Welcome to my thrifty & natural spring cottage refresh! I have absolutely been given life by adding spring elements to my home this season, and I hope to give you practical tips to do the same. After a long and dreary winter, we all need a little refresh!

How do I create a thrifty & natural spring cottage?

• Bring the outside in by displaying natural elements such as budding branches.
• Use lots of green by making little collections of house plants.
• Swap out your art for spring prints.
• Add more texture that speaks spring, such as baskets, white linens, and galvanized metal.
• Bring in florals, especially florals in baskets.
• Shop the thrift store for decor elements that speak spring to you.
• Add more color to simple elements such as throw pillows or seasonal decor.
• Use seasonal produce in your decor, such a as a glass vase of spring onions.

Spring refresh in the entryway

I would say my main inspiration for the entryway came from this lovely vintage broom I found at an estate sale.

It reminds me of my grandma sweeping the front porch of her home nestled in the flint hills of Kansas. Visiting their home and the vast acres that surrounded it was absolutely my happy place. I cherish anything that reminds me of that season of life.

In our home, my entryway is our main entrance (no mud room yet), and it’s a hard-working space. That broom is practical, baby! I use it constantly, so it’s certainly an added perk that it adds so much beautiful texture and cozy home warmth to the space.

This hanging basket was an INCREDIBLE thrift store find! I love the thick weave and the leather handles. However, I noticed it was broken on the side towards the back of the basket. I asked at the checkout if they could give me a discount, and she actually gave it to me for free! She told me they are not technically allowed to put out broken items, so it never should have been on the floor in the first place.

I’m sure glad it was though! This basket in the entry in one my favorite parts of my thrifty cottage spring refresh! Filling it with this branchy, twiggy greenery was the perfect spring touch. I’m in love!

I added this sweet little bunny print as well! I downloaded it from Heirloom Print Shop and then just printed it at Walmart. So easy, and a very thrifty way to refresh a space!

Hats just speak spring to me and so there it hangs, ready for action. Hats can be an easy thrift store find! If the idea of a thrift store hat bothers you, you can use if for decor purposes only. This hat I actually do wear and I got from one of my favorite online boutiques- Carly Jean Los Angeles! They have amazing sales that are so worth the wait!

Using moody florals in my spring cottage refresh

I am SO DRAWN to moody prints, but I’ll be honest, I struggled a little bit to incorporate them into my living room. My living area is very bright with my light beiges couches, white curtains, and light rug, so it took some playing around. I’m still not sure I love it, but I did end up being very happy with placing my moody prints in white frames.

This keeps the element light and gives more of a pop of black without the whole piece getting too heavy as it could its the frame were also dark. I’m not 100% sold on the white frames for these prints. I also bought a light gold spray paint that I may try spraying on the frames later to see if I like that more.

I began with three moody floral prints on the shelf, but in the end, I liked the less cluttered look of only two.

Using house plants

I got the idea of creating little collections of house plants for spring and I love it! By using this little wood piece to lift one of the plants, I created different heights to keep the eye moving. Keeping all the vessels white gave me the curated and undistracted look I was going for on this simple shelf.

House plants add so much life to a space and they help keep me satisfied until outdoor gardening has begun.

They look so sweet gathered in little groupings like this.

White Ironstone platters in my spring refresh

I love a good pop of white, well anytime, but especially in spring! We need that bright and cheery feel around here!

I’ve struggled with the shelf above this dresser for quite sometime. I don’t know if it’s placed too high or if it just gets too top heavy when decorated, however this ironstone platter kind of connected them. For me, this improved the overall feel of this area for now until I can come up with a better solution.

As with the moody florals, I still don’t love it on the whole thing and I think I will eventually be taking down the shelf and trying a gallery wall in this space. What do you think?

I also used an ironstone platter on the mantle. It was a perfect clean and simple item to a have there among the busyness of the art and it adds a beautiful pop of white. I love the detail in the scalloped edges! If I find one of these beauties out thrifting and it’s under ten dollars, I never pass up a white ironstone platter.

How do I create a thrifty & natural spring cottage mantle?

1. Take everything off your mantle for a fresh clean slate.
2. Give your mantle a good cleaning.
3. Start by adding your largest items first. For spring I want them to be fresh and green.
4. Balance your large items by placing them on either side of the mantle
5. Anchor the mantle by adding a focal piece in the center or collection of 3 pieces to anchor the center.
6. Now, add in your smaller elements, keeping items to groups of 3 or 5. Your large items may stand alone.
7. Layer and stack elements as it makes sense to create a lived in feel.
8. Stand back and rearrange if needed to create more balance.
9. Taking a photo of the space can give you new perspective and help you see what might need rearranging.

*TIP – As the mantle is the focal point of a room, keep your vessels to clear glass or light colors for a fresh spring feeling.

Thrifty & natural decorating with budding spring branches

While it may be too early for fresh flowers from the garden, the blooms on my tress and lilac bushes are starting to bud and they are so beautiful!

For me, they are a perfect symbol of the bits of spring that has arrived. Simple, yet beautiful. Small bursts of color, but full of impact.

After creating an arrangement with my budding tree branches, I also changed out the art in this space. This print is also a download from Heirloom Print Shop, and I love the muted greens it adds to the space. I’m always looking for prints that make me feel something, and this one reminded me a place where a Jane Austen character might go walking on a beautiful spring afternoon. I placed this print inside a vintage frame that I made over with a coat of European Gold Rubb n’ Buff.

Budding lilac branches are what fills the vase on my mantle as well.

Thank you for taking a peek into my thrifty & natural spring cottage refresh!

I hope you feel inspired to do the same in your home! Go outside and see what you can find. So many natural elements are gorgeous once placed in a beautiful vessel.

Pull out the baskets! Hit the thrift stores! Download some spring prints and print them off for a couple bucks at Walmart or Walgreens.

Spring is really coming and I couldn’t be more ready! We have exciting things going on here at our farmhouse cottage that I can’t wait to share with you!

I’ll give you a hint – It start with a”ch” and it rhymes with Dicken’s. 😉

Have a beautiful day Friends!