This Ohio Cottage Is What Tiny Home Dreams Are Made of
A worn-down, Depression-era cottage reveals its soulful character thanks to the neighboring farm family who brought it back to life.
At barely 700 square feet, a humble clapboard cottage along the country lane to architect Greg Dutton’s family farm has always claimed an outsized place in his mother’s heart. “We’d drive by it, and my mom would say, ‘You know, that would be such a cute house to renovate one day; it has such good bones,’ ” Greg recalls.
You couldn’t ask for a more idyllic setting. Located in rural Ohio east of Columbus, the Dutton farm—once cratered by coal mining—is a sweeping 1,500 acres of bucolic pasture thanks to Greg’s parents, who reclaimed the land for farming in 1981. Several years ago, when the 1920 cottage on the outskirts of the farm hit the market, the family—including Greg’s wife, interior designer Liz Dutton—scooped it up to make it into their guesthouse.
Considering the cottage’s dilapidated condition, the logical choice would have been to take it down to the studs. But hearts prevailed, and the family embarked on a nine-month-long renovation, piecing together original, salvaged, and some new materials and peeling back layers of worn-down surfaces, uncovering hidden gems that guided their design choices, such as the pinkish hue of the heart-pine floorboards.
The home’s palette took shape with muted and moody paint colors and tonal textures. Natural light bounces from room to room, casting a dreamy glow against limewashed walls and creamy linen fabrics. “We wanted to embrace the imperfections, layer patinas, and deepen the lived-in-ness of the structure,” Liz says. Case in point: Saving the cottage’s single-pane windows became one of the Duttons’ more romantic gestures. Drawing a hot bath while the winter sun sets is sublime, Liz says, as frost frames the wavy glass filter on the snowy pastoral scene outside. “You feel like you’re at the edge of the earth because you’re in the middle of nowhere. It’s like something out of a storybook.”
BEFORE
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: PORCH WITH A VIEW
The home’s ochre salvaged clapboard exterior is inspired by the goldenrod wildflowers that dot the surrounding pastures. The rebuilt porch, which boasts new columns and custom-designed railings, beckons visitors to sit (or swing) a spell, taking in the gentle winds during the golden hour’s sunset.
Get the Look:
Exterior Paint Color: Wythe Gold by Benjamin Moore
BEFORE
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: HEART-PINE FLOORS
It took removing four layers of linoleum and their newspaper linings to reveal what Liz and Greg were hoping to find: original three-inch-wide heart-pine floorboards. Furnishing the 12- by 12-foot room was a bit of a challenge, given there are also four doors and a large window, so Liz selected smaller-scale furnishings, including a leather Chesterfield love seat and a petite pair of antique deconstructed chairs from Jayson Home.
Get the Look:
Wall Paint Color: White Limewash by JH Wall Paints
Trim Paint Color: Tyler Gray by Benjamin Moore
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: BRICK FIREPLACE
The work also unveiled another treasure—a natural stone hearth and walled-off fireplace made of parged brick. Greg then designed its flat-front mantel and surround to complement the room’s 10-inch-wide tongue-and-groove poplar paneling. Because of their petite size, Liz paired the living room chairs with a six-inch-high coffee table made of a salvaged iron base and marble top that she found in a barn at the Rural Society Antique Show in Mt. Vernon, Ohio.
RELATED: 50 Fireplace and Mantel Decor Ideas for a Cozy Upgrade
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: VINTAGE FURNISHINGS
Topped with dried hydrangeas from Greg’s mother’s garden, the living room’s crackled hutch holds a stash of blankets, books, and board games.
BEFORE
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: SHAKER CABINETRY
Inspired by the existing built-in cupboard, Greg designed similarly styled Shaker-front cabinets for the rest of the kitchen, which he had fabricated by a local Amish builder. Other finishes like the soapstone countertops and taupe walls are equally unfussy, while the bits of sparkle from the Zellige tile on the backsplash and flecks of gold in the picture frame add the just-right touch of pastoral polish. The weathered vintage table, bentwood chairs, and wicker pendant light feel as if they have always been there.
Get the Look:
Wall Paint Color: Lime White by Benjamin Moore
Backsplash Tile: Parched Vellum Zellige by Cle
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: COZY SINK WALL
A shelf with a peg rail, ceramic sconces, and chrome taps (both by deVOL Kitchens) add instant age at the kitchen sink.
Get the Look:
Cabinetry Paint Color: Renwick Beige by Sherwin-Williams
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: BUILT-IN CUPBOARD
The Duttons left the original built-in cupboard intact and it now holds their collection of whiteware and other serving pieces. “We wanted to embrace the imperfections, layer patinas, and deepen the lived-in-ness of the structure,” says Liz Dutton.
BEFORE
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: ORIGINAL MILLWORK
Liz chose a putty-colored paint to play up the window trim and subtly frame the peaceful view out the bedroom window. “When you wake up in the morning, the horses will come right up to the fence and the window,” says Greg. The vintage Jenny Lind spindle bed positioned in front is rooted in nostalgia. Its natural wood finish and the vintage Turkish rug play into the sepia tones found throughout the cottage. Just below the ceiling, a new wood shelf encircles the bedroom’s perimeter. “It’s like book roulette,” Liz jokes of the backward-turned vintage titles.
Get the Look:
Trim Paint Color: Williamsburg Stone by Benjamin Moore
Wall Paint Color: White Limewash by JH Wall Paints
BEFORE
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: CLAPBOARD PANELING
After the onset of indoor plumbing, the bathroom was added onto the cottage’s exterior clapboard wall, which the Duttons preserved and limewashed white, along with the room’s other walls. A pair of petite 1940s porcelain sconces found at Olde Good Things flanks the space-saving salvaged wall sink.
Get the Look:
Wall Paint Color: White Limewash by JH Wall Paints
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: RECLAIMED CLAW-FOOT TUB
Found at Columbus Architectural Salvage, the cast-iron tub’s ruddy rust hues inspired the terra-cotta tile flooring by Clé. “The rust and oxidized exterior tied in really well with the rest of the house,” Greg says. “We thought we might have to re-enamel it [the interior], but with a little elbow grease, Bar Keeper’s Friend, and some bleaching, it was great as-is.” Limewashed walls and a simple cotton shower curtain enhance the romantic vibe.
RELATED: 30 Creative Clawfoot Tub Ideas for Every Bathroom
HIDDEN POTENTIAL: FOUND FURNITURE
The blush wood cupboard, found at Pittsburgh’s Garden Style Living, continues the home’s dusty pink thread.
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Kelly Ryan Kegans is a Minneapolis-based writer, editor, and photo stylist with more than 25 years of experience producing home design content for brands including Country Living, Better Homes & Gardens, and HGTV Magazine. Her own home is populated with more books than shelves, a few too many scrubbed pine tables, and moody photos of gray day landscapes, which are her happy place.
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