How to Beautifully and Budget-Friendly Decorate a Cottage: Real Example

This house in the town of Emery, Wisconsin, at first did not look as attractive as it does now and literally fell apart before the eyes. But when its future owners Helen and Josh entered the dining room, they vividly imagined how their small children would chatter around a large table here. And right away understood — they had to take it.

Children, by the way, were not born yet. Now there are four of them, and to ensure this large family does not feel cramped in a not very spacious house, Helen focused on a convenient storage system for things and toys and designed safe and aesthetic play spaces for children.

White walls became a perfect backdrop for compact space. In choosing furniture and floor finishing, they oriented on soft brown shades: when nature is outside with lots of greenery, such an interior palette is exactly what's needed.

A delicate collection of dishes by Helen was integrated into the kitchen interior. Soft pastel shades added lyrical mood to the pristine white kitchen space. Helen writes down recipes of dishes she likes on an old school board — it looks very heartwarming.

Ascending the blue-green steps (they were hidden under carpet until Helen and Josh removed it), you enter a corridor with a mini-gallery of children's drawings. Next to it is the boys' room with a three-tier bed (Josh built it) and daughter's room.

To maximize the relief of a small space, there are many shelves, drawers and containers in each room. For example, in the playroom Helen organized a shelf with boxes, labeling each one with tags like 'dolls', 'cars', 'army' and so on. A great life hack that teaches toddlers to keep things tidy, will be useful even in a big house.

Helen added bright accessories and textiles to prevent the white interior from looking boring. By the way, the textile in this house is unique, all thanks to the grandmother, a real craftsman. Together with ready-made throws, curtains and cushion covers, many touching hand-stitched embroidery appeared in the interior.

Grandmother's embroidery decorates not only rooms but also the porch where the family often gathers together. In addition to simple and affordable interior solutions in the garden, a mini playhouse with a loft, a 'secret' room and its own terrace appeared. Children don't want to leave it — and it's not surprising.