Cottages and Bungalows April/May 2023

“SPRING, SPRING, WHAT A THING!” is the opening line of a poem my dad wrote to help my little brother with an elementary school assignment decades ago. Our family has giggled at the simplicity of the line over the years, but upon further reflection, and now that my dad is gone, it’s pure truth. Spring really is its own “thing,” isn’t it? We welcome with open arms this season of warmer breezes, longer days, fresh rain showers and new life emerging. We get the urge to throw open the windows, dust the corners and freshen up our homes. In that spirit, we’ve filled this issue with the lightness and colors of the season. We feature five delightful homes that take light and bright seriously. From a sweet cottage sprinkled with…

cottagesandbungalowsmag.com Easy, Upscale Cottage Style Follow these simple steps for making your cottage cozy and classy. Make Way for an Open-Concept Kitchen Read how one family took their 1970s home, which was not always functional, and revamped it into an open-concept kitchen for entertaining. Easter Dessert Recipes It’s always fun to try something new and spread your baking wings. We took the opportunity to load you up with fresh ideas for your Easter desserts this season. Welcome Home! How a large family makes their small home work for them. Jen Mikesell makes wise use of every square inch for her husband and six sons. Collecting Vintage Seed Packets Beautiful works of art in their own right, vintage seed packets are the perfect addition to any spring-inspired cottage. Follow us online…

“What a lovely historical cottage , a true diamond in the rough. I wish someone would fix it up,” Cindy Brown thought to herself as she drove by the 1936 Storybook Tudor cottage with its messy yard. Little did she know that years later, the brick home that caught her eye would be in foreclosure and up for sale. She saw the sign, contacted a realtor friend who arranged a tour—and the rest is history. Cindy fell in love and “just had to have it,” she says. And in 2000, she and her husband moved into the Central Valley, California, home. The cottage was built by a mason who, in the artisanship of the era, crafted the detailed brick and rock work on the exterior. But over the years, the…

Shop the SunVilla Home pieces on Lisa’s deck Denali Patio Sofa, Denali Swivel Chairs and Porcelain Tile Top Coffee Table Visit sunvillahome.com Do you find joy watching nature’s scenery change from season to season? I definitely do! A metamorphosis happens right before our very eyes as winter gives way to spring with fresh, abundant color everywhere we look. It is a time of renewal…. We feel energized by the sunshine, warm weather and spending time outdoors once again. Here in the South, we are fortunate to have many weeks of outdoor living and entertaining. Living lakeside has been such a wonderful new experience for us. We enjoy sitting dockside sipping our morning coffee near the water, watching the geese, Blue Heron, turtles and fish fill the cove as spring…

Heidi Samia—blogger, stylist, influencer and a top three finalist in our 2023 Brand Ambassador search— has a distinctively fresh way of decorating her home. We love her cozy yet uncluttered approach and learn something new from her daily via her Instagram account @eleanorrosehome and her website eleanorrosehome.com. We think you’ll love her kitchen-styling tips that you can apply to any shelf in your home! Here are Heidi’s shelf-styling tips: Do’s • Keep it cozy. Create cozy shelves by adding new and vintage pieces as well as decorating with pieces that are special to your family. A mixture of pieces placed on a shelf tells a visual story. Your shelf should tell the story of your family. • Add layers to create depth. Push some of the pieces toward the back…

“My mom tried to convince me to take sewing classes in school, butI had no interest whatsoever,” recalls Jill Kaufman, owner and founder of Doves and Dahlias. “My creative outlets have always been drawing, painting and sculpting, which are more freestyle art forms, so if there are ‘rules’ involved, it’s usually a no-go for me,” she says. So how, you might ask, did Jill end up with a business focused on sewing? “I remember driving around our neighborhood and seeing a cute vintage couch section. I bought it for five dollars, took it home and decided I was going to make a cover for it. I bought a sewing machine at an estate sale (I still have it) and made my first slipcover,” Jill explains. However, the slipcover didn’t fit…