It is all too easy to be patronizing in interpreting what is meant by 'country style', the concept as it is defined by magazines and marketing today is romanticized and often insulting to the rural world. Just as country themes tend not to work in the city, big city ideas for a humble country cottage can prove equally out of context.
Every property must be allowed to retain its individual atmosphere, even in the search for that elusive country idyll. After all, what undoubtedly attracted you to living in the country in the first place was the house or cottage and its location, its isolation, perhaps, the scope it has for a wonderful garden, the sense of getting back to nature. We all tend to over-romantic our need for fresh air and wide open spaces, yet within that heightened sensitivity lies the true interpretation of our innate sense of country style.
The bedroom is naturally the most susceptible to the country influence, since here you can create an atmosphere of rustic tranquillity to suit your own interpretation. Often cosy in proportion and with small, low windows, cottage bedrooms tend to be dominated by the bed, leaving little room for other furniture. If this is a weekend retreat, then seasonal influences must play their part in the style of the bedroom.
Muslin curtains, or no curtains at all over small windows, would allow summer's early light to filter gently into the bedroom. Heavier duty curtains could be substituted for those cold winter nights and sluggish, wet country mornings, when your inclination is to snuggle deeper under the colourful quilts and layers of thick blankets that transform country beds into nests for hibernating humans.
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The city bedroom's country cousin can happily adopt an eclectic look: odd pieces of furniture from local antique shops, with no obvious function but fantastic form. Objects and well-worn textiles can also contribute to the rustic charm of a country bedroom. Rooms are usually smaller, so less furniture is required, with less emphasis on the finish of uneven walls and scrubbed floorboards.
Armchairs should embrace you like old friends, tables and cupboards (closets) should be softened and rounded with age, beds should creak at your approach, linen sheets and quaint quilts redolent with the scent of freshly picked lavender should flow over the bed, with a pitcher of clover and meadow flowers on a neighbouring table. Each detail is important in setting the scene, creating a very special atmosphere that you can metaphorically bottle and carry with you.
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