two homes built in the same decade can still call for completely different selections. That’s why I don't believe there is one formula for designing a historic home. The goal is to understand what makes this house special, and then build from there.

Tile: Choosing for the Home, Not the Trend

Tile can establish so much of the personality of a kitchen, bathroom, mudroom, or entry. In an older home, I tend to gravitate toward materials and patterns that have some history behind them. That might mean a simple subway tile, a small-scale mosaic, natural stone, or a pattern that feels familiar without being overly themed. But historic doesn't have to mean predictable. Sometimes an unexpected color or slightly different layout is exactly what keeps a room from feeling like a reproduction. I also think about how the tile will age.

Will we still appreciate it after the trend cycle has moved on? Does it complement the architecture rather than competing with it? I want the tile to feel like it belongs, not like it was chosen because it happened to be everywhere that year.

Lighting: Don't Be Afraid to Have Some Fun

Lighting is one of my favorite ways to add character. It's also an area where I don't think we need to be overly literal about the age of the home. Yes, I want the scale and style to make sense with the architecture. But that doesn't mean every fixture needs to look like an antique. Sometimes a vintage-inspired fixture is perfect. Other times, something cleaner and more contemporary creates a beautiful contrast against original millwork or plaster walls. I love that tension between old and new.

The most important thing is that the fixture feels intentional within the room. Lighting should contribute something, whether that's warmth, shape, texture, or a little unexpected personality.

Hardware: The Small Details Really Do Matter

Hardware is one of those details that can seem insignificant until you see everything installed. Cabinet knobs, pulls, hinges, door hardware, they're the pieces you touch every day, and they have a surprisingly big impact on how finished a room feels. In historic homes, I generally prefer hardware with some weight and substance to it. Something that feels appropriate next to substantial millwork and traditional cabinetry.

If the house still has beautiful original hardware, even better. We can often use it as inspiration for newer selections without trying to copy it exactly. Again, the goal isn't perfect historical accuracy. It's continuity.

Flooring: Preserve What’s Already There

I have such a soft spot for original hardwood floors. They hold so much of a home’s history and character, so whenever we have the opportunity to preserve them, that’s almost always where I want to start. There’s something about the variation, patina, and imperfections of an old wood floor that you simply can’t recreate with something new. If the floors can be repaired, refinished, or thoughtfully brought back to life, even better.

Of course, there are times when we need to introduce new flooring. In those spaces, I’m always thinking about how it will relate to the original floors throughout the rest of the home. The goal isn’t necessarily to make everything match perfectly, but to make the transition feel natural and intentional. Whether we’re continuing wood flooring or bringing in tile or stone, I want it to feel like it belongs in the home and like it will only get better with a little life lived on it.

Countertops: Give Natural Materials Room to Be Natural

When appropriate for the project, I love materials that develop character over time.

Natural stone is a perfect example. There can be a tendency to worry about every etch, mark, or subtle change, but I think a little patina can be incredibly beautiful in an older home. These houses already tell a story. The materials we introduce don't need to stay pristine forever.

Of course, every family has a different tolerance for maintenance, which is why we talk through how a material actually behaves before selecting it. The prettiest countertop in the world isn't the right countertop if you're going to worry every time someone sets a glass of orange juice on it. Good design has to work in real life.

The Secret Is in the Mix

Ultimately, choosing finishes for a historic home is less about finding the "correct" historic tile or the perfect vintage-looking faucet and more about creating a mix that feels beautiful. Maybe we preserve the original floors but introduce new cabinetry. Maybe we choose a classic marble alongside a more contemporary light fixture. Maybe an antique piece sits next to something we designed specifically for the room. That layering is what makes a home feel interesting.

When every single selection is from the same era, or trying too hard to look like it is, the result can start to feel a little staged. And when everything is brand new and trend-driven, we risk losing the character that made us fall in love with the house in the first place.There's a middle ground, and that's usually where I think the magic happens.

Creating a Home That Feels Like It Has Always Been Yours

When we're finished with a project, I don't want someone to walk through the door and immediately be able to identify every single thing we changed. I want the new spaces to settle into the house. I want them to feel connected to its history while making everyday life easier, more comfortable, and more beautiful for the family who lives there now. Because preserving the character of an older home doesn't mean freezing it in time.

These homes have always evolved with the people who have cared for them. I see our work as another chapter in that story, thoughtfully preserving what's worth keeping, introducing what's needed, and creating something that feels like it belongs for many years to come.