Our latest lookbook features eight guest rooms in cottages with tranquil interiors, from the Scottish Highlands to Czechia’s Bohemian Forest.
As summer continues in the northern hemisphere, we’ve rounded up lovely houses that combine modern touches with traditional architecture to inspire a restorative country escape.
This is the latest in our series of lookbooks, offering visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archives. For more inspiration, see past lookbooks featuring pocket gardens, statement sofas and bright shoji screens.
Purbeck Cottage, UK, by TYPE
Two 19th-century quarryman’s cottages in Dorset have been renovated by London-based architecture studio TYPE, and combined into a rural retreat.
Inside, the double-height living area sits below a wood-clad mezzanine level, characterized by stone walls and floors preserved from the original construction.
Read more about Purbeck Cottage ›
Borová Lada Cottage, Czechia, by Studio Plyš
A porthole window was turned into a window seat in the living room of this Czech cottage, located on the edge of the Bohemian Forest.
The light-filled living area is connected to the large open kitchen and garden via full-length sliding doors.
Learn more about the host, Borová Lada Cottage.
Carlton Cottage, Australia, by Lovell Burton
Across the globe, the founders of Australian firm Lovell Burton are renovating another 19th-century home in Melbourne.
Its sliding glass doors open onto the lush garden in the living room, lit by an enormous round skylight.
Read more about Carlton Cottage ›
Plener Istebna, Poland, by Mistovia
Plener Istebna is a pair of cottages in the Silesian Beskids mountains of Poland, with interiors by Dezeen Award-winning studio Mistovia.
Each house has a floor-to-ceiling glazed living room with views of the surrounding nature.
Find out more about Plener Istebna ›
Iorram, Scotland, by Baillie Baillie Architects
The village of Plockton in the Scottish Highlands created the setting for Iorram, a small house designed with a pallet of locally sourced Douglas fir, clay plaster and clay tiles.
Glasgow firm Baillie Baillie Architects chose “a distinctly Scottish approach to natural materials” when designing the house’s interior, with a living room with a fireplace designed to reference traditional cottages.
Read more about Iorram ›
Cottage, UK, by Studio Weave
Architecture firm Studio Weave added built-in Douglas window seats to this timber-framed extension to a Devon stone house.
The volume has glazed openings in the living area, offering views of the surrounding Blackdown Hills.
Find out more about this cottage ›
Hop Cottage, UK, by AOMD
An L-shaped extension has been attached to this semi-detached Edwardian house in Kent to open up the floor plan.
The local architecture studio AOMD covered the walls of the living area with wooden panels, which complement the statement of the chimney made of sandblasted bricks, which turn to show their inverted faces and give a rough texture.
Learn more about Hop Cottage ›
The Cottage, UK, by Invisible Studio
Architecture firm Invisible Studio has revamped a tired site in a valley between Surrey and Hampshire by revamping its cramped interior and adding an extension.
The new volume features floor-to-ceiling glazed seating and exposed concrete accents, balanced with soft, cottage-style furnishings.
Find out more about this cottage ›
This is the latest in our series of lookbooks, offering visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archives. For more inspiration, see past lookbooks featuring built-in sofas, statement sofas and lighted shoji screens.