Is there any home style more charming than a quaint cottage? We think not—and the experts agree. “Cottages are timeless because they are both attainable and charming,” says historic preservationist and co-host of HGTV’s Who’s Afraid of a Cheap Old House? Elizabeth Finkelstein. “The small square footage makes maintenance manageable for most people, and the proportions bring an instant ‘cozy’ factor to any gathering. Who doesn’t want that?”
Though cottages can come in many shapes and styles, their uniting characteristic is their small footprint, usually under 1,500 square feet. Add in weathered wood siding, shingled roofs, overgrown English-style gardens, and cozy-and-collected interiors, and the vibe gets all the more quaint. To deliver a good dose of inspiration for your own cottage dreams, we’ve rounded up our seven favorite cottage-style homes to share with you. The storybook-worthy exteriors of these charmers are sure to inspire you with ideas for how to create your own cottage-style home, be it English, Cape Cod, Tudor, or other.
Now for those charming cottage-style exteriors we promised…
A Clapboard Cape Cod Cottage
Half the appeal of a cottage-style home can be its historic authenticity. This three-quarter clapboard Cape Cod-style cottage features much of its original late 1700s architecture, including the Federal-style fanlight above the door. Black shutters, copper gutters, and blooming hydrangeas bring a timeless appeal.
RELATED: The Most Beautiful Front Door Colors to Give Your Home an Inviting Entry
A Sweet Cedar Shake Cottage
Cedar shake siding is one of the telltale signs of a classic Cape Cod-style cottage. Here, an earthy green door helps the weathered texture blend in perfectly with its natural surrounds. Also: How sweet is that white picket fence with the welcoming double gate!?
RELATED: What, Exactly, Is a Cape Cod-Style House?
A Charming Mountain Cottage
We’re honestly not sure what’s more charming about this North Carolina cottage: the house-wide front porch or the cutting garden out front. It’s definitely proof that less house + more outdoor surroundings=peak living.
California-Cool Beach Cottage
Cottage-style homes can live larger with a few strategic indoor-outdoor architectural details, such as the 12-foot-wide sliding door that leads to the cozy covered porch on this California beach cottage. (The perfect place for a pillow-filled porch swing!)
A Centuries-Old Saltbox Cottage
The rear catslide roof on this three-century-old North Fork saltbox cottage owned by Derrick and designer Jennifer Vaughn Miller may run the ceilings a little low, but that makes for all the more cozy interior quarters.
RELATED: Why Is it Called a Saltbox Home?
Too-Cute Tudor-Style Cottage
If storybook charm is what you’re after, you’ll definitely want to consider a Tudor-style cottage. The overlaying roof gables and stone detailing around the windows and doors on this California cottage feel fresh out of a fairy tale.
RELATED: What, Exactly, Is a Tudor-Style Home?
Off-Center Hamptons Cottage
No, your eyes do not deceive you—Paul Caddell’s charming Sag Harbor cottage really is a little off-center! It was built that way intentionally, all the way back in 1814, to allow more space for the living room. (Not a bad design idea at all, when you think of it.)
Sarah Zlotnick is the Lifestyle Director at Country Living, where she has run point on travel, rural lifestyles, and all things vintage and antiques since 2021. Previously a lifestyle editor at Washingtonian and Philadelphia magazines, she has been championing small businesses and regional destinations for 15 years. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies from Georgetown University, a major her younger self would be quite surprised to learn has come so in handy. First and foremost a service journalism enthusiast, she loves an in-depth explainer on an everyday topic or a deep dive into the history of vintage objects. When she’s not editing and writing, you’ll find her needling her husband to pull off the highway so they can explore a new small town or cozying up with a juicy murder mystery.
