If you happen to have a cottage somewhere in the countryside or in the wild, you might start thinking to renovate it. Cottages are traditional housings of our grandparents and as such hold a very special place in our hearts. These rustic places often times remind us of our childhood and provide a fast and effective way of escaping the drudgery of a big city.

But how difficult is it to renovate a cottage? Actually not a lot! These types of housing are very easy to restore and can even be done on a budget. If you happen to own one, you can easily make plans and buy materials to do so. If you have an opportunity to buy one, you actually gain possession of a lot of added furniture to go with it.

But these old places often come with some old-fashioned furniture which has gone out of style ages ago. Don’t throw it out! Use it to your advantage. These old gems can be easily upcycled and reused and you can even call an upholstery cleaning company to do that for you. You can even hire a carpenter to restore all of the wooden furniture that was lying around the cottage. Hiring some professionals is worth doing when it comes to some beautiful, ancient pieces of furniture.

After you are all set and done you can marvel at the results and spend weekends there with your family. Get away from the city and all the smog and breathe some fresh air in the countryside. Here are some things that you need to do when renovating your cottage.

Patience and Go Easy

Renovating a cottage is a big project so one cannot really rush into it all of a sudden. You have to make a plan beforehand and start doing things slowly. In the start, you will probably be very enthusiastic and you will wish to finish it all at once. This is impossible to do to and is often a mistake.

Start doing things one at a time. You will be amazed at how fun it is to learn new skills while decorating one room after the other. You might even get some new ideas which will result in a much better decision in the end. Hiring professional help for starts is no shame as long the end result is perfect.

Less is Sometimes More

A big mistake that people often make is to try and extend their cottages. This is the worst thing that you can do. First of all, it will not only extend the house but also the amount of work and time you invest in it, and secondly, you will end up spending more money that you have originally planned.

The whole concept of a cottage is that it is small. If you want a bigger place you can buy a house. The appeal of a cottage is that it is located in a secluded, tucked away place and that it offers enough room to feel cozy. Extending it will take away all of that rustic charm that it possesses.

Bring Back the Fireplace

The main part of most cottages was the fireplace. It is the area where people used to gather to get warm on cold nights. Today, families gather in front of a TV and watch all kinds of nonsense. So why not make the fireplace a focal point of your cottage and not a TV.

Refurbishing a fireplace can be a very fun affair and it also comes with many merits. This will probably be the crown jewel of your project and will give that special edge to the entire design. Don’t rip out the fireplace! Even if you never get to use it will still be a fabulous décor of the interior.

Let There Be Light

You can brighten up the place by adding some skylights to your cottage refurbishment. Cottages are infamous for not being well lit so adding a source of light will brighten up the mood and turn all that gloom into a fun a sunny area.

Skylights are actually easy to install and you can also place them in the attic and that way get an added area. Kids will most likely like to hand out in the attic area so provide a well lit and a beautiful place for them to play.

Keep It Simple

A major thing to remember here is that you need to keep the atmosphere of the cottage. Meaning, do not over decorate and over modernize the place. Cottages were not built by wealthy people, so if you add too many luxurious and modern items the place will lose its feel.

In order to keep the atmosphere but still add a new and specific tone, simply don’t overcomplicate things. Try adding things that fit and that will only make the place better and not too fancy. Keep in mind, this is a place where you are supposed to rest and not be stifled by modern technology. Leave all those appliances and fancy stuff in your apartment back home.

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