Making an English country cottage inspired Home For the interior design savvy, a modern, rustic European inspired home is an idyllic choice, as this home decor theme is both classy and elegant. Combining elements of the great outdoors with hints of sophisticated European style will create a polished, relaxing environment in your living space. Here are some ideas to help you get started in your goal in making an English country cottage inspired home. Birdcages Antique birdcages will create the perfect fusion of European style and nature, and are a very versatile element of home decorating. Purchase old metal bird cages at antique and thrift stores and paint them so that they match the rest of your color schemes. I personally have a love of distressed white birdcages, and use them to decorate my fireplace, end tables and even my ceiling. To fuse nature into your home even more, fill the bottom of your birdcages with scented wooden flowers or potpourri. Crown Moldings Stark white crown moldings along the top and bottoms of your walls have an undeniably classy and European look to them, and can be used to make even the plainest of rooms look more put together and formal. Adding pure white crown moldings to richly colored walls will give your home a very elegant look. Cottage Colors The color scheme that you use in your rustic English country cottage inspired home are essential, as these will give you a solid foundation to build upon in the rest of your decorating. Rich, gray-toned blues are very French, while deep reds and warm yellows will evoke thoughts of an Italian country cottage. Choose no more than two primary decorating colors per room, as well as a neutral accent color such as creamy ivory or a light beige. Ornamental Mirrors Large, oval shaped mirrors with intricately designed frames are perfect for decorating the walls of your rustic European home, and are extremely easy and inexpensive to find at antique and second-hand stores. For a more countryside, rustic look, paint the frames of your mirrors white or ivory. For a more elegant, European look, paint the frames gold.
Distressed Furniture When it comes to the furniture in your home, few things look more rustic than shabby chic, distressed furniture. Crackle painted wooden furniture is sold at stores like Target, but you can easily crackle paint your existing wooden furniture using crackle medium and paint. For a rustic, European look, I would recommend using a god or brown color as you base before applying the crackle medium, and then using an antique white paint as your second coat. This way the gold or brown will show through the "cracks" in the white paint, making the furniture look old and worn. Pretty Prints Fabrics in your home, whether they be curtains or throw pillow covers, should have pretty prints on them in order to complete your rustic European look. Toile print, damask print and tiny floral such as roses are all appropriate choices to fit your decorating theme. You can mix and match different prints of the same color, or you can keep everything looking uniform by using the same print in all of your decorating.