AFS_SUM15_22-25.PDF

22 American Farmhouse St y le | Summer 2015

Come In &STAY AWHILE

Decorate your guest room in a style that providesboth essentials and comforts to any guest.

B Y S T E P H A N I E B A K E RP H O T O G R A P H Y B Y B E C K Y R O B E R T S , S W E E T C O T T A G E D R E A M S

Essentials

AFS-SUM2015-22-25-GuestRoom 5/24/15 11:31 PM Page 22

hat makes you feel most welcome when you’re staying in

someone else’s home? Is it the access they give you to the

kitchen, or the size of the bathroom you’re using? Maybe it’s

the softness of the comforter or the number of pillows on the

guest bed. Becky, owner of the popular blog Sweet Cottage

Dreams, has always felt at home in a farmhouse-style set-

ting—places that exude simplicity, hospitality and the desire

to kick off your shoes and get settled. In her own home in

the Central Valley of California, Becky combines English cot-

tage style with New England farmhouse style to create an

environment in which any visitor will feel comfortable—a

feeling that’s most prominent in her guest room.

Becky grew up visiting family members on a farm and

always admired the homey feel of their houses, along with

the hospitality they offered and the slower pace of life. When

her children moved out of her home, she decided to convert

one of their bedrooms into a guest room. She already had

the farmhouse style incorporated in her half bathroom, din-

ing room and laundry room, so she decided to continue that

theme in the guest room. What better way to make her

guests feel comfortable than with the same homey style that

left such an impression on her memory as a child?

EFFICIENT SIMPLICITYWhen visitors come to stay, they most likely want to relax

and disconnect from the distractions of their world so they

can reconnect with you. Simple furnishings in the room can

help prevent your visitor from feeling too crowded or over-

whelmed. Stick to the essentials—bed, dresser, night-

stand—so they feel comfortable enough to unpack their

suitcase, yet not inundated with too many drawers or extra

storage space. Hospitality doesn’t have to be elaborate to

work well. Your guests should feel like they're staying in a

home, rather than a hotel. For Becky, the farmhouse style is

a reminder of the days when people took the time to enjoy

visiting with each other, and she wants her guests to have

that same experience when they stay with her.

FARMHOUSE FLAIRGiving a back-to-the-farm feel to a room can be as simple

as adding an antique dresser and some horse décor.

W

This room is ready to provide whatever a guest might need—extra pillows and old

quilts on the bed, a nightstand with a lamp for reading or journaling and a simple

bureau with room to lay out jewelry or a wallet.


24 American Farmhouse St y le | Summer 2015

Many antique and vintage furnishings

have farmhouse appeal, merely

because they harken back to an era of

hard work and no technology. Some

cowboy decorations—a straw hat or

horseshoe, a picture of a country

scene or a plaid quilt—can help com-

plete the look and fill the room with

homegrown comfort. Keep colors neu-

tral and designs simple—this will

enforce the idea that you can take the

girl out of the farm, but you can’t take

the farm out of the girl.

WELCOMING COMFORTAbove all, you want your guests to

enjoy their stay. Extra pillows and

blankets in the guest room, as well as

a lamp on a nightstand, are simple

touches that go a long way toward

making guests feel welcome. You can

also make them feel at ease with

sparse collections and few items hang-

ing on the walls—“simplicity without a

lot of fuss,” Becky says. Designs don’t

have to match exactly; similar colors

and themes can be enough to tie the

room together. As Becky tells it, the

finished room “will bring a sense of

peace and a desire to sit in your

favorite chair with a glass of iced

sweet tea.”

LEFT, TOP: Becky made this small pillow from anold grain bag she found at a local shop called TheAntique Gardener. To incorporate your own handi-work into a room, find an old seed bag on Etsy oreBay and then sew it into a pillow.

LEFT, MIDDLE: Adding an award ribbon or someother personal touch to the room will give it ahomey, lived-in feeling. Personal touches like thisare a great way to make sure your guests doesn’t feellike they're staying in a hotel.

LEFT, BOTTOM: Old mirrors and vintage books are agreat way to add some farmhouse history to a roomand still keep things simple.

FOR MORE OF BECKY ROBERTS’ DECORATING

TIPS, VISIT SWEET COTTAGE DREAMS BLOG AT

SWEETCOTTAGEDREAMS.BLOGSPOT.COM.


American Farmhouse St y le | Summer 2015 25

Farm FollowsFunction

Weave farmhouse charm into your homeusing a few practical tips.

1. Start with the walls and work inward.Becky suggests trying bead board, shiplapor planked walls painted white to besthighlight the farmhouse style. Then add thefurniture—antiques and vintage piecesusually work well to bring a farm feeling tothe room.

2. Most of your farmhouse touches willappear in the details. You can add almostany item, if you do it creatively. Becky’ssuggestions include “a picture of a cow, aFrench grain sack pillow, a small cream canto use as a vase, a stack of old ironstoneplates or a collection of old woodencutting boards.”

3. The Internet is a very useful tool—useit! Many blogs adhere to the farmhousestyle and can provide inspiration. Etsy andeBay are also great resources to find décorthat fits this theme without leaving thecomfort of your home.

4. Whether you’re styling the whole houseor just one room, Becky advises that youstay original with your décor. You may feelinundated with ideas and information, butdon’t let that tempt you to mimic what yousee others do. When you’re feelingoverwhelmed, just remember: “Keep itsimple, keep it original, and be yourself.”

RIGHT, TOP: With enough originality and creativity, any-thing can become a vase. Flowers—whether fake or real—are a great way to bring warmth and liveliness to a room.

LEFT, BOTTOM: Becky found this Horseshoe Brand clothesdrying rack, and it inspired her to add horse décor to theroom, which include the straw hats, the horse doorstop andthe 1931 Horse Show award ribbon. The drying rack and theframed poem are the only two items that hang on the wall inthis room, keeping things quaintly simple for guests.


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AFS_SUM15_22-25.PDF