Cottage by the Sea type is my private tackle coastal adorning—an inviting mix of allure, authenticity, and timeless consolation. This type offers a mild nod to basic coastal design whereas weaving within the heat of cottage dwelling, the character-rich allure typically present in New England properties, and a relaxed Pacific Northwest sensibility.
Right now I’ll share 5 methods to embrace the cottage by the ocean type–regardless of the place you reside!
Whether or not you’re close to the coast or simply dreaming of it, this type can invite you to decelerate, savor your environment, and create a sanctuary that displays the peaceable tempo of seaside dwelling.
What units Cottage by the Sea type aside is its authenticity. It’s not about following a selected adorning type however concerning the want to embrace what actually conjures up you — whether or not it’s on pattern or not.
When you find yourself strolling by the ocean, you are feeling a way of peace wash over you that doesn’t require you do to something however breathe within the therapeutic energy of the salt air. I really like that visible for my residence and my life, too.
– Melissa Michaels, The Impressed Room
For many people, the ocean embodies what it means to reside a beautiful life. It invitations us to decelerate and be current. It’s not about speeding however stress-free.
Quite than being in a rush to purchase decor that you could be remorse when the tendencies change, slowly encompass your self with what genuinely speaks to your coronary heart and soul.

Cottage by the Sea type is just not solely about adorning in a standard coastal sense—it’s about making a temper that helps the life-style you need. The aim is to create a real sanctuary in each sense of the phrase.
– Melissa Michaels, The Impressed Room
ONE: Contemplate design components of a cottage by the ocean type:
• Gentle, sun-washed materials and moody seaside tones in neutrals, heat whites, and ocean-inspired blues and greens
• Pure textures akin to basic wooden tones and weathered items, linen, rattan, and seagrass
• Gentle and ethereal moods with loads of pure gentle and uncluttered areas
• Informal, lived-in allure—suppose cozy, slipcovered or sturdy upholstery, indicators of life, high quality items you’ve collected over time displaying the patina of age, nothing too valuable, unpretentious shelving to show belongings you love.
• Delicate coastal touches— like driftwood, seashells, marine-inspired art work, lanterns, and informal stripes. Embrace your collections and persona, with out feeling the necessity to make all the pieces theme-y or overdone
• Recent combos–draw inspiration from conventional cottage structure and furnishings, however combine in components that can maintain your cottage by the ocean type distinctive, contemporary and carefree! Fear much less about “the proper method” to brighten and as a substitute embrace what you like, these private touches will all the time be in type. Incorporate enjoyable assertion items to set the temper, akin to a basic striped couch or a bamboo chair on the desk, or a rattan shelf to show quilts.
These components evoke the sensation of being close to the water—think about a salty breeze coming by open home windows, the solar dancing on the waves, or the peaceable rhythm of tides. By mixing consolation, simplicity, authenticity, and pure magnificence you may create a house that appears like a mild exhale. A spot that appears like a retreat from the stress of life and a each day reminder of all that’s lovely in it.
Carefree, peaceable, cozy, and lived-in.
TWO: Create a Cottage by the Sea Temper
Create a temper with a coloration palette is impressed by the coast itself. In my residence I draw palette inspiration from the coastal Pacific NW — these colours can be lovely in different comparable climates! Suppose delicate, sun-washed colours and barely moody tones, weathered woods, breezy linens, and pure textures that call to mind salt-kissed air and walks alongside the shore. Soothing shades of ocean blues, sea glass greens, and heat whites that really feel each contemporary and welcoming.
Supplies are pure and relaxed—I desire a mixture conventional and weathered woods, wicker and rattans, delicate linens, striped and botanical patterns that carry within the allure of a cottage by the ocean. If you happen to like a bit extra coloration, incorporate an accent of an exquisite crimson or butter yellow to carry further coloration and persona to your area.

THREE: Embrace the Serendipity of a Model Collected Over Time
Cottage by the Sea type is a gently layered look, refined with which means and reminiscence. Embrace the serendipity of a method collected over time, will probably be stuffed with surprises that can carry a novel and layered allure to your own home.
Although there’s a little bit of the sudden, it’s in the end about being in intentional in your selections. That is what really makes this type your individual.
The items you accumulate can actually be associated to the ocean, there isn’t any disgrace in being true to what you like. After all, one doesn’t need to make a daring nautical assertion to seize a sense, you may quietly weave in coastal accents and different light nods to what sparks pleasure.
There’s additionally freedom to embrace one’s personal persona — including some quirk or distinctive character in your furnishings and equipment will improve the connection you are feeling to your own home.
My philosophy is to all the time begin with what you’ve got and collect what you like over time. It’s slower however extra significant adorning course of.
The important thing to this cottage by the ocean type is to include who you’re and the life you reside and aspire to, to not be in a rush or accumulate meaningless tchotchkes simply to complete a room.
Embrace what brings pleasure and wonder to your life and residential.
This type will embody treasured finds gathered by the true adventures of life and components that encourage you to reside the life you like.

In my very own cottage by the ocean you can see shells from walks on the seaside, work from seaside cities, a fairly pinecone picked up on a stroll by the forest. We now have botanical prints and fowl decor as a nod to the natural fantastic thing about the place we reside within the Pacific Northwest, we accumulate rattan and bamboo gadgets, in addition to show different particular collections and mementos from our household and life right here.
I additionally love to search out furnishings with distinctive particulars (we now have a classic cupboard in our bed room that returned with my grandparents from abroad with gold ship engravings) and I even love to search out furnishings with shapes which have curves. For instance, our Fb Market Mattress jogs my memory of the waves of the ocean.
It takes time to search out these particular items and add them to our residence.
In a Cottage by the Sea, every ornamental factor ought to be chosen with intention—to not sustain with any pattern, however to create a peaceable temper and convey delight to the individuals who reside within the residence.
-Melissa Michaels, The Impressed Room

FOUR: Search for a Relaxed and Refined Combine
There’s an ease in how all the pieces is organized—nothing too good or compelled. Only a quiet mixture of what feels sensible pure, inspiring and welcoming.
It’s not about formality or fuss, it’s a permanent type that helps the life you wish to reside.
A Cottage by the Sea embodies a snug steadiness of relaxed and refined type. It’s the sort of type that invitations you to kick off your sneakers and breathe deeply, whereas nonetheless surrounding you with magnificence designed with intention.
-Melissa Michaels, The Impressed Room
This type brings collectively the laid-back allure of coastal life with considerate, timeless components that add character and a top quality that elevates on a regular basis dwelling.
Incorporate relaxed however basic components that won’t solely stand the take a look at of time, however will add patina and character of a life well-lived.
Add basic architectural particulars akin to tongue and groove paneling, wallpaper and natural components akin to marble, soapstone and wooden.
Suppose timeless high quality over amount, simplicity over fuss, and adorning in a method that feels pure to you over following inflexible styling guidelines.

5: Create a seaside sanctuary, not a very styled showplace.
Woven into each adorning element in a cottage by the ocean is the reminder that your own home ought to be a sanctuary.
– Melissa Michaels, The Impressed Room
With the intention to create a sanctuary, what you incorporate into your own home ought to improve your each day rhythms, not overly complicate them. In a cottage by the ocean type, search out fairly over good. Discover pleasure in being a homekeeper and caring for the issues you’ve got and love, relatively than seeing your own home merely as an obligation to maintain up.
Consider making a cottage by the ocean as a way of life that ought to nourish you, too.
To embrace the life-style, choose simple care materials and incorporate components which are pretty — not solely visually however carry magnificence to the act of caring for them.
Contemplate your temper phrases and the way you wish to really feel as you enhance. Show sufficient mementos to inform the story you wish to inform and create the sensation you wish to really feel, however not present a lot that you simply turn out to be overwhelmed or distracted in life by attempting to maintain up the looks of perfection.
Cottage by the Sea type about dwelling properly within the on a regular basis. It’s about utilizing what you’ve got, selecting what issues, and creating magnificence within the easy moments. It’s much less about “adorning” and extra about nurturing a lifestyle that feels peaceable, private, and stuffed with coronary heart. —it’s about evoking the sensation of life by the ocean.

Be taught extra and get on the spot entry to my model new digital journal Cottage by the Sea Spring Dreambook


Be a part of me for Room Recipe: a enjoyable step-by-step course that can information you thru the method of adorning over time. Learn to categorical your distinctive type, select your type setters, incorporate important room substances, formulation and tricks to organize and elegance your own home and a lot extra. This course is included throughout the HomeBody Gathering Place membership — you’ll additionally discover programs on House Rhythms and Seasonal Rhythms that can encourage you to like your own home extra.