How to spot a well-made piece?

Plenty of furniture copies the look without the quality, and this style is built on things lasting. Here's what to look for:

Real paint, not printed film

A painted finish should have some depth to it, and you should be able to touch up a chip with a small brush. Printed foil over chipboard chips at the corners shows a pale core underneath and can't be repaired. The quickest test is to run a finger along a corner or an edge - paint feels continuous, while film has a faint seam where it wraps around.

Solid joints and drawers

Look for dovetailed joints, or at least a proper runner and a solid drawer base. Pull a drawer all the way out if you can: it should slide evenly and feel steady rather than dropping at the front. This is the difference between furniture that lasts a few years and furniture you keep long enough to repaint.

An uneven weave and a natural grain

Hand-woven rattan is always slightly uneven, and real wood grain never repeats itself. If a pattern looks perfectly regular across a surface, it has most likely been printed. On a table or a door, check whether the grain carries over the edge as well - on solid wood it does; on a printed finish it stops.

A reassuring weight

Solid wood feels heavy in the hand and ages beautifully where it's touched most often. Veneer is a sensible way to save money and can look just as good, but it won't develop the same character. Product descriptions are the easiest place to check, since solid timber is always named as such. It's worth spending the difference on the pieces you plan to keep the longest.

Which styles pair well with this look?

Cottage style mixes more easily than people expect, as long as you combine it with one other look rather than three.

• Scandi: pale wood, plenty of daylight and simple shapes. A good choice if you like the warmth of cottage style but not the florals
• Rustic and farmhouse: heavier wood and a more practical feel, which keeps a soft room from becoming too sweet. The closest relative of the two.
• Vintage: second-hand and inherited pieces fit in with no effort at all, since cottage interiors were always put together slowly.
• Modern and minimalist: the surprising one. Plain walls and simple furniture make a single patterned armchair or an old dresser look like a deliberate choice.

How to add a cottage touch to your home?

There's no need to change a whole room at once. This look suits being introduced slowly, one piece at a time.

• Start with the lighting: warm white bulbs and a table lamp or two. Cottage rooms are lit softly and from low down, never by a single ceiling light. It costs very little and changes more than most purchases.
• Add textiles next: linen curtains and a few cushions that don't match. Fabric changes the feel of a room faster than furniture, and it's easy to swap again.
• Choose one anchor piece: a painted dresser or sideboard. It grounds the room, provides storage and leaves you a surface to arrange with a lamp, a plant or a few favourite objects.
• Let the accessories do the rest: baskets, ceramic jugs, a woven rug, a bowl of something on the table. Keep them useful, and the room will look lived in rather than styled.

Shop now: cottage style collection - start with the piece you'd still want in twenty years.