A Dream Fairytale Cottage Comes To Life

Welcome to the 303rd Metamorphosis Monday!

Have you ever thought of downsizing to a smaller home? Tonita who blogs at Shabby Chic Tiny Retreat first got bit by the small-house bug when she walked into a tiny straw bale home at the California State Fair. Giving up her cell phone, Tonita took that money and began to save a $100.00 each month. After 7 years she had saved up enough to buy her own small cottage.

Tonita told me, ” Believing that it is never too late to have a happy childhood I decided I wanted to have a playhouse with  many of the features of a real home, a retreat, a place to celebrate, a gift to myself.”  I love Tonita’s philosophy on life…that it’s never to late to have a happy childhood!

Tonita’s small home was built by Scott Stewart, the owner of Slab Town Custom Homes in Arkansas. Her particular home is the AnneMarie Model. In the picture below it’s being delivered. In a post on her blog Tonita said the day it arrived, she was waiting with paint brush in hand. She had a plan and couldn’t wait to get started transforming her tiny home into the home of dreams!

Build a Tiny Home

 

Is this not the cutest, most adorable little cottage ever?! This is how it looks during the spring and summer.

Fairytale Cottage House

 

And here she is at Christmastime. I love the garland and wreaths running along the white picket fence.

White Picket Fence Decorated with Wreaths and Garland for a Cottage Home

 

Tonita has chickens! They are as adorable as her home and they are definitely living the good life in their custom chicken coup!

Living a Fairytale Life In A Sweet Cottage Home

 

The Chicken Château is located there to the right of Tonita’s cottage, in between her home and a garden/storage shed. Look at all those beautiful flowers spilling from the window boxes of the Chicken Château and the garden shed!

Fairytale Setting for a Cottage Home

 

Tonita found the perfect wallpaper for the Chicken Château, it has a chicken wire design with little pink roses. So cute and so perfect! Tonita had only purchased one roll of paper thinking it would be enough to cover the walls of the coop, but it wasn’t. After some extensive searching online, she located one more roll. Meant to be!

Tonita stores organic chicken feed inside the antique milk can which does double-duty as a place to sit and watch the baby chicks.

Posh Chicken Coop For Some Very Lucky Chickens

 

The nesting boxes are filled with organic hay. Are you thinking what I’m thinking…let’s come back as one of Tonita’s chickens in our next life! They are living the good life, aren’t they?

Tonita stenciled their names above their boxes so there would be no fussing or confusion about who nests where. 🙂 Tonita named her chickens after favorite Aunts and other dearhearts who were “mother hen” figures in her life and have since passed away.

Posh Chicken Coop_wm

 

When Tonita’s chickens aren’t busy nesting in the Chicken Château, they can be found free-range sunbathing in the garden. 🙂 Aren’t they beautiful! You can see more of the Chateau in this post at Tonita’s blog: Chicken Chateau: By Reservation Only

Chickens In The Garden

 

Ready to go inside and tour Tonita’s sweet retreat? Let’s go!

Fairytale Cottage House

 

Love the sign…it says: Bed & Breakfast…You make both! 🙂 Tonita found the wonderful wicker sette for a song on Craig’s list.

A Sweet Cottage Porch With White Wicker

 

It’s a perfect fit for her front porch! This picture was taken when Tonita had decorated her cottage for Valentine’s Day. If  you are thinking of downsizing but dread the idea of not having enough storage space to decorate for the holidays and special occasions, take a page from Tonita’s book and purchase a storage shed to store those special decorations you use throughout the year.

Porch Decorating Idea For Small Porches

 

About her tiny cottage home, Tonita said, “It comes complete with a master loft, a guest loft, a full bath with sink, shower and tub. The great room will seat four people comfortably for dinner, and there is cozy reading or sleeping nook on the main floor.”

You can see the guest loft there above the sleeping/reading nook in this picture below.

Shabby Chic Decor for a Fairytale Cottage_wm

 

Such a darling cottage and what a lovely place to celebrate with good friends.

Cottage Dining Shabby Chic Style

 

Tonita’s attention to details is wonderful. You’ll want to visit her blog to see all the special touches she’s added to this darling cottage.

Dreamy Shabby Chic Cottage

 

I love how she decorated her home for Valentine’s Day, adding touches of pink throughout.

Valentine's Day Celebration, Shabby Chic Style

 

Wood counters stained in a dark stain contrast beautifully with the sounding white cabinetry.

Tonita said, “There is a closet, storage area,  2 burner stove top, apartment size frig with freezer, a built-in ladder and bookshelf and plenty of storage space and shelves. Many free roadside finds fill the walls and shelves of the tiny retreat. I love to upcycle discarded items and give them a new life.”

Kitchen With Wood Counters in Small Cottage

 

Tonita created a wonderful table for Valentine’s Day to share with some very special friends.

Valentine's Day Brunch With Friends

 

I love how she mixed different silver patterns for her beautiful tablescape.

Pink Floral Heart-Shaped Plates and Mismatched Silver For a Shabby Chic Valentine's Day Celebration

 

This may be my favorite spot of all…a cozy reading nook, perfect for an afternoon nap.

Have you been noticing all the wonderful chandeliers? Tonita said, “A collection of 9 chandeliers, add charm to the vintage inspired tiny house that measures just 8 feet wide and 18 feet long. A 6 x 8’ attached front porch adds outside living space. It is a great tiny home that has a zero mortgage and it provides me with current and future living options.”

Cottage Reading Nook

 

Park your pink boots right here beside the fireplace and they’ll be toasty warm when it’s time to head back out. Love these!

Let’s check out the loft bedrooms!

Perfect Pink Boots

 

This is the master bedroom and it sports one of those 9 fabulous chandeliers!

Small Shabby Chic Cottage Bedroom

 

And here’s the cozy guest room. Small but luxurious!

Dreamy Guest Room in a Tiny Cottage

 

Guest are treated to fairy lights at Christmastime. 🙂

Guest Room Decorated With Fairy Lights for Christmas

 

Come Christmastime, Tonita decorates her tiny home with lots of natural greenery.

Shabby Chic Chandelier Decorated for Christmas

 

What a great idea for decorating shelves!

Decorate Kitchen For Christmas

 

Bright red apples, pine cones and natural greenery are wonderful Christmas touches for this cottage retreat. Notice the roll of “Wish” tickets…they must work because this sweet cottage home fulfilled all Tonita’s wishes.

Decorate with Apples and Pinecones For Christmas

 

Do you have any special dreams or wishes?

Christmas Decorating with Apples, Pine Cones and a Sweet Little Tree

 

With a little planning and saving, Tonita made her dreams and wishes come true. This cottage home is the embodiment of her wish come true! Such an inspiration for us all!

Decorate Simply For Christmas

 

I’ll leave you with a sentiment Tonita often leaves with the readers of her blog:

“As always, I want you to remember that it is never too late to have a happy childhood.
Love and Blessings,
Tonita”

Love a darling little cottage home? Check out Sandy’s sweet streamside studio previously featured here: Rugged Hunting Cabin Becomes Beautiful Victorian Retreat

Hunting Cabin Turned Into Shabby Chic Studio

 

Looking forward to the other Before and Afters for this Met Monday!

Met Monday

 

If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday, you will need to link up the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the “url” box for InLinkz.

In order to link up, you’ll need to include a link in your MM post back to the party so the other participants will have an opportunity to receive visits from your wonderful blog readers.

Please observe these few rules:

Only link up Before and After posts that are home, gardening, crafting, painting, sewing, cooking, DIY related.

Do not link up if you’re doing so to promote a website or product.

Do not link up a post that was just linked last week since a lot of readers will have already seen that post.

Please do not link up more than 2 Before and Afters each week. Thanks!

*If a post is sponsored or a product was provided at no charge, it will be stated in post. Some links may be affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases. *



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Comments

  1. Susan, I’m so glad you shared this amazing retreat with us today. Sometimes we think too big when it comes to the size of a space. But…we can never think too big for making a space live big…like this one. What pure delight!
    All the best for an extraordinary week!

  2. Adorable Susan, What a sweet retreat! Thanks for sharing 🙂

  3. Thanks so much for sharing this incredible cottage!!! i want one for myself!!
    Thanks so much for the party!!

    Hugs,
    Deb

  4. Isn’t her cottage dreamy! I shared her cottage a year ago when I stumbled onto it while researching for something! I absolutely love it!Thanks so much for hosting too!

  5. Indeed, what an inspiration! I love Tonita’s adorable cottage! Thanks for hosting us, Susan.

  6. Oh my goodness, this is just incredible! I am so glad you featured this so we could all enjoy it, I can’t wait to go over to her site and take it all in! Just amazing, you can tell she touched and refurbished every little thing in the whole cottage! What an inspiration to start the week! Last night I had dreams of Christmas decorating all night long 🙂 Thanks Susan~

  7. pam ~ crumpety cottage says

    My ‘wish’ is that Tonita was my friend! Haha, what a wonderful take on life. I love her attitude. And the chandelier in the “Chicken chateau” is too cute and funny. Just the name, Chicken Chateau makes me smile. 😀

    Very adorable tiny house and she surely has made the most of it, hasn’t she? It IS very floofy and luxurious and girly looking. What a fun place to hang out.

    Thanks, Susan, and thanks Tonita. Very inspiring!

  8. Hi Susan! Oh, this is just darling! I know so many gals who would love to live in one of these. I believe she has made the little house so precious with all of the conveniences and glamor too! Hope you’re doing well, sweet friend. Oh, have you gotten another kitty? I hope you will.
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia 😉

  9. This is so timely – I did a post last week on the excesses we North Americans seem to be obsessed with – especially big homes –
    I’ve seen her miniature cottage before – it’s just gorgeous –
    Would love to be a guest there !!!
    XOXO

  10. And where are my manner?
    Thanks so much for another wonderful party !!!
    Have you seen Cindy’s kitchen from Dwellings the heart of your home?
    She linked up this week – a MUST see – just went by and I’m in awe.
    Hugs,
    Suzan

  11. This is pure comfort and joy to me. How I wish for a tiny cottage! Thanks for sharing, Susan, and for hosting the party. Love it!
    Rita C at Panoply

  12. Just adorable! Love the chicken coop so very sweet. The cottage is decorated so beautiful.

  13. Oh my goodness, is this not the sweetest cottage ever? I want one too!!! Thanks for hosting every week! XO

  14. Good morning, Susan… Thank you so much for sharing that adorable cottage! There was so much to see and every bit of it was lovely!!

  15. Thanks so much for hosting, Susan!
    Have a great week,
    Suzanne

  16. What a fun post, I had to read it twice. Tonita could give us all lessons in space planning. Her chickens are living nicer than Martha Stewart’s palais de poulet. Aren’t those chickens living the life? 🙂

  17. OH, my gosh, Oh, my gosh…if this isn’t just “living happily ever after!!” Just made my heart sing!! franki

  18. Hi…I love that tiny house..I’ve had my eye on a tiny vintage trailer near me..it’s being used for junk storage from the looks of it..but now after seeing this I may just get an Amish built shed an convert it into a tiny house..I want it for sleepovers with the Grands..it will look so sweet in my back yard..Thanks for sharing such a wonderful blog..an that chicken house..I’m sharing that with my niece..she has chickens an will love seeing that..hope you have a nice day..it’s a REALLY crappy one here..

  19. What a precious story and even more precious space! It makes my heart happy when I hear of someone living out there dream! Thank you so much for sharing this. 🙂

  20. Loved this little house with all the Victorian decorations! It seems like there are a lot of these little houses around. I would like to have one sitting in a mountain wooded area to visit on weekends or just when “the notion hits”. Enjoy all your blogs! Have a fun week………stay warm………warm has arrived in Central KY.

  21. Thanks for hosting! I love those small houses, then I look at all my stuff and wonder if I could do it. They are so cute though. I’d live simpler and not rely on stuff.

    Shannon

  22. That little cottage is just too cute for words. Love the Christmas touches too! Thanks for hosting.
    Blessings,
    Nici

  23. Thanks for the party and for featuring that cute home. I just loved the virtual tour — and what lucky chickens! 🙂

  24. This is absolutely adorable! My husband and I watched a documentary on tiny houses – a young man’s adventures in building his own tiny house. What an interesting concept. Not sure I could ‘live’ in one, but it would be fun to have a retreat! I do appreciate you hosting – have a blessed, safe and dry day/week 😉
    Kathy

  25. Rattlebridge Farm says

    What a charming cottage, filled with ideas! I love the holiday touches. Thank you for hosting MM each week–stay warm, my friend!

  26. “When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.”
    ~John Lennon
    No more words are needed but ‘Thank you, Susan and Tonita.’ ♥
    ~Cecilia

  27. I think this is a beautiful, beautiful little cottage… and Tonita has decorated it so very beautifully… she also has the cleanest henhouse I have ever seen in my life, and I kept chickens for 18 years…. but would I want to live in such a small sized home… no, I admit I wouldn’t. I love to see it, though!

  28. Regality (aka The Quing) says

    I’m not usually a fan of shabby chic (What’s the opposite of “fan”?), but this little place is simply perfect. Wonderful!

  29. This cottage is so adorable!! I’ve visited it before. I’d have to have two or three storage sheds!! I can’t imagine going up and down that ladder many times during the night to use the bathroom!!

    Glad she is living her dream………but that is way too small for me!!

  30. Wow Susan, this is the cutest tiny cottage I’ve ever seen!! It’s adorable!! It seems that more and more women are interested in tiny retreats like this; it’s a great idea. 🙂 I love the way she decorates everything for the different seasons and holidays. Her “Bed and Breakfast” sign is perfect. 😀

    Those are beautiful chickens; they remind me of the ones we used to see at our local fair in the fall. And what a chicken coop/chateau!! Those chicks have got quite the life. 😉 Thanks so much for sharing this with us — I’m going over to check out her blog. Thank you again for hosting Met Monday.

    Hugs,

    Denise

  31. I have to agree with Pam of Crumpety Cottage…..I want to be Tonita’s friend. I’m sorry, Susan, but Tonita may have just jumped to the top of my “friend list” and pushed you to the #2 spot!!! This adorable cottage of Tonita’s reminds me so much of the first blog of yours that I saw. The difference is that the other cottage was in a wooded area and there was not a kitchen, stove, etc. It was just a room with a loft with a daybed, I think. It also had a porch if I remember correctly and almost everything was in white and very feminine and lacy. I love Tonita’s cottage and her precious chicken coup. Makes me want to run out and buy chicks and feed!!! Thanks for sharing. What a marvelous way to start off the week.

    • lol Okay, well I’ll let you do that for the day, or maybe even a week…then I’m coming to claim rightful place again!
      Oh, I know which one you’re thinking of…I should have linked to Sandy’s adorable cottage at the end of the post. I’ll add that to the post. Here’s that older post if you would like to see it again: https://betweennapsontheporch.net/rugged-hunting-cabin-becomes-a-beautiful-victorian-retreat/
      The beautiful, soft interiors do remind me of each other…and they both have porches, too. Love them both!

      • I am so happy that you remembered the post I was thinking about. I followed the link and that was the one. That was when I became instantly addicted to BNOTP. I hope everyone followed the link and was able to see two precious drem cottages today. Thanks.

      • pam ~ crumpety cottage says

        Ladies, ladies, we can ALL be friends if you will just co-operate and move close to ME. 😀

  32. Adorable, inviting, cozy & profound! LOVE it all…the lace curtains on the porch! A girl after my own heart. For the first 10 yrs of my life my family lived in SMALL trailers, and we had the most fun, so I can relate. This is a delightful post – thank you for posting it.

  33. Such a pretty little thing! I love her decorating and to do it with such a small space. That’s a lot of fun!

  34. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!! I have nagged at my husband to build me a little house in place of my gazebo, to no avail. Not as big as Tonita’s though. You can tell this little house is filled with a lot of love. How nice to be able to *play houses* again.
    When you first posted, I thought she had bought it to live in!! 🙂
    Those chickens are so spoiled, having their own Chateau!
    Thank you Susan for showing us this, I will hippity hop over to her site now and drool some more.

  35. pam ~ crumpety cottage says

    Susan, I have decided that Tonita should crochet some tiny chicken ‘chapeaus’ that they could wear in their chicken chateau. 😀 After all the other fun things she’s done, I could see her doing that.

  36. Absolutely adorable! What grown up girl doesn’t want a shabby chic playhouse to escape to? It’s the perfect counterpart to the “man cave”.

    Big Texas Hugs,
    Susan and Bentley

  37. I love Tonita’s tiny cottage, and I love the way she’s decorated it. What a fun tour. Thank you, Tonita and Susan, for sharing it. Thanks for the linky, Susan.

  38. Hi Susan. Wow, what a lovely, little cottage Tonita has created. You can tell that every inch is filled with her love of the space. And how about those lucky chickens with their own coup? I’m sure they are very happy in their custom space. Thanks so much for sharing this, I really enjoyed reading about this happy place on this cold and dreary day. Thank you also for hosting. Happy week!

  39. Jeanie Willams says

    Love this little cottage. Do you know what has come of Sandy Foster from
    My Shabby Chic Streamside Cottage. I know she returned to school after she lost her home in a fire… not the cottage but her home. I have searched the web but can’t find anything else.

  40. A beautiful post in every way! I’m not sure which is more touching, Tonita’s lovely little home (and chicken coop) or her creatively optimistic attitude. I really enjoyed this post Susan, thanks for sharing!

  41. Susan ~ this Thanksgiving I am thankful for the discovery of your most delightful “Between Naps on the Porch” Reading your posts is a relaxing treat in my day! Thank you for your way with words!

  42. Oh Susan Tonita’s home is magnificent personified this is so fabulous I want one I just want to put it out on a country plot and just play pretend always. thanks for sharing this little dream.Susie

  43. Such an adorable little cottage. Special touches everywhere. Thanks so much for the party Susan and the tour of this adorable cottage.

  44. Magical! OMGOosh thank you for lovely memory.Reminded me of when I lived in a converted barn years ago and it had a loft and I would add twinkle lights during the Christmas season.I slept in the loft and cannot believe I use to climb up a ladder to get to the loft! It was a little ‘roughing it’ it had a wood stove and was drafty. Lorraine from the Cape ‘Ruffles and Roses’ emailed me this and I have not been blogging or decorating in a long time( I lump at my computer an old desktop and then have a backache for days and that wicked hump is no there due to age ..any suggestions).It is good to see Shabby Chic is still popular!

  45. I have always loved the look of shabby chic home decor. It feels so fancy without having to stress about making everything perfectly matching. That little cottage is adorable and I love the curtains on the porch, that is such a creative idea. My grandparents have a little cabin on their property in Montana that is in need of a makeover, and your picture have inspired me to get started.

  46. Gayle Kesinger says

    My wish is for those heart shaped dishes. They are wonderful.

  47. An inspiring small house, ready to do my “Summer room” in a shabby chic redo. I can still enjoy a special girl room while in my 6th decade! Dianna H

  48. Susan,
    I do not believe I ever thanked you for doing such a nice post of my tiny retreat & girl cave. Thank you- Sorry it is SO late. I went offline (but for rare occasions) for a few years. I made some huge changes and moved from WA state to NC to simplify my life, find sunshine again and live amongst Southerners. I LOVE it here. My tiny house is just way too small for full time living. So, I purchased a very old 570sq ft, sweet, 100 plus year old farmhouse in the mountains of beautiful NC. I also moved my tiny home to my property in NC to create options for myself. Again – many thanks and blessings. Your blog is beyond wonderful.

    • Thanks, Tonita! North Carolina is such a gorgeous state, I know you must love it. I love living in the south so much, I love the people here.
      I think you were just making plans to move when we last chatted via email. Your farmhouse sounds like the perfect compromise, not too big but a bit more space. Do you still have your chickens? I follow several Instagram accounts that are all about raising chickens and love the photos and stories they tell.

  49. Priscilla James says

    oh wow! i am so in love!!! I would so love a space like that..My dream <3

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