Innholdsfortegnelse for Best of Country Cottage 2021 i The Cottage Journal

When Paige and Smoot Hull began viewing properties in Round Top, Texas, they were dreaming of a second home where their children could get a taste of the serenity of small-town life—they never expected to create a unique space for connecting like minds. But when a realtor informed them of the need for lodging in the town, which grows from a population of 90 to accommodate tens of thousands of guests during the Round Top Antiques Show, their plans began to change. “I loved the town but was really just a shopper and had no intention of becoming a vendor or [joining] the hospitality business there,” Paige says. “But we feel it was really meant to be, just the way everything fell into place.” In 2012, they opened The Vintage…

The earliest document tracing this home’s history is a tax assessment dated 1930. And yet local lore recalls plenty of Prohibition-era activity taking place here in the years before. No matter the log cabin’s true age, when the Rowland family purchased it in 2011, the home needed more work than they’d ever imagined. Although a majority of the flooring and exterior logs had to be replaced, Emily Rowland says the family kept what they could. “The floors in the living room, dining room, and two of the bedrooms are original,” she recalls, “plus the stone fireplace and the big log wall that runs the length of the home.” Some of the removed logs were repurposed and incorporated into the kitchen ceiling. For the pine walls and the rustic beams, new…

When Cathie Caldwell started collecting jadeite more than 40 years ago, she had no idea how fun and addictive her attraction to this cheery green glassware would become. What started as a simple interest soon became a quest. With a collection that now boasts close to 1,000 pieces—along with two vintage trucks painted in the signature color—Cathie has earned the affectionate title of “The Jadeite Queen.” Jadeite first became all the rage in the 1940s and ’50s when the United States was recovering from World War II and needed something cheerful yet functional. A number of companies produced it, including McKee, Jeannette Glass Company, and, of course, Anchor Hocking Company, producers of the ever-popular Fire-King line called Jade-ite. Although jadeite was originally designed for home use, an extra-sturdy line known…

It’s no secret that Doug Sutton loves life on the lake. After renting a cabin on Lake Martin in eastern Alabama for years, he and his partner, Andrew Nix, finally decided it was time to purchase their own—but it wasn’t as easy as they thought. “We had a tall order, and we were determined to avoid compromising on things like privacy, big water views, sunsets, and a casual flow between indoor and outdoor living,” Doug says. After a long year of searching, they found the perfect home on the banks of Smith Lake in northern Alabama in the fall of 2017. “We toured a ton of homes on the lake, and none of them felt quite right,” Doug says. “When we pulled up to this house, it reminded me of…

Emphasis on Autumn Pages 9–14—Plants from Shakespeare’s Garden. Pumpkins from Maple Bank Farm. Collections from Nature Pages 15–16—Leaf pressing by Lauren Lachance. Family Ties Pages 27–34—Tin Roof Cottage rental by Pot N’ Kettle Cottages. Connecting and Creating Pages 35–42—Retreat rental at The Vintage Round Top in Round Top, Texas. Sharing Sanctuary Pages 43–52—Florals by Beth Edwards and Jenny Loughridge, Jenny Noland Designs. Artisan woodwork by Wayne Matthews. Page 50—Dinnerware by Spode in Woodland pattern. Rustic Elegance Pages 53–64—Interior designs by Tammy Connor, Tammy Connor Interior Design. Architectural designs by James Carter, James F. Carter Architect, Inc. The Cottage Flip Pages 65–76—Interior designs by Jenna Sue, Jenna Sue Design Co. Flooring by Pergo. Walls painted in Bistro White by Valspar. Pages 68, 70—Wicker chairs from IKEA. Pages 71–72—Kitchen cabinets from KraftMaid.…

Since ancient times, botanicals have been preserved for their beauty and cataloged to identify different specimens. In Victorians days, slipping petals and leaves into a book was a way to remember a special person or occasion. Today, framed botanical collections are found hanging on walls as decorative art in cottages across the country. One artist known for her works with leaves and flowers is Lauren Lachance. For years, she traveled with her inks and watercolors around the world to document plants. But, she shares, “When I discovered that delicately pressing can illustrate the essence and vitality of a plant, it became my passion.” Lauren explains that the French herbier technique, whereby the plants are dried and pressed, is a centuries-old method of identifying plants to study and classify. “I lovingly…

Walking through a white picket fence into the Coghlans’ tin-roofed cottage just feels like coming home. Even on your first visit, the air of hospitality in the space welcomes you like you grew up there. Be it the heirloom antiques, the family-inspired style choices, or the many original architectural elements, the house seems like it was all created to fit together. When Samantha Coghlan and her husband first saw the 1930s cottage, she knew it was the one. “The moment that we drove up to the home, we were both so in love,” she recalls. “I didn’t even need to go inside.” Despite needing renovations, the charming cottage had potential that the Coghlans saw right away. After they purchased the home, they quickly got to work restoring it to its…

When visiting this cozy log cabin nestled in the Tennessee woods, it might be hard to believe that the home hasn’t been there long. The cabin is only a few years old, but if walls could talk, these would have stories to tell. Though the homeowners wanted a new build, they were inspired by cabins of old and wanted their home to blend in with the beautiful nature surrounding it. Working with interior designer Tammy Connor and architect James F. Carter, they had wood logs disassembled from rural cabins built in the 1840s and brought in to build their own new but old log cabin. Tammy notes that while the process took much longer than a normal new build, “some things are worth the wait.” For the color palette of…

When Wendy Morrison purchased her North Carolina cottage in 2012, she could see past its decade of renter neglect. Mustard yellow walls, a leaking roof, and worn floors didn’t dissuade her. Instead, she found motivation in the idea of her home’s first family, embracing the energy of the 1920s middle-class life. “From the start, my focus was preserving the integrity of this home’s history,” Wendy recalls. Her neighborhood is decidedly bohemian, with eclectic boutiques, creative cafés, and architectural restoration. So when it came time to revive her 1927 cottage, Wendy wanted to blend many of the home’s original features with an inviting, livable space for her own busy family. The kitchen became her first project. When she moved in, a 36-inch stove with no ventilation dominated the 9x9-foot space, while…