6 Step Guide to Creating a Cottagecore Home

When did Cottagecore become popular?

The movement continues as many people begin to make those idealized symbols of Cottagecore an actual practice and way of life. Self-sufficiency, connection with nature, and embracing the slow, simple life have become common goals.

Living Cottagecore Today: 

We focus on back-to-basic skills such as baking, crafts, and gardening. But the look of the cottage aesthetic throughout the home is the main focus for Cottagecore enthusiasts! 

To embrace the cottagecore aesthetic in your home, you are doing to want to look for the following key elements: 

Elements of a Cottagecore Home: 

1. Texture, Color, Patterns
2. Display in Layers
3. Bringing Nature Inside 
4. Handmade 
5. Vintage/Recycled
6. Artwork: Nature, 18th-century farm, or mushroom themed 

Step 1: Texture, Color, & Pattern 

Texture, Pattern, and Color are Elements of Art. All of which I know very well from sixteen years of teaching art classes. Each one is a crucial component in creating the visual look of Cottagecore. So here are how we incorporate them into our Cottagecore home.

Cottagecore Home & Texture: 

You are looking for soft, comfortable quilts, pillows, and blankets in the bedroom and on couches. Think warm and cozy feel: linens, soft cotton, and velvet. In the winter, we have a down comforter that is soft and warm. Layering the down comforter with a cotton quilt gives you that visual texture desired in a cottagecore style. 

Cottagecore Home & Pattern: 

Pattern is another element that will naturally find its way into your cottagecore style. A pattern is the repetition of a line, color, or shape. Most cottagecore decor mixes and layer all three together. We see patterns in dinnerware, fabrics, and even variations of color in house plant leaves. As you collect items to use around your home or garden, you might be more attracted to lines that give a farmhouse feel or organic shapes like florals to bring the feeling of nature inside.

Cottagecore Home & Color: 

I teach my art students to create color harmonies in their artworks, and this is the same advice I give you as you create color palettes within your home. The color wheel splits into warm and cool colors. 

Most cottagecore palettes lean toward the color wheel's warmer side: reds, pinks, yellows, oranges. But you may have a personal preference for cooler colors. I am naturally attracted to blues, I always have been, and it is a part of my personality, and you can see this throughout my cottagecore home. So, don't let the fact blue is your favorite color deter you from your decor dreams. 

Learning About Color: You can mix cools and warms if you know what color harmonies are. Color is an extensive element; I do five units on color in my Art I class, and it would take a bit to cover it all. So, I've created a Cottagecore Color Harmonies Printable, that you can find at the end, to help you understand it better. 

Now that you understand texture, color, and patterns roll in creating your cottagecore aesthetics, you will able to create unity as you learn to layer all three into well-balanced compositions.  

Step 2: Cottagecore = Layers

Displaying items in layers was a technique used in the 18th century.

1. Layer Cottage Dishes

Women would proudly display their collection of patterned dishes, also adding a splash of color to the room. Owning a colorful set of plates was a big deal, not only because they were costly but also because, during that time, you couldn't just Amazon them to your door.

2. Layer Baskets

Baskets would hang from the ceiling or be layered on the floor for easy grabbing, creating a display of different sizes, shapes, and colors.

3. Layering everyday cottagecore home items

In modern-day cottagecore, we still do this with dishes and baskets, but now we add pillows, plants, and nature collectibles to the mix. There is nothing more Cottagecore than layered bowls of fruit and eggs on display. House plants are a modern element easily layered by height and shape. 

Layering Tip 1: Pick One element to unify Your Layers

That element can be color, shape, pattern, or texture. 

Suppose you have several dishes, each of which is a different size and has a distinct floral print, but most of them have an ordinary white background and a rosy pink within their pattern. Use color as your connection to create a display. The color will be the element that unifies the collection. 

Layering Tip 2: Arrange by Heights

The trick to successful layering is to have larger pieces in the back or center, a medium bit in the middle, and smaller pieces in the front. 

Here I have placed a large basket of sea shells for my children to explore through, a medium white shell (that was used in my wedding), and a small green pumpkin. I used three different heights, shapes, and textures. 

Layering Tip 3: Use Odd Numbers

 Odd numbers are more visually pleasing than even numbers. Using odd numbers is another technique I teach my students. Our brains what even numbers to be perfectly symmetrical. If I have two objects side by side, my brain will want those objects to be like in height and width. But, once I add an odd number into the mix, my brain relaxes and excepts the arrangement. So, you want to think 3,5,7, not 2,4,6, in the number of objects you have displayed.  

Step 3: Bringing Nature Inside Your Home 

The nature element in cottagecore is the easiest one to incorporate. Adding nature into your aesthetic can be done by bringing in house plants, dried or fresh flowers, and adding mushroom-themed trinkets. 

You can change the nature elements out with the seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall 

Add some house plants:

House plants are an easy way to add some nature into your home as well as accomplish texture, shape, and color in your decor!

We will be going deeper into house plants later on but here are some easy to care for plants that you can add today. 

• Snake Plant/Mother in-laws tongue  - low light
• Monstera/Swiss Cheese - high light

Read all about keeping House Plants Inside Here: 6 Step Guide to Keeping Plants Alive Indoors

Step 4: Handmade = Cottagecore

Cottagecore embraces the DIY'er! Cottagecore is all about DIY. Try out your handmade skills with macrame plant hangers, sew pillows yourself, and try your hand at pressing flowers! You can even create flower arrangements with flowers from your Cottagecore Garden. The cool thing about being in the 21st century is you can find any DIY project on Pinterest and Google! 

If DIY isn't quite your thing support arts and makers! Go to local markets and art shows. Shop makers websites. Or support a creative family member or friend! 

Step 5: Vintage and Recycled

With the 18th century being our main inspiration, it makes sense that we cottagecore lovers would incorporate vintage finds into our decor. You will find us at yard sales, antique shops, and Goodwill looking for that just right piece!

We love to shop one of my former students booths at our city's antique shops!   

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A post shared by TigerLily Vintage (@tiger_lilyvintage)

You might be looking for a particular piece of furniture to turn into a shabby chic addition to our home. I find ultimate joy in a vintage bit from a family member or friend. Those pieces always have a story to tell. 

 Remember, you are a DIY'er, so don't be afraid to recycle a modern piece of furniture and turn it into your next focus piece! You will be surprised what a new coat of paint can do to transform a mirror frame or end table. 

Step 6: Cottagecore Artwork in the Home 

Being an artist myself and teaching art history for sixteen years, this element needs a whole blog post to itself, but for now, I will give you a few directions to consider. 

• Nature
• 18th-century farm life
• Florals 
• Mushrooms
• 18th-century portraits
• Cottage gardens
• Landscapes and portraits in the Romantic and Rococo style periods

You can find some fantastic pieces at yard sales and antique shops. You would be surprised by what you can find on Facebook.  

I scored an incredible find on Facebook one day from a past co-worker who posted a set of two prints that ended up being "Pinkie" and "Blue Boy," both in matching frames! 

I had no idea of my current life's connection with these two prints from the past until I picked them up. She told me they had come from one of the older original school buildings, which no longer exists, at the high school where I teach. Older people from the town said there was a set in every room of the school building. So, of course, that made this new addition to my home even more cherished. 

I also love to create my own artwork or purchase art from contemporary artist that are local or I follow on Instagram! 

If 18th-century art is not your style, don't worry. Cottagecore homes can also fall into the following three types: Darkcottagecore (think witches hut in the forest), Farmcore (a mix of little house on the prairie and farm life), and grandmacore (yep, that sweet little old lady's house with knitted sweaters and crochet doilies). But, a well-balanced cottagecore home will sprinkle a little of each throughout it. 

Take your time: 

As you are creating a Cottagecore aesthetic take your time. Things are gathered slowly over time it doesn't come in a bundle and it doesn't have to be costly. Decor can also be changed with the seasons, which is something my kids love for me to do around our house. It adds something new and refreshing. Especially for the holidays-by the next year it's like its brand new. 

Now that you know what to look for, I bet you can't wait to start! Here is your FREE GUIDE TO COTTAGECORE COLOR HARMONIES, just click the image below: 

Thank you for stopping by our Cottagecore Homestead.