Cottage Feel Living Room
Ideas to Steal From Your Fantasy Holiday Cottage Living Room
Do you hanker after a weekend staycation bolthole, far from your daily life? Let these homes feed your dream
18 February, 2017
Houzz UK. I'm a journalist and editor, previously for the Independent, Guardian and various magazines. I'm now excited to part of the editorial team at Houzz UK & Ireland, bringing the best of British and Irish design, interiors and architecture to Houzz.com.
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Like writing that novel, buying a house by the sea/in the woods/at the lake is a dream many of us harbour. If you're lucky enough to be making your dream come true, you're in the right place for decorating ideas. But even if that idyllic imagined holiday cottage isn't on the horizon any time soon, perhaps a makeover inspired by these lovely living rooms will help you to holiday at home instead. Either way, enjoy a spot of escapism as you browse them.
More in this series
Ideas to Steal From Your Fantasy Holiday Cottage Bedroom | Ideas to Steal From Your Fantasy Holiday Cottage Kitchen
Go dark
The cosiness of this little room is boosted by the black feature wall and inky floorboards. They shrink the space, but in a really good way, making it feel super-snug. Add fat furniture and overdo the cushions and blankets and you're almost done.
Those key dark features, picked out by the large artwork and fashionable Berber rug, give this space a contemporary spike, even with the lovely ancient features, including the stone fire surround and solid shutters.
Consider supplementary seating
Although this Irish lakeside cabin doesn't have such petite proportions as the average cottage, some of its space-boosting ideas are transferrable to a smaller room.
Take this reading corner for two, for example. With the moveable footstool (which doubles as a coffee table), this already comfy chair becomes the perfect lounging spot. Also, so you don't get lonely reading a Brontë by the light of that handily flexible floor lamp, the adjacent window bench (perhaps best enjoyed leaning against the wall and facing the painting, knees up) almost turns this corner into a makeshift kissing seat.
Look out alternatively for an oversized armchair for two, aka a love seat, or a slimline chaise longue for one to complement your main sofa. Giant floor cushions, covered in a hard-wearing linen or woven fabric, could also do the job.
Buy battered
This pair of battered leather armchairs define this airy seaside living room and boost its relaxed, informal feel.
The lesson to take from them? That if you're browsing in an antiques market or vintage shop, don't dismiss something so well-worn it's almost falling apart. Here, the original seats are long gone, and the undersides are breaking loose, but these chairs still look beautiful and inviting.
The owner has simply made replacement cushions in a contrasting fabric, and piled on more cushions, in different textiles again. Cottons and linens, being as natural as the leather, work really well.
If you're tackling a similar repair job, don't worry about matching up your fabrics, but do work within a palette. This mix of sun-bleached blooms and stripes makes for a shabby chic effect.
For a slightly nautical nod, you could use blue and white striped ticking to make cushion covers. Ensure you choose the squishiest cushion fillers you can find – anything too stiff or overstuffed would clash with such chilled-out chairs.
Fire up
No chimney breast? No problem! Well, potentially no problem, if you have the right sort of space for a flue to run safely to the exterior of your house.
Any self-respecting country or seaside bolthole will have a fire. What else will you sit around with your tea and crumpets after a blustery walk? It may seem like an out-of-reach idea (perhaps like the fantasy cottage itself), but perhaps this little bit of your dream could come true…
While an open fire will always require a proper hearth and chimney, wood-burning stoves come with their own flues, and aren't, therefore, tied to a preordained spot in the room. There are also some surprisingly convincing wood-burner-like designs powered by electricity. You might not get that lovely smell of singed logs, but some do even produce a vapour that looks like smoke, and they're still toasty as well as being a snug focal point.
Read expert advice on how to choose and install a wood-burning stove
Swap overhead for wall lights…
Picture this already snug space after dark – those olive green wall lights will ensure it's bathed in a cosy glow rather than being flooded by a central light.
You can, of course, just go for individual lamps. However, being able to control your mood lighting at the flick of a wall switch (ideally a dimmable one) is a nice touch, and wall lights are also good in rooms where space for floor or table lamps is tight.
…or enjoy candlelight
Candles are a habit. A good habit! Get used to having a stash always in stock and stop saving them for 'best'.
Collect a variety of glass jars and find candles to fit them – a mix of long-lasting column candles and tealights (you can buy 8-hour versions of the latter). Keep a stock of your favourite scented candles, too, and burn one of these in the mix rather than waiting for guests to come over.
To remove old wax from jars and keep using them, warm the exterior gently and poke out the bulk of it with a dining knife or similar. Then fill the jar with very hot water and the residual wax will melt and dislodge itself. Don't pour this water down your drain, though, as the wax will reset and cause you all sorts of trouble.
Choose appropriate artwork
The defining artwork in the living room of this coastal house in Cornwall is a harbourside watercolour (probably by the renowned St Ives artist Eric Ward if you like it). Beautiful and suitable.
A painting or large-format photograph that connects a house to its surroundings – especially when said surroundings are part of its USP – is a great addition to a home-from-home's living room. (It's also a good consolation prize in your regular home, to remind you to go back to places you've loved.)
You don't need to be an art expert to pick the perfect piece. Staying local is a good start: seaside towns often have several small galleries selling work by artists from the area. You might find something suitable second-hand, too – an atmospheric portrait of a gnarly old fisherman or, if you're deep in woodland, a forest scene.
Bear in mind that you'll ideally want a focal-point artwork to reflect your décor's colour palette: the ideal is to start with a cherished piece and furnish around it, so as not to have to compromise on picking the perfect painting. A vintage map of the area could look good, too.
Check out the dos and don'ts of hanging art above a fireplace
Rough it
Ancient rural or coastal homes like this one sometimes have unfinished stone walls on their insides as well as their exteriors. Rather than tidily plastering over such a unique feature, celebrate it and keep any paintwork equally basic.
For already smooth walls, you can achieve a comparable feel by leaving plasterwork exposed (get advice on sealing it, though, so it isn't porous) or using reclaimed wood as wall cladding. A feature wall might be enough – or simply a start.
See more photos of coastal living rooms
Do away with the TV
If this is a place you want to go to get away from it all, arguably a good conversationalist and a good book, or perhaps the odd board game, should suffice for in-house entertainment.
Of course, bingeing on box sets after a blustery walk can also be nice, but consider relegating it to your computer, so you don't get sucked into the daily telly habits you have at home (especially if your evenings are timed around the news).
Alternatively, consider at least housing your TV somewhere far more hidden than your at-home version might be, so as to prioritise reading and chat.
How to blend your TV into your scheme
Bag a record player
Talking of old-fashioned entertainment, don't forget music. If slow living is a big part of your cottage fantasy, consider going vinyl. Yes, there are speakers for your phone or tablet, but nothing beats the simple pleasure of selecting a record, carefully lowering the needle and waiting for that comforting crackle. Rather than just scrolling and hitting play, putting on music becomes an activity and a spectacle in its own right.
Vintage-style players with built-in speakers, like this one, aren't too pricey and they look beautiful. Stock up on interesting-looking discs from charity shops to start with and build a cherished collection.
Which ideas would you put in your fantasy holiday cottage living room? Share your dreams in the Comments below.
Source: https://www.houzz.co.uk/magazine/ideas-to-steal-from-your-fantasy-holiday-cottage-living-room-stsetivw-vs~78415248
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