Designing Our New Cottage

Welcome Cottage Friends.
 
Did you notice the new look of A Joyful Cottage?
 
More and more readers had been asking if the pretty cottage in the old header was a photo of our home.
 
Old Header Photo
 
I explained that it's a photo I took of The Fawnbrook Inn in Allenspark, Colorado, where Captain and I were married four years ago.  The inn, owned by our good friends, epitomizes a charming cottage and was the inspiration for my blog's title.  At any rate, I felt it was time to revamp the blog and design a new header sans the original photo.
 
New Header Photo Collage
 
The new header is a pictorial status of our life right now.  If you've been following A Joyful Cottage the past year, you know we sold our Colorado cottage last July.
 
Colorado Cottage Christmas 2012
 
We then headed to Oregon and traveled all over the state for five weeks before deciding to settle in the northeast region. 
 
One of the beautiful ranches nearby.
 
We rented an apartment, and the hunt for a cottage began.  After making five offers on existing homes, we decided it would be best for us to have a cottage built.  We found a lot with an existing shop, and closed escrow on April 1.
 
The lot has an existing shop which will be renovated for Captain's studio.
 
Then we began designing our cottage.
 
 
Copious cups of coffee are consumed during the design process.
 
Captain, a retired architect, says we're designing our cottage together.  I bring him all my inspirational photos and ideas, and he draws the plans.  As far as I can tell, I've got the better end of the deal.
 
Would you like to see a bird's eye view of our new cottage? 
 
I thought so.
 
That's me in the yard waving to you. 


Captain drew and colored this rendering just for me to share with you.  In upcoming posts I'll give you an up close and personal look at the cottage plans, and I'll share the steps we took to get to this point.  You may be surprised at some of the things I reveal.
 





I'm sharing at these lovely parties:
Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings
Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House
You're Gonna Love it Tuesday at Kathe with an E
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Home and Garden Thursday at A Delightsome Life

Share Your Cup Thursday at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage



 
 



42 comments

  1. How exciting to be designing your new home and it looks lovely. In a few years we will be traveling to find our new home to retire to. Looking forward to seeing your plans come to life.

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    1. I hope you enjoy the search for a home to retire to when the time comes, Betty. We spent a lot of time on the road hunting for the right location. I'm glad we took our time.

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  2. Nancy, the rendering is just dreamy! I think it's so neat that the two of you share that dream and are doing it together. :)

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    1. Thank you, Stacey. I must say when Captain showed me his rendering it suddenly all seemed very real. :)

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  3. Very exciting, Nancy! That is the ultimate design dream...start from scratch and make it your own! You are a very lucky girl! I can't wait to peek at your drawings and pictures along the way! Congratulations and best of luck as you move forward!! :)

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    1. Thank you, Kim. I do feel very blessed. It's so much fun to share the experience with all my blogger friends like you. XX

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  4. What a great project to have together. We are in the process of selling our rural home and are looking for a house in town. Sometimes I think we should buy a town lot and build something that suits us both. I'll follow this with interest.

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    1. Our last cottage was on a 1/2 acre outside of town. With horses next door, it was pretty much a country spot. I did enjoy living there, but I'm just as happy to soon be living in town. :)

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  5. Sounds like you have a fun adventure ahead. Enjoy every bit of it and I'm looking forward to your next post. Deb

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    1. Thanks for visiting and for your kind words, Deb. :)

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  6. You can call me the old poop in the pod, but I loved your original old header picture of the cottage. It is what first attracted me in, and I will miss seeing it. It always looked like HOME to me. However, I look forward to following you on your new adventure with great joy and anticipation for some new ideas that I can "borrow".

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    1. I'll miss the old photo, too. Every time I saw it I was reminded of happy hours spent there. I'm glad you felt drawn here because of it, and especially glad that you plan to return. :)

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  7. How exciting,and how convenient to be married to a retired architect. Can't wait to see it.

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    1. It really is convenient, Jeanette Ann. There's nothing like being able to share design pillow talk. ;-)

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  8. I LOVE it! and that rendering of your home & plot is fabulous. What a great story! If I ever get around to my dream of driving the PCH, I hope you're still there so I can visit you!

    xox

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    1. Anne, I think we'll be in this house for quite awhile. At least I hope so. And you're welcome to come and visit us any time. That would be a lot of fun! Hugs ~ Nancy

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  9. Charming Nancy . . . you have such a way to give us a peek and treasure your journey . . .
    What a joy it must be to design this dream together . . .

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    1. What a nice thing to say, Lynne. Thank you. We are enjoying the process.

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  10. How exciting, Nancy! LOVE the plans with you right in the middle, waving!
    I'm glad you will be sharing the process with us, as you travel along on this journey.
    Debbie
    xo

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    1. Thank you. I'm really glad I have this blog as an outlet to share, Debbie. Having nice people like you joining me means a lot. I love my blogging buddies. :)

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  11. Wow. I am so envious of your adventurous sprits. loved that you went not knowing where you would end up. I'm hoping to explore areas and find a new home too within a few years. You have inspired me once again.

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    1. I'm an explorer at heart, and have moved around a lot. Which is pretty odd since the rest of my family never had the itch to leave our hometown. It's always made me wonder if I was adopted. (Just kidding.)

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  12. It will be fun to progress along with you : )

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    1. Thanks, Deb. Sharing with others makes it more fun for me. I appreciate your encouraging words.

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  13. Hi Nancy,

    How lucky you are to be designing your own cottage!! Sounds like such fun! I love the color rendering your husband did for your blog post; it looks like you're off on a fun, new adventure. :)

    Visiting from Home and Garden Thursday; have a great week!

    Denise at Forest Manor

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    1. Hi, Denise. Thanks for your kind words. It is, indeed a "fun, new adventure", and I feel very blessed. :)

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  14. Oh my, am I ever so excited for you or what? What a dream cottage! Love the Captains sketch. So glad he didn't forget you! lol! Thanks for sharing it with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. Thanks, Jann. I'm probably having more fun than I deserve. Although there have been a few moments when I wondered if I had lost my mind thinking I wanted to do this. Hah! XX

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  15. How exciting! Looks like you have selected a beautiful spot. Will enjoy seeing future updates.

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  16. I was away from blogging so much last year and lost track of a few people. I thought we had reconnected. But somehow I missed that you had moved to Oregon! I knew you were planning to build a cottage though, and now I see what a change you have made! Wow! All my best for your new life! By the way, that long-planned trip to CO is upcoming and of course we will miss you! :-( But my hubby's sister lives in Brookings. If we ever get up that way..... But you said NE didn't you? Nope, probably WAY too far from the coast! :-) Oh well.

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    1. I'm sorry we're going to miss you in Colorado, Marie. :( We're on the other side of the state from the Coast, but who knows. . .maybe we could meet up somewhere.

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  17. Such picturesque views - I can see why you love the style- such talent - great plans and awesome drawing! So excited for you! I do appreciate you sharing with Home and Garden Thursday,
    Kathy

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    1. Thank you, Kathy. Hope you're having a great week. :)

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  18. What a fabulous layout! Thank you for linking with Home Sweet Home!
    Sherry

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    1. Thanks, Sherry. My husband has worked hard to get to this point.

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  19. It will be fun to build your dream home in Oregon. Why did you leave your Colorado Cottage? Looking forward to future progress on your new cottage.

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    1. Hi Tonita. We sold our home in Colorado for financial reasons. We lived in a mountain resort community where the cost of living is pretty high, and the summer tourist traffic is just too much for us. We're pretty laid back people. Also, we had completely remodeled the cottage and converted an 1880 log barn into my husband's art studio, and found we were cash poor. :( So, we made the decision to sell out, recoup our cash and find a less expensive -- but still beautiful place -- to live. We chose NE Oregon, and we love it. There are only 7,000 people in the whole county, so we have plenty of space to live and breathe. Thanks for your interest. I look forward to more of your visits. Hugs.

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