Modern Country Bathroom

Modern Country Bathroom, I love you.

After so much of forcing you to choose between stark, minimalist Modern and little English country cottage from my The Holiday series, I thought I give you a treat.

No choices.

No tension.

Source: Unknown

Just. Pure. 

Modern Country Bathroom 

Loveliness.

Modern Country is always where I am happiest. 

It's not so much of a choice, as a feeling. 

I feel my shoulders drop and reeee-lax.

The last day of November.

Christmas is a-coming.

I can hear those sleigh-bells already.

Can you?

The Holiday Houses: Get The Look

If you follow Modern Country Style on Facebook, 

then you'll know how excited I am about Christmas. 

Over at the Relics of Witney blog 

(remember the other blog I write?), we're starting a 

Beginners Guide To Gilding series. 

Have you always wanted to add a little bit extra to your Christmas decorating? 

Then this series is for YOU! 

{Come over and say hi!}

So then, how to Get The Look of both 

The Holiday Cottage AND American house?

Although they look very different, 

there's actually plenty that these to homes have in common....

Let me first of all get these heart-breaking pictures out of the way....

Yes, the dream English cottage is all a fake. 

Shocked? I was!!

From that to this...

Don't be sad: every cloud has a silver lining...and the lining of this particular cloud is so thick that it pretty much makes it a silver cloud through and through.

If The Holiday cottage can look so characterful 

and yet be a complete sham

 then just think what you can do with your house.

It means that ANY house can be given character with a few tweaks here and there. Lots of books, carefully chosen fabrics and bare wood, and you'll be well on your way....

Once again, just as in the Something's Gotta Give house, both houses have a consistent palette all the way thorough.

Amanda's home has a backdrop of white, 

with brown and black accents, plus lots of greenery. 

It's hard to spot any other colours. Can you?

Iris' Rosehill Cottage gives the impression of being charmingly flung together but take another look. The palette is just as tight as Amanda's. Cream and Blue-grey with the odd touch of raspberry.

You all know what a fan I am of restricting the colour's in your home for a gorgeous, cohesive whole. These houses perfectly demonstrate how well the concept works.

Secondly, in both houses, Nancy Meyer has chosen a theme and stuck to it. Consistency is her middle name. There's nothing in either house that stick out. Nothing Country in the Modern house and nothing Modern in the Country house.

You want more specifics about creating a very English look?

That'll be coming in the New Year....

But for now....

it's Christmas time.....

{and my crafting fingers are getting very itchy....}

The Holiday Houses: Living Rooms

We've been having a nose round both The Holiday houses: Rosehill Cottage and Amanda's American Modern home. 

Have you missed out on any of the other posts?

The Holiday: Bathrooms

The Holiday Bedrooms

The Holiday Kitchens

The Holiday houses: Modern versus Country

The two homes are an incredible contrast: one is the essence of English cottage style and the other seems to be the epitome of spacious, calm American Modern.

Both are utterly gorgeous, to be sure. Modern and Country: both span what I love, as Modern Country is my favourite, don't you know. ;-)

Let's take another snizz at The Holiday houses, shall we?

The living rooms in each could not be more different.

The Holiday Cottage is a pretty good size compared to the rest of Iris' home, though, of course, it fades into insignificance compared to the American house - can you say 'It's gimongous'?

 Woooooah! It's huuuuuuuge! 

But here's a secret: 

I find it hard not to imagine all American houses like this! 

Yes, it's true. *blush* 

I was talking to an American about how I naively think of all Americans living on ranches. She completely and adamantly denied it...but on further quizzing from me, it turned out SHE lived on a 50-acre ranch! So my utterly unfounded stereotype remains unchanged!

But, anyway, back to the case in point. I can't believe how much space Amanda has. Acres and acres of roomage. 

I love the spacious airiness of Amanda's home but if I had to plump for one, this time it would be Iris' Cottage. I love the softness of the room. Much more of a 'kick-off-your-heels-and-slop-around-on-the-sofa' room, which suits me down to the ground.

And don't get me started on the Rosehill Cottage fireplace. I love it!

I know woodburners are all the rage, and they are, it's true, a zillion times more effiecient than alternatives, yet, still, I cannot resist the primeval lure of the open fire.

The only thing I might have done very differently is this odd extra sofa in the back corner. I would have thought that being so short on space, it would be more usefully employed as a study area. 

But, minor niggles aside, this is one room that wins hands down for me.

What about you?

Are you Modern or Country? 

Or, like me, a liberating dash of both?

Because that's Modern Country Style all over.

Let's take a last look on Friday at how how YOU can get the look! 

Combining both houses to get my perfect house......

Can it be done?

Come back and see!

One more thing before I go.....The winner of the Finishing Touch Interiors Silver bowl and servers giveaway is....

Laura from Happy Homemaker UK.

I'll be with you in two shakes of a lamb's tail.

The Holiday Houses: Bathrooms

The Holiday bathroom-off 

{like Face-off, right? Right?.....}

must be the ultimate test of form over function.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE character in houses, it provides warmth like nothing else but would I choose Rosehill Cottage's squeezily small bath when I could have that incredible room in Amanda's American house? 

No.

Just look at those incredible storage cupboards.

All those fluffy white towels.

The view.

The space.

I adore that bathroom. 

So why do I keep coming back to the English Country bathroom at Rosehill Cottage?

The sloping ceiling;

the hideously dangerous wall lamp

{gotta love English eccentrics and our crazy electrics....

though I should point out it's completely illegal}

the pewter finish of the roll top bath, 

those taps.

However, there's no two ways about it.

 I am a stretch-out-in-the-bath girl. 

There's just no way I could put up with that itty-bitty bath.

A veritable dilemma.

Never fear, though, I have a plan. 

We can turn the bath sideways along the sloping wall. 

I do realise that the comedy moment of Cameron Diaz squished into the teeny tiny bath would be gone but I think we can live without the laffs for the sake of a full sized tub to fill with copious amounts of deliciously-scented bubbles.

Have you ogled the rest of this The Holiday series?

The Holiday Bedrooms

The Holiday Kitchens

The Holiday houses: Modern versus Country

And then, on Wednesday, 

the luscious living rooms.

Modern or Country?

Which will YOU choose?

Aaaarrghh, I can't wait!

The Holiday Houses: Bedrooms

Here we are at The Holiday movie set again.

Today, we're in the bedroom.

Or bedrooms, to be precise.

Yes, we've been comparing Amanda's huuuuge American Modern house, 

with Iris' small but perfectly formed English Country Cottage 

from the movie The Holiday. 

So far, the hot favourite has been the cottage.

Now, the bedroom is where things start to hot up for me.

{Ahem}

However, I'm not plumping for Iris' Rosehill Cottage bedroom.

I know the ceiling is beautiful and vaulted.

And I do love that fire blazing in the corner.

But it's just not for me.

Too much stuff.

Too much colour.

And the bedstead doesn't look comfy to lean against with a good book.

I like my bedroom to be relaxed and calm and serene.

I love Amanda's American bedroom. 

There....I've said it!!!

Do you remember those automatic blinds? 

I love the restful colour scheme.

The feeling of cocconing. 

The pillows piled high.

But I'm guessing that lots of you still love this:

Am I right?

I await your furious response....

The Holiday Houses: Kitchens

It's Day 2 of The Holiday Movie Houses Merry-Making.

Today, let's take a good look at The Holiday kitchens.

Now for me, there's no doubt in my mind which kitchen I prefer.

Cameron Diaz'/Amanda's kitchen is large and spacious and airy.

Kate Winslet/ Iris' is small and rather poky but absolutely jam-packed to the rafters with heavenly character.

See that lovely fireplace? Over at the Relics blog this week, we're talking about how to add character to your home by creating the perfect fireside look. 

I love the way, just as in the Something's Gotta Give Beach House, the palette flows from one end of the {considerably smaller} house to the other.

I think it's the colours of Rosehill Cottage that grab me.

I am a total sucker for those greeny-bluey-greys.

A. Total. Sucker.

Let's take a closer, more considered look at the American Modern kitchen. I really do adore those over-sized lanterns.

{I'd nab those in a flash.}

And the range too.

Love it.

But I don't think they got it quite right.

It almost looks as though it's a 2-d kitchen. Do you know what I mean?

There is no personality, and it feels as though it's been completely abandoned. Cold and lifeless.

Is the jury is still out.

Which of the Holiday kitchens do you prefer?

Let the fight begin.....

The Holiday Houses: Modern versus Country

Welcome to my brand new series on The Holiday film sets.

We've had the Something's Gotta Give house extravaganza

...and now it's the turn of The Holiday houses.

The Holiday features two gorgeous interiors: 

one English Country and the other American Modern.

{Perfect for Modern Country Stylists to fight agonise over.}

;-)

So I thought I'd create a little series to focus on both, 

to look at their strengths and weaknesses (gasp!) and 

to indulge in the gorgeous film sets that Nancy Meyer has created.

I love the feeling of being gradually eased into the Christmas season. It's only November so I thought I'd use a very gentle introduction to lead us into my favourite month of the whole year.

First up, The Holiday kitchens.....

Prepare your boxing gloves for the fight of the century....

No kicking or pinching...