How They Transformed a 200-Year-Old Cottage

Rose Winter emigrated from Great Britain to Australia as a child. She always loved green hills and valleys, and later developed a passion for French countryside style.

Candelabras in the dining room are decorated with ivy and berries.

Rose found an old house built in the 1860s in the small village of Rydal, where the Narcissus Festival is held every September at the beginning of the month.

Even in its worn-out state, I immediately saw the potential. But I quickly brushed off the idea of restoration like a persistent fly and went back home. On the kitchen where there used to be a fireplace, there is now a small wine cellar. Abundance of small decor accents beautifully highlights the countryside style.

Soon, Rose came across the same cottage in a real estate directory. Despite her doubts, she decided to buy it. That’s when the big and sometimes difficult work of renovation began. The inspection of the building showed that the house retained a solid frame, but restoring its interior was not easy.

The only clue was the original shape of the house, which defined its character. Everything else was pure imagination.The former dining room, now a living room, tastefully furnished with antiques. Take a look at these handcrafted shutters.

Rose, along with her children, almost completely demolished and rebuilt the house. For example, the modernized kitchen now features a new tiled roof made of corrugated iron.

At times, the scale of the renovation overwhelmed the new owner of the house.

In the yard was an old log where I often sat and cried.

But any difficulties can be overcome: today the house is fully renovated and refurbished. French doors, new dormer windows, and mirrors completely transformed the dark interior and added brightness.

Rose’s love for France inspired her choice of color when it came time to paint the walls.

After six months of intense work, Rose moved into the house and started gardening. From a weed-infested yard, she transformed it into a fairy-tale green land. Today the garden is filled with roses and deciduous trees: silver birch, wild and spreading willow.

When I am in the garden among the finches and little wrens, watching roses bloom, I feel true happiness.

The Rose’s cottage is considered the oldest house in the village of Rydal. To preserve this memory, she left several planks untouched that were used to clad the house from the very beginning, and treated the new ones in the same style.

Few places like Rydal remain today.

Currently, Rose Winter lives in her dream house. She raises chickens, grows herbs and vegetables. On Sundays she plays the organ in a small local church.