This month's issue of Cottage Life

[Catskills Grrl]

This month's issue of Cottage Life is all about renovation, if anyone is interested. This issue also features a goregous lake home that makes me dream of one day owning that kind of classic cottage.

(That's right Cottage Life, not Cottage Living. Cottage Life (http://www.cottagelife.ca/) is geared towards Ontario's cottage country and the culture Canadians refer to as "cottaging." It is also a better resource for my style of design.

I have to say, despite the fact that it is a Canadian publication, and most of the advertisers are Canadian, it is more on target with my cottage interests than Cottage Living. In fact, it is a good resource for companies that don't advertise in Cottage Living -- and the web makes them just as accessible.

Sorry, Cottage Living ...

[Chyna]

As I re-read some of the magazines I have been saving it occurred to me that publications like Better Homes and Gardens have a better idea of what a cottage is than our own CL. Very sad indeed.

I guess if it is any consolidation this question came up on my American Bungalow forum and they even said that the term "cottage" and "bungalow" are hard to define. I can only imagine that is what is going on here. But then again they can manage to figure out what a bungalow is every month, surely CL can figure out what a cottage is.

[Chyna]

Oh and Gail, I just about picked that magazine up this weekend and saw Canada and skipped it. Will have to go back and check it out further. Renovation seems to be my middle name anymore. Sure would beat Marie. :D

[Catskills Grrl]

As I re-read some of the magazines I have been saving it occurred to me that publications like Better Homes and Gardens have a better idea of what a cottage is than our own CL. Very sad indeed.


We will get kicked off this forum for seditious talk like this. ;)

I realize that the northeastern seasonal structure I think of as 'cottage' has no relevance to the Southerner's idea of a cottage, or the Californian's. In this respect Cottage Life would disappoint my fellow regional cottage lovers. And some features would not translate well -- for instance, much ink is devoted to what appears to be the complicated building and environmental protections of Ontario.

Still, CLife has plugged into my ethos of cottage.

[Chyna]

I know, I keep waiting for someone to say zip it or leave. They should thank us for pointing out some of the problems with the magazine right now.

I'll just keep my subscription and hope for the best. If all else fails my daughter can use it for scribbling. I had to protect my stash over the weekend from her. :eek:

[ChrisNH53]

I am just hoping that they are just trying to find their foundation and are going to settle into a more cottage kind of magazine than what they have done so far. There have been a couple of good issues but not many. I am intrigued by the Cottage Life magazine Gail mentioned. I may have to check it out.

Chris in NH

[jdanielsid]

I picked up a copy of New England Home while on vacation thinking I may see in the magazine what I was actually seeing in person-Ha! Even though the cover claimed "From Rustic to Refined", it certainly was not. It was full of ads and very large, very done-up homes. You know the type. This seems to be a common problem. Right in the first few pages was a letter to the editor complaining about the very same issue!

[Chyna]

I was wondering if they ever replied back to you. Maybe they are holed up in a dark basement trying to figure out what to do. Yeah that's probably what they are doing. :D

Maybe the response will be in the next issue of CL for all to read. Or they are just going to put us off as crackpots and ignore us. Pity for them.:mad:

[Cottage Flourishings]

I never heard back from the Editor in Chief after the other editor forwarded by email, but I'm not surprised.

Cottage Life has some interesting articles, but it appeals mainly to lake cottage people. If you have two or three homes and can designate each one as a certain type, that's great.

But for those of us who want the cottage ambiance, whether we live in a "real" one or not, where do we turn? I'd love to know more about historic cottage styles throughout the country, the people who live in them, and how they have restored their cottages. People who have turned their non-cottage into one would be intriguing. Perhaps even a sidebar on cottage life in other parts of the world. Articles on how to achieve cottage ambience, inside and out, would be helpful to many people. Restoration and renovation articles might also be helpful. I'm sure we could all think of other aeas of interest.

[Chyna]

I think that the editors should really listen to what you're saying because I for one like what you were saying and would really enjoy reading articles like you suggested.:D :) :D

I wonder if they ever come in here and just read through what we discuss. :confused: I know there is quite a bit sometimes but they could just read the threads about the latest issue and what we thought. I do understand that it takes a couple if not more months to make changes so we may not see them until say next year but it would be nice to know that we're being heard.

Maybe they should make a feedback area in here. In the everything else dept would be fine but something that would involve us giving our opinions and thoughts and the editors would review them.;)

[Breezy]

Has anyone read Cottage Style magazine? I purchase CS as well as CL and between the two I prefer CS.

[Chyna]

I can't say that I have but then again I randomly pick up magazines all the time if they look interesting and aren't charging an arm and a leg for a skinny not much in it issue.

Will have to see if I can find one and get back to you on that one. This may sound like a minor thing but I read fast which means I plow through reading materials too quickly and I'm left with reading cereal boxes. :D Therefore I need to go to the bookstore again and find somehting to read. Oh bother.:rolleyes:

[Fisherman]

Read this whole thread and looked up cottage & bungalow in the American Heritage Dictionary (wonder if there is a Canadian Heritage Dictionary ;)) Not much difference. Then went to Roget's International Thesaurus. Nothing under bungalow BUT under cottage: cot or cote, bungalow, box; chalet, lodge, snuggery, pied-a-terre, love nest; cabin, cabana; log cabin, blockhouse. Now with a history of word origin = generally all these go back to weekend, vacation homes, name given by area.

Would make sense that like the different names for the same concept = there would be magazines geared for different areas like the Catskills.... They are all magazines trying to draw a market. Cottage Living gave this outlet= so we keep subscribing, like club dues! Nice part is we get to criticize and the administrator does post/ask for input. We could help make this OUR magazine :D

[Chyna]

Go onto the internet to say Yahoo and enter in Bungalow you'll get alot of hits but most of the top 5 will be histories. A bungalow refers to the type of housing in India during English rule. Characterized by a wide body with deep eaves. There's a lot more to it than that but you can look it up yourself. You may learn something about the home you currently own. The timeline on them usually ends about the beginning of the 1930's but with some areas being farther behind than others (say like Montana) the craftsmans and so forth were still built up until the 40's.

My version would be that cottages are generally airy and light while bungalows would be darker and more firmly rooted. This would also explain the difference in paint choices, flooring, wood, you get the drift.

[Breezy]

Merriam-Webster dictionary says cottages are 1 the dwelling of a farm laborer or small farmer 2 a usually small frame one-family dwelling 3 a small detached unit dwelling at an institution 4 a usually small house for vacation use. The operative word being small. And as for bungalow - house in the Bengal style - a one-storied house with a low-pitched roof - a house having one and a half stories and usually a front porch. Read this whole thread and looked up cottage & bungalow in the American Heritage Dictionary (wonder if there is a Canadian Heritage Dictionary ;)) Not much difference. Then went to Roget's International Thesaurus. Nothing under bungalow BUT under cottage: cot or cote, bungalow, box; chalet, lodge, snuggery, pied-a-terre, love nest; cabin, cabana; log cabin, blockhouse. Now with a history of word origin = generally all these go back to weekend, vacation homes, name given by area.

Would make sense that like the different names for the same concept = there would be magazines geared for different areas like the Catskills.... They are all magazines trying to draw a market. Cottage Living gave this outlet= so we keep subscribing, like club dues! Nice part is we get to criticize and the administrator does post/ask for input. We could help make this OUR magazine :D

[Chyna]

Yep that is pretty much what I told her. :o

[pacificstar]

I'm just going to voice my opinion here....take it or leave it.

I subscribe to Coastal Living and love it. When Cottage Living came out I bought the Premiere issue. I love the magazine and have taken the subscription for the first year and now I buy it at the news stand. I feel that the first year the focus was on Cottage's and maybe the magazine has gotten off somewhat. I have a smaller home and love it, 1,800 square feet including the garage. To me Cottage is something like my home. I appreciate Cottage Living magazine for providing us this forum. They don't have to do this and I thank them for it. About 10 to 12 years ago I went to a gardening site called Garden.com and they provided the best ever chat room. I met the most wonderful people there and then when the .comers were struggling they had to close down. I have kept some of those friendships through the years and really cherished those gardening buds. I look to this forum for the same friendships and I think you all do as well. As with anything in life Cottage Living has so many very good articles and interesting Cottages. We may not like all of it but if you get one piece of information or one idea it makes your day. So I will still be buying Cottage Living magazine and maybe because tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day and I'm in a very reflective mood on all the Blessings God has bestowed on me I will Thank those at the magazine for giving us this outlet and hopefully a cozy home forum for many years to come.

[losthat]

I've voiced my opinion on the forums before. I truly wish that CL would stick to smaller homes. I am not interested in reading about McMansions. I love to see the way people plan and decorate homes smaller than 2,000 sq. ft. I'd love to see an issue devoted to designing and building homes in the 1,200 - 1,600 sq. ft. range. With baby boomers downsizing they are becoming more and more popular. Even the Pottery Barn now features furniture for "small space living".

Both CL and Coastal Living feature idea homes with bathrooms the size of my cottages master bedroom! I'd love ideas on how to work with small baths, bedrooms, etc.

I'm undecided if I will renew my subscription that I have held since the magazine was first published. Just when I think I won't I find a few articles that I really enjoy. I especially like it when floor plans are included in an article.

JMHO!

[Breezy]

I'm in agreement with losthat - enough with the big homes being called cottages please. I'm not even remotely interested in looking at the large homes as I live in a cottage and cannot relate to them. I buy the magazine hoping to see what most of us on here call cottages and to read about cottage lifestyle. I enjoy this forum very much and hope Cottage Living will do more articles on true cottages.

[dbaukus]

I eagerly await a when the Cottage Style Magazine comes for sale I believe every other month. It is the best I have found. I like Cottage Living also and have subscriptions to both. I also like Mary Englebreit's Home Companion it's a great source for cottage lovers :p Even though they can be costly, I belong to the "HomeStyle Books" book club and have purchased many cottage style books from there. I may pay more for a book then a magazine but I am constantly referring to them for ideas etc. and have gotten my money out of them over and over again.

I'm so excited to have found this site and hope to have some happy conversations with people that are as cookoo over cottage style as I am!!