Cottage Style: simplicity plus nature times comfort equals...a wonderous equation

Where we hang our in-town hats...at the new cottage getaway...

A happy-cottager on her front porch with the flower plantings finished.

Just steps away, the dock...hard to believe that this is "in-town" isn't it?

The mathematics of cottage living seem to be summed-up in an equation of the sort such as: Simplicity + Nature x Comfort = Wonderful.

In the previous post, I wrote about how much I have enjoyed living in cottages throughout my adult life. This latest one has already been such a joy even with just having spent the first weekend in it recently. Once I had set out meadow-like wild flowers into the front porch's various planters and put coordinating outdoor pillows on the seats of my ole' black metal bistro table set, the cottage seemed to "be mine" and be ready for whatever adventures, and just plain ole' relaxing, comes its way....

There seems to be an ever-growing collection of Cottage Style books sprouting up around my house. Some of my favorites are: "Waterside Cottages" by Barbara Jacksier; "Perfect English Cottage" by Ros Byam Shaw; "The Cottage Garden" by Christopher Lloyd; "Mary Emmerling's American Country Cottages" and "Mary Emmerling's Beach Cottages" by of course Mary Emmerling.

My favorite styling of a cottage is far less cutesy and far more classic in a "Ralph Lauren meets Picket Fences" kind of dialoging where sterling candelabra mixes with whitewashed furniture. An atmosphere where the simplest terracotta potted daisy plant holds it own with the more glamorous moth orchid set into a porcelain cachepot. Where L.L.Bean canvas tote bags pair up with pearls and fine Irish linen tunic-topped outfits. Where dogs can plop right onto the sofa while wine corks are popping in the dining room. Where every one's welcome to kick off their shoes and begin relaxing no matter what the occasion.

In the book, "Waterside Cottages", the author sums up my kind of thinking with, "Cozy cottages are by far my favorite type of home- the more authentic, the better." There are many wonderful styles of homes and interior decorating out there within this world but as for me, I agree... I've always been just a cottage-kinda-gal.