The Cottage Journal features decorating ideas, style tips, creative inspiration, and delicious recipes - and now you can enjoy every single page on the tablet! Create a warmer, more magical home with the beauty of nature and The Cottage Journal!
Finding the rustic farmhouse of your dreams and turning it into a tranquil haven for family and friends is no easy feat and one that should be lauded. In this special issue, Country Cottage from the editors of The Cottage Journal magazine, we take you on an uplifting journey into the countryside—the rolling hills and farmland of America—to see sublime interiors stripped down to reveal their charm and styled in way that fosters a simple life. From quaint cottage collections to modern farmhouse style, this issue is teaming with inspiration built for the country. One of the highlights of this issue came with a visit to Nashville, Tennessee, where country style and country music go hand in hand. We’re thrilled to invite you to the home of country music star…
This unique place setting is not only festive but also inexpensive! Gina arranged colorful fallen leaves from her yard between two glass plates purchased at a dollar store for a polished look that exudes the warmth of the harvest season. The centerpieces for the table and sideboard were created by arranging a collection of branches and wild grasses in beautifully woven baskets. Turn the baskets on their side for a fun twist on food display. Scattered among the plates and carried over to the sideboard arrangement are seasonal fruits and vegetables as well as a collection of vintage-style mason jars, lanterns, and candles that create a warm, romantic glow that dances across the table.…
“We are makers of high-quality, handmade furniture and reproductions.” —TOM ROSSMAN At the Shaker Shoppe in Lititz, Pennsylvania, owner Tom Rossman says Shaker-inspired design has been his company’s forte for decades. “We create furniture using fine woods, traditional joinery, and expert finishing techniques,” says Tom. The five cabinetmakers working on the designs take great pride in their handcrafted furniture, and each piece is signed and dated upon completion. Tom’s first venture into woodworking was as a young teenager in high school some 40 years ago. He says it just clicked and he has been a woodworker ever since. Today some of his most talented workers come right out of high school woodworking classes. Looking around the shop, there are a variety of pieces including tables, chairs, and cabinets of all…
Vivian was her mother’s best pupil. In fact, Vivian was her mother’s only pupil after she gave up teaching high school home economics to raise her two children. Although Vivian was 4 years old at the time, she can still recall her mother teaching her to sew. Vivian would spend hours listening to the sewing machine’s soothing hums and rhythms while she and her mother would sew one project after another. “Mother would give me all the fabric scraps, and I would arrange them into blocks. She would pick me up and put me on a box so I could make the machine go,” Vivian vividly recalls. That was more than 70 years ago. Throughout the years, Vivian continued refining her craft but put it aside for a while because…
Best friends blessed with a whirlwind courtship followed by 52 years of marriage, Fran and Franz Braun are the picture of a storybook romance. Born in Germany in 1939, Franz has memories of a childhood filled with bombs and air raids. He immigrated to the United States at age 18 to work in an organ building shop in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and a few years later, was drafted to serve in the Army as a medic in both the U.S. and Korea. Today, he is a proud American citizen living the dream on a scenic 2-acre property nestled amid Pennsylvania’s picturesque Dutch Country with his beloved wife, Fran. The daughter of an Italian barber from York, Pennsylvania, Fran is—among many amazing things—a former singing telegram deliverer, a distant relative of…
Man caves are fairly common and popular in homes across America. They provide a man with a space of his own, where he can escape and be surrounded by his hobbies. But why should men be the only ones who can have such a haven? Enter Erika Kotite’s book, She Sheds: A Room of Your Own. For those who don’t know what a “she shed” is, it is a private space for a woman that is usually a separate struc ture. These separate buildings are the size of a storage shed and are typically built in the backyard. These she sheds are also commonly referred to as “hen huts” and “lady lairs.” Why build a shed to spend time in? Erika answers, “The beauty of a shed is its small…
