How to Get That Cottage Look and Feel to a Home
- 1). Install shutters on your windows. If you aren't handy, you can have them installed for you. You can install them on the lower half of the windows or install two sets of shutters per window, one set on the lower half and one set on the upper half. The new Savannah shutters (wide louvers) painted white will definitely give your home that country cottage look.
- 2). Install valences on the upper half of the window if you have chosen to just put shutters on the lower half of the window. Plaids, cottage stripes or a flowery print will work best to obtain the look you want.
- 3). Place an afghan or two on the sofa, chair or ottoman. Afghans can be changed according to the season--soft warm afghans in the fall and winter and lighter brighter colored afghans in the spring and summer.
- 4). Set throw pillows on the sofa and chairs. The throw pillows do not have to match your sofa or chair. Often, choosing contrasting pillow fabrics in prints, plaids and even solid corduroy work well. Also, large throw pillows can be piled in a corner to be pulled out by the kids to sit on the floor and have a movie night with friends.
- 5). Gather framed family photos and display them, either on the walls, end tables or both. Frames can be vintage frames found at a flea market or rustic painted frames. White painted frames work well; even frames painted in pastel colors to pick up another color in the room will achieve that comfortable, "anything goes" cottage look. This gives that personal touch to cottage rooms and tells guests something about you and your family.
- 6). Strategically place books around the room, stack them on a coffee table or end table or place them on the floor along side a comfy chair. Books about gardening, shells, the seashore, or even a book by your favorite poet will add to that comfortable cottage feeling.
- 7). Add to the decor by displaying antique or vintage mementos from your life. It could be an old toy chest from your childhood or a canoe paddle from your college days. Even an old suitcase tucked alongside a chair will give a room that cottage look and feel.