Make Your Own Cottage In 5 Easy Steps –

A sort of How-To, with the emphasis on sort of.

A cottage is a small dwelling place. (Yes, I know it is also a cheese. You can write about that on your blog.)

Today I am sharing how, with the right attitude and simple accoutrements, wherever you call home can be your cottage.

Your cottage could be your apartment, house, #VanLife vehicle, condo, barn, or even the room you rent.

You too can live in a cottage.

Step 1: Give Your Cottage A Name.

This is because all cottages have names.

Here are a few from my village, illustrating that there are Absolutely No Rules when it comes to naming your cottage.

Kiakoura, Eagle House, Acorn, Lavender, Nutshell, Cliffrigg Gable:

Outram, Darwin’s, Butterfly, Hope:

You can name your Cottage absolutely anything.

The Pilots Cottage. Kail Pot Cottage:

(I know there should be an apostrophe, but I am not adding one. And a Kail Pot is for cooking. Quite possibly for cooking kale.)

You could title it Crook Cottage, and just let the neighbors wonder why…

No one can tell you what to name your cottage.

This one was obviously inspired by its notable location:

They went with Staircase Cottage. It has a nice logic to it.

The one below is called
The Cottage.

And in an entire picturesque village of picturesque cottages, I am telling you: laying claim to the name “The Cottage” is one bold move. But no one seems bothered by this at all. I have seen no protests at the gate, nor any antagonistic fliers stapled to nearby posts.

Step 2: Flowers Everywhere!

I mean absolutely every-flipping-where! Cram flowers and greenery in your garden, into pots, in the yard, in hanging baskets. Use anything handy as a planter.

There is always room for more flowers and more greenery at your cottage.

This gardening aesthetic is called “More is More.” There is also the closely adjacent gardening aesthetic of “More is Never Enough.”

Any bit of space, no matter how bijou, which means really tiny, has room for some flowers. And some green leaves. And some more flowers.

You say you already have hedges?

Well, just shove some flowers in there, too! There is plenty of room, you know.

You have a wall? Perfect for a field of lavender.

Even if your outdoor space is the size of a postage stamp, you have adequate room for a sumptuous cottage garden.

Study what Nutshell has managed, garden-wise:

Nutshell could have contended that there is too little space in front of a cottage which opens onto a cobbled lane alongside the Village Green, but did they? No, Nutshell simply set forth an admirable display.

Hope Cottage arguably has very little space. But Hope Cottage has still managed a notable floral element.

You, too, can manage a notable floral element.

Step 3: Flowers On The Inside. Real Or Fake. Does Not Matter.

These are the Real Flowers of Bumble Cottage, at this exact moment:

And these are the Not Real Flowers at Bumble Cottage at this, and every other, moment. That is because these flowers are made of synthetic materials and will no doubt last on Earth forever.

Flowers go everywhere in a cottage. Mine came with Not Real Flowers in every single room, including the bathroom / loo, plus the hallway.

Step 4: Embellish More, If You Are So Inclined.

If you are of the maximalist cottage persuasion, then do not hold back.

Unleash your pent-up whimsy!

Display items of charm and interest at the front window of your cottage, like this charming floral pottery.

The home below is Butterfly Cottage — the sign is to the right of the front door.

But Butterfly Cottage has chosen to add another noticeable piece of signage. How quirky and capricious is Butterfly Cottage!

No whimsy should remain leashed!

Unless you are of a more minimalist cottage persuasion. Then your cottage might look more like this:

Either way, it still screams / whispers “Cottage!”

Step 5: Add Cute Pets.

Install a floppy-eared dog in your bay window:

Add a tartan bow to your pet if they will let you, and tell them to go sit in the front window and look beguiling.

This amber-eyed tabby cat in a front window yawned at me.

These are all pets at other cottages in Great Ayton. Here at Bumble Cottage, as previously reported, we have bees. As the temperature has risen a bit, all the bees of Bumble Cottage are now out buzzing and pollinating things. They are no longer demanding Bee Cocktails in my back yard.

Further Options, After The Successful Completion Of Steps 1 – 5:

As we do here at Bumble Cottage, refer to your cottage by name, whenever possible.

And have some new stationery printed up with your cottage name included. Add that name to your address labels, checks / cheques, and business cards.

I hope you will be very happy in your new cottage!

No actual cottages, pets, flowers, or overwhelming senses of whimsy were harmed in the making of this blog post.