decor ideas Archives - Arrow Hill Cottage

Today, I want to share the cottage spring decor here at Arrow Hill Cottage. I am always amazed to see how simple changes can completely transform a space for the seasons.

With winter finally melted away, and the official start of spring identified on the calendar, it was time to change up the interior decor of the cottage.

There is something so special about the spring season. It has a freshness, a sense of newness about it. People generally are spending more time outdoors and enjoying the longer hours of sunshine.

As a minimalist family, the amount of decor items kept in our home is small. However, I do like to mix and match the items we do have as a way to change the look of the cottage interior.

Cottage Spring Decor

Our cottage is filled with items that have been collected slowly throughout the years. As I was gathering pieces from various rooms, a theme started to emerge. Green, pale blue, and yellow seemed to be the dominant colors I was drawn to. Natural elements, such as woven baskets and greenery also played an important role in this year’s spring decor.

The living room, complete with the newly reupholstered side chair, holds a couple of cute displays. Above the fireplace, a vintage painted window takes center stage. Although the window recently fell, breaking the glass, my husband restored the wood pieces. I a grateful for that!

In addition to the wood window, an old piece of trim and bird paper-cut art piece are layered. To the right of the frame, a small green tin holds faux flowers. I love mixing textures. The metal of the tin, together with the patina of the trim and wood window, is complimenting.

Next to the fireplace sits a large chalkboard. The black and white typography is balanced by the potted plants, which are placed atop an enameled tray.

I have plans to give this chalkboard a makeover in the near future, so be on the lookout for a post or video about that!

This vintage blanket adds the perfect amount of muted color to the space.

Decorating with memories

Incorporating memories into decor is one of my all time favorite tips. This little display features quite a few, including the pedal sewing machine that was my great grandmother’s.

The typewriter is another cherished keepsake passed down to our family from my husband’s great grandma. Just seeing these types of items sprinkled throughout the cottage brings us a sense of connection to the past.

Similarly, an old window sits atop the piano. We added a chalkboard panel behind it, and attached metal clips. These clips allow me to change out photos or mementos to display.

For the cottage spring decor setup this year, I chose photos that showcase special memories that our family has experienced during the spring season through the years.

Natural elements in spring decor

When it comes to spring decorating, I especially love incorporating natural elements. Since nature outdoors is showing the first signs of blooming, it only makes sense to bring the magic inside.

In the Midwest, tulips are a tell-tale first sign of spring. I picked these up at Aldi of all places! Because they are potted, they can be transplanted outside when it warms up a bit more!

On the dining table, an arrangement of faux greenery and candles sits inside a small crock. Coupled with a textured art piece, woven basket and a sweet little deer figurine, the entire table centerpiece anchors our simple white oak table.

Isn’t this little guy just the cutest thing?

In comparison to the rest of the main level, I didn’t spend a lot of time decorating in the kitchen. I think that adding decor in this room will become easier once our floating shelves are installed. Until then, I love having the large window ledge above our sink as decorating space.

My tin collection has grown a little bit, and soon I will be planting spices and possibly a few succulents in them! These clay pots are also just waiting to be filled. I am getting particularly excited for garden season this year!

Thanks so much for stopping by our cottage. I hope your spring season is going well so far, and that you are anticipating great things ahead!

Decorating Arrow Hill Cottage

Watch as Arrow Hill Cottage is transformed for the new season.

More Spring Decor Ideas

Need more inspiration? These blog posts offer swoon worthy content!

Cottage Style Spring Decorating Ideas | The Lettered Cottage

Simple Spring Decorating | Fox Hollow Cottage

Refreshing + Minimal Spring Cottage Tour | Pine + Prospect Home

Today I am excited to give you a tour of the shared girls room at the cottage. Though far from fully decorated, we have done quite a bit in the space already and would love to show you around!

Our newly built cottage has a total of three bedrooms (technically four if you count the basement bonus space). The master suite is on the main level, and there are two additional bedroom upstairs. One for the boys and one for the girls. Our entire family appreciates the simplicity of this arrangement. Truthfully, our kids do not mind one bit that they share with their siblings. In fact, they prefer it!

Shared Girls Room | Basics

We covered the entire upper level ceiling of the cottage with pine tongue and groove boards, which were then painted white. My husband recently created a video which documents the long process of installing them.

As a result of our hard work, we are extremely happy with how the ceilings look. Because they are vaulted, the natural daylight that comes in through the single window bounces around and really brightens up the entire room.

Oak flooring creates a beautiful, neutral backdrop for furnishings and decor. In addition, the all white walls and trim have the same effect.

When I designed the girls room, I was careful to create a space that would serve the girls for years to come. For example, although the girls currently enjoy having their beds close together at night, they might not always prefer this set up. The dimensions of the room were worked out so that each girl could eventually claim their own ‘half’. There are two closets in the room as well.

Sleeping Space

One side of the bedroom is designated for sleeping and quiet time. The two antique metal beds found on this side were an absolute labor of love for my husband. He painstakingly restored the beds over the course of several months. Although the beds spent many years in a friend’s barn, you would never know it now!

My husband documented the process of restoring the beds through a series of videos. I am so impressed with how they turned out. Most importantly though, the girls love them.

A small table is positioned between the beds. It is the perfect size for a reading lamp, and a few books.

I chose white comforters for the beds. They are easy to clean and provide a neutral base that can be changed up easily with accent bedding and pillows. For now, the accents of pink, aqua, and yellow are fun and girly, while not being age specific. One thing I am still on the hunt for are matching quilts or duvet covers for the ends of each bed.

Play Space

The opposite side of the room is set up as a kind of pseudo mini house – every little girl’s dream! It is complete with a small play kitchen, table, and two pink chairs. In addition, a sweet doll crib – made by the girls’ great grandpa – holds special sentiment.

The girls have literally spent hours creating make believe scenarios with their stuffed animals and dolls.

Their play kitchen is something I posted about a couple of years ago. It was made using a vintage dresser as the primary structure. More information about the process of building the play kitchen, and links for many of the accessories, can be found in THIS POST.

You may recognize the small red table from this past year’s Christmas decorating. I recently found an enamel top table at a local antique shop. This new table is a bit larger and more useful for our annual winter puzzle endeavors. For this reason, we moved the little red table up to the girl’s space – and kept the enamel topped one on the main level. These two tables will definitely be moved around the house throughout the years, depending on the needs of our family and my seasonal decorating desires.

Other Furniture + Decor

The only other piece of furniture the girls have in their bedroom is a dresser. It is, yet again, another special hand me down item. Purchased by my grandparents, the dresser was mine as a little girl. The perfect size, it has four drawers – two for each daughter. We have it organized so that each girl has one drawer for their shirts, and one for their pants/shorts/skirts.

Atop the dresser are a few special and sentimental items. A beautiful watercolor print, which was purchased on Etsy, provides a bit more color to the room. The small wooden box holds the some of the girls’ cherished special items. Lastly, the pink bunny was hand sewn by the nannies at our older daughter’s orphanage. They gave it to her as a gift on her adoption day.

Though I have more decor ideas for the room, there is no rush on getting everything implemented at once. Kid spaces have a tendency to evolve and change as the occupants grow. The girls bedroom will be no different, I’m sure.

Girls Shared Room Video Walkthrough

Sometimes, it is easier to see a space in video format. I’ve created a video tour of the room for just that reason.

I hope you enjoyed this little tour! Stay tuned for more space reveals, as we continue to decorate at the cottage!

Tag: decor ideas

Cottage Spring Decor | Spring 2021