Fall is around the corner, and that means it’s time to start planning your interior decorating scheme for the next season. One of the best parts of fall is feeling warm and comfortable inside even as the temperatures start dropping outdoors. Whether you’re bringing the vibes of a French country chateau or an English garden into your space, here’s how to make your home feel like a cottage this autumn.
Natural Materials
Many of the dreamy cottages in Europe are built from wood and stone, giving them a rustic charm. You can bring some of this charm home with you this fall by incorporating more natural materials in your decorating.
For wood, you’ll want to look for benches, side tables, shelves, and other furniture you can refurbish or repurpose. A little wear and tear actually adds to the ambience.
For stone, you might consider putting out carved decorative bowls or vases. It might also be time to redo the facing on your fireplace. Here’s a little trick: manufactured stone veneers are easier to come by and no one will know it’s not real stone except you!
Softer Lighting
Something about low lighting immediately makes a room feel more intimate—perhaps it’s because we have to get closer to each other in order to see faces clearly. Regardless, lighting candles and fireplaces, and using the low setting on ceiling lights will help fill your home with the glow of autumn coziness.
Don’t have adjustable lighting? No worries. You can get smart color-changing bulbs from any hardware store that allow you to change the color of your lights from your phone.
Earthy Scents
When we talk about interior design, many people immediately jump to the visual aspects, but the feeling you get from a room comes from all five senses. Fill a wooden dish with potpourri, hang up some dried herbs, and use scented candles to make your home smell like a glorious cottage.
Domestic Aesthetics
If you stay at a real cottage, you’re likely to find lots of quilts, embroidery, and other homemade crafts in the decorations. Even if you don’t craft—or you prefer not to have your home look like a fabric store—there are ways to incorporate these items into your décor. For example, modern quilts in solid neutral colors are a fantastic alternative to more homespun versions.
Cozy Sounds
The one sense that people forget about most often in interior design is sound. Cottages are meant to be retreats from the busy, urban sprawl that many of us find ourselves trapped in. How do you get around this? One way to emulate the sounds of the countryside is to play ambient playlists whenever you’re relaxing in your home. You’ll forget you’re nowhere near a farm with chirping crickets, babbling brooks, and buzzing bees playing in the background.
Follow Your Design Compass
No two people understand coziness the same way, so feel free to pick and choose from these suggestions as you make your home feel like a cottage. Authenticity is the key to making your home feel comfortable during the coming seasonal changes.
