Feeling inspired?

What was two is now one – this end-of-terrace beauty is more sprawling than petite as it merges two cottages and has undergone a thoughtful renovation. The contemporary kitchen was designed by 

, and the new roof and wood-burning stoves will keep residents toasty all year through. Beyond the white picket fence, the facade’s chevroned pargeting has been lovingly restored, there’s a sweet scullery beyond the old back stable door, and you can slumber beneath cosy exposed beams and trusses.

Surrounded by winding lanes, orchards and a historic parish church, this Grade II-listed cottage is perfectly placed. On the outside, it’s a picture of traditional thatch and honey-hued Hamstone walls, the garden sweeping round to a ledged patio and private woodland. Inside is quainter still with an original inglenook fireplace, classic, clean-lined kitchen and – behind ledge and brace doors – two perfectly formed bedrooms.

Beehive Cottage, Berkswell, West Midlands

An image of chocolate-box perfection, Beehive Cottage is cosy and characterful with its timber frame and classic thatched roof. Updated by its current owners, there’s a smart home office perched in the garden, and the kitchen is thoughtfully arranged around a red Rayburn range, with a dining nook and larder, too. After a day spent tending the classic English cottage garden, all that’s left to do is curl up with a tome by the hearth.

Another marvellously unified design, this Grade II-listed home was once two smugglers’ cottages dating back to the 16th century. Brought together and renovated to a polished standard, the contemporary garden landscaping reflects its verdant surrounds – an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, no less. Step through the vaulted reception room to a space dressed in calming, neutral tones, with dining and sitting rooms enrobed in exposed beams and warming oak floors.

In contrast with the natural, moody hues of the undulating Lake District, this unique cottage is splashed with colour and character. The white-painted stone and blue-framed windows set the tone for the roaring fires and vibrant pigments inside – the sitting room is painted a dusky blush-pink and the kitchen brushed with sage and mustard tones, mirroring the well-established vegetable beds and lush kitchen herb garden right on the doorstep.

Amy Bonifas

Homes

Few places charm quite like a picturesque country cottage. Whether tucked among orchards, perched in a quiet village or flanked by wildflower-strewn hills, these homes range from cosy and fairytale-esque to vast and contemporary. Thatched, timbered, and storied, each has been sensitively updated while keeping the warmth and whimsy so typical of their kind. From leafy Dorset to the watercolour-worthy Lakes, here are five cottage idylls when the lure of the countryside calls

Great and Small: five exceptional cottages worth dreaming about