Making a cottage is a laborious and painstaking process. Its essential difference from other types of home improvement work is that it is always based on a creative idea, which makes it possible to implement the most daring and extraordinary decisions. Today, handmade products, that is, handmade, are becoming increasingly popular. The idea for a dacha, realized with your own hands, is also valuable, because it creates a unique atmosphere in the dacha.

How to equip a cottage on your own: basic rules and tips

Building or buying a home is the dream of many people. In order for housing construction to turn into a chic dacha, it is necessary to make a lot of creative and physical efforts. You can order a turnkey cottage with design not only at home, but also at the site. However, this will require significant financial costs. For many, a dacha is an opportunity to show their own imagination and realize personal ideas.

In order for the resting place to correspond to its purpose, it is necessary:

• correctly divide the site into zones;
• ensure rational placement of communications and comfortable use of them;
• determine the style of design of buildings and the landscape as a whole.

There are many interesting ideas for giving, but when taking up the implementation, it is worth considering the following factors:

• house dimensions. These parameters are determined mainly by the features of operation, wishes and capabilities. If, with a small size of the site, the building occupies more than 1/3 of the total area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe territory, the creation of a full-fledged decorative green zone will become difficult;

• placement of communications. Communication wiring should be carried out before the design of the site begins, taking into account irrigation, water supply to fountains, cascades, artificial reservoirs, etc.;
• when planning to grow vegetables and fruits in the country, it is necessary to determine, in addition to the main one, also a design idea for the garden. Otherwise, the dacha will not have completeness, and this will certainly affect the overall aesthetic perception.

Helpful advice! Garden crafts are best made after the installation of light building structures and complete landscaping of the site. Their size and semantic content can change significantly during the implementation of the dacha project.

Do-it-yourself furniture for home and summer cottages: exclusives from pallets

Furniture that is no longer used in city apartments and houses is most often taken to the dacha. It is functional, but it is not always possible to style it, especially if the furniture is not made of solid wood, but of wood materials: chipboard, fiberboard, MDF. This way of furnishing saves money, but limits the design possibilities, since the furnishings are most often also heterogeneous.

An excellent material for making furniture for the country house with your own hands are pallets, which have the following advantages:

• eco-friendly material;
• easy to process;
• has optimal dimensions for modeling;
• affordable.

You can buy pallets at any store that sells building materials. Traditional dimensions: 1200×800 mm, the distance between the slats is 40 mm. Euro pallets are sold with shallow sanding and painted. As an economical option, you can buy used pallets.

It is easy to make any kind of table from this material: dining, coffee, toilet and even writing. The pallet is easily cut with a jigsaw or saw along the boards and perpendicularly. From perpendicularly cut elements, stable legs are obtained. If the gaps prevent the full use of the pallet surface as a countertop, the boards can be removed and, after adding an additional 1-2 elements, lay them with a denser shield. You can put glass on top — so the design will become even more interesting.

When arranging a summer cottage with your own hands, a significant amount of time has to be allocated for the manufacture of benches, benches, stools. In such cases, it is also recommended to use pallets as material. Various designs are possible: wide, narrow, with and without handrails, with backs, in the form of sofas (in this case, soft pillows are needed), transformers (a wide bench turns into a bed when the back is reclined). And this is not a complete list of models.

During the manufacture of furniture, it is worth considering the following recommendations:

• when applying one pallet to another, niches are formed that are convenient to use for storing various items;
• if, in the manufacture of a composite tabletop, plank fragments are arranged perpendicularly, an interesting model will be obtained.

From pallets you can make bookshelves, shelves for shoes, flower stands. The surface is better treated. In this case, the coating looks aesthetically pleasing, and the risk of scratching or driving a splinter will also be excluded.

Floristic rules and ideas for giving with your own hands

A flower bed and a flower garden are one of the most important components of landscape design. Chaotically planted flowers will not bring the desired result. When drawing up a flower planting scheme, it is necessary to have at least elementary knowledge of the laws of design.

When planning, there are three main aspects to consider:

• placement of plants in accordance with the size;
• selection of colors;
• time and duration of flowering.

Traditionally, the tallest flowers are planted in the central part of the flower bed, lower ones are placed behind them, and the edges are framed by undersized, sometimes ground cover plants. If a flower bed or flower garden is located near a fence or wall, then the tallest flowers are determined in the background, then they act according to the principle of decreasing height. The smallest ones are planted in the foreground.

The most successful color combinations are: white and pink colors, red and orange shades, blue and purple tones interspersed with white, purple with a white or blue frame. Flowers can be annuals, biennials, perennials. Annuals must be planted annually. Biennials bloom only in the second year. Perennials bloom for several years. It is imperative to take into account flowering periods when drawing up a flower bed layout.

Photos of flower beds in the country with their own hands demonstrate various types, forms and methods of planting:

1. Regular flower beds. Geometric figures from plants with the same flowering period.
2. Irregular flower beds. Planting of plants is carried out in such a way that one fading species is replaced by another — undulating flowering.
3. Monolumbs. Most often, these are raised structures planted with one plant species.

Helpful advice! It is more reliable to plant flowers in the form of seedlings in flower beds. It is not always possible to correctly calculate the time of seed germination, as a result of which dimensional correspondences may be violated and the flowering period may be shifted.

DIY crafts for a summer residence: decor from recycled items

If an already equipped site looks too “correct”, monumental, has solid straight lines, do-it-yourself crafts can bring liveliness and variety to the dacha. And for this there is no need to buy something.

Related article:

Dachas: photos of modern housing construction and creative landscape ideas
Photos of architectural buildings from various materials. Features of the design of cottages in the forest zone. Landscaping of the site.

Does the veranda or terrace look boring due to the lack of flowers? This situation is easy to change. At any dacha there is a pair (or several pairs) of worn out boots or rubber galoshes. Insert flower pots into them and come up with an interesting arrangement for such shoes: “legs are confused”, a call to “follow the tracks”, “crowd”, etc. Such a flower garden can also be placed along the paths.

No need to get rid of the old bath. An excellent idea for a garden and a summer residence can be a flower bed broken in such a container. It is necessary to decorate the outside with paint or paste over it with small tiles, pebbles, fill it with earth and plant the desired plants. Such a flower garden is recommended to be placed where there is not enough bright vegetation.

You can use an old metal bed to create an interesting country decor, tightly placing pots and containers with plants on it, among which there must be cascading down. They will imitate a bedspread. It will turn out an interesting raised flower bed. The headboards should also be decorated using climbing plants or various items: bells, balls, garlands from small wooden shapes, glass beads.

When cutting or uprooting an old tree, it is worth taking a good look: can you guess a figure, object, plot in the intricacies of branches or roots? Perhaps, having processed and placed a snag on the site, it will be possible to create a wonderful fairy-tale corner.

Convenient material for making summer crafts are tires, old boxes, wooden and metal barrels.

Creating decorative country tricks with your own hands from improvised materials, you should observe the following conditions:

• obligatory presence in the design of a sense of proportion and taste. If there are a lot of crafts or they are located in the wrong place, a feeling of clutter will appear;

• creating decor from improvised materials using plants, it is necessary to think over the mode of watering, lighting and ventilation necessary for their full vegetation;
• objects made of wood and metal must be processed, which will preserve their integrity and aesthetics.

Helpful advice! When decorating a summer cottage, you should avoid using plastic items, as they are exposed to ultraviolet radiation and may lose their beautiful appearance over time.

Do-it-yourself recreation area in the country: traditional and original options

The recreation area in the country is a combination of originality, aesthetics and comfort. You can build a gazebo or make a canopy. To do this, use blanks (logs, boards) of natural shapes. This option will become harmonious among flower beds-oases of various heights and trees with a tent-shaped crown.

As a recreation area, you can also build a wooden podium or a raised platform of a rounded shape. This design is appropriate for areas with a large number of flower beds and undersized plants. For convenient use, the site should be equipped with wide and gentle steps.

By developing and implementing the design of a summer cottage with your own hands, you can create a recreation area, the top cover and side rails of which will be climbing and densely planted plants. This is a complex design, but an original version. Feeling the proximity of living greenery while drinking tea or reading a book contributes to relaxation, a state of balance and peace.

Do-it-yourself country crafts can complement such a zone: it will not be difficult to make a wooden candlestick, a flower vase or an ikebana. These elements of the interior will contribute to the creation of coziness, comfort.

What can be made from stones for arranging a summer cottage

Stone is a natural material that will give any dacha solidity and presentability. When arranging a site, stones can be used for two purposes:

• as a country decor;
• as a building material.

Even used as a building material, this material will add decorativeness to any building or structure.

A stone can be laid over a source of water, an artificial reservoir, decorate a flower bed, an alley.
A win-win option for filling free space when decorating a summer cottage with your own hands is to create a rock garden. It may not be possible to convey the semantic content of this Japanese cultural and aesthetic structure (and is it necessary to strive for this?), But stones beautifully grouped in shape or color characteristics will create an original decorative corner on the site.

Helpful advice! The rock garden should be in harmony with the house. When planning, it is imperative to take this condition into account, otherwise the garden will turn out to be just a pile of stones dumped in one place.

As a building material, stone is used in the construction of fences, laying steps, to create fortifications between ground levels. It can be used to cover paths, lay out the bases of gazebos, barbecue, barbecue. When creating flat surfaces, cut natural stone is usually used.

Natural forms are used for three-dimensional structures. The main positive characteristics of this material can be considered:

• strength;
• environmental friendliness;
• no need for care.

The use of stones in arranging a summer residence complicates their transportation, especially if the stones are of considerable size.

Ideas for a garden at their summer cottage: design secrets

The presence of a garden (trees, shrubs, flowers) makes the site a cottage. Decorativeness primarily depends on the chosen design style. Trees and other perennial vegetation already present on the site can also influence the identification of species and the place of planting.

Turning ideas for a garden into reality with your own hands, you should heed the advice of gardeners.
If there are trees with spreading crowns on the site, it is better to equip a resting place under them — natural shading is always pleasant. Then in an open area you can break a flower bed or flower garden.

Trimmed ornamental shrubs give the site neatness and grooming. They can also serve as a hedge.

When designing a flower bed, it is imperative to take into account the degree of tillering of plants. Excessive density of the arrangement interferes with the full development, limiting the natural light of the lower parts of the plants, and, as a result, leads to a loss of aesthetics.

An interesting decoration of the site can be a tapeworm — a stand-alone plant. Thuja is often used as such a plant. The solitaire plant should not be large, the relative proportionality of its size is 1/3 of the plot.

Fruit trees and fruit-bearing shrubs are best placed in a separate area away from ornamental plants. This will ensure a reasonable distinction, which is caused by the peculiarities of caring for this type of tree, including the treatment with pesticides. A light fence made of vines will give the site a decorative effect.

When embodying the most daring and bright ideas for a garden and a summer house with your own hands, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the vegetation of plants so as not to contemplate the species that have turned into deadwood in a flower bed or along an alley. An uncut lawn and bare stems of vines stretching along the supports can ruin any landscape design.

Do-it-yourself garden and vegetable garden design photos will help you choose an option for a thoughtful and interesting design of your summer cottage.

Ideas for the garden: vertical and horizontal arrangement of beds

The garden involves the cultivation of berries, vegetables, green crops. This zone can also be made a great addition to the design of a summer cottage. A garden of a traditional format, located on a allocated land plot, is conveniently divided into rectangular sectors, delimiting them with concrete paths deepened into the soil by 20–30 cm. Small stones can be placed in the still liquid top layer of concrete. Such a fence will not only add decorativeness, but also allow you to retain moisture during irrigation in each sector.

In the absence of a land plot, you can plant vegetables in wooden containers specially made and filled with fertile soil. This form of horizontally arranged beds simplifies care: watering, shade, if necessary, creating a support for vegetables in such an area is not difficult. It is convenient to use plastic containers cut in height, tires, basins as containers.

In the photo — a beautiful garden in the country with their own hands, equipped with horizontally installed containers.

With a large shortage of space, it is rational to equip vertical beds. A photo of a garden of this kind will help determine the choice of material and the method of attaching containers. Green and spicy crops are conveniently grown in hanging flower pots. Vegetables that require a large amount of soil can be planted in boxes mounted on a rack.

The proposed photo ideas for the garden and vegetable garden with their own hands will become visual material for the decorative and technical design of country design.

Five criteria for considering a cottage beautiful

Despite the ambiguity of the word “beautiful” and despite the fact that this assessment depends on the tastes of a particular person, it is still possible to derive objective parameters regarding dachas. The following factors make a beautiful cottage:

• a harmonious combination of all materials (building, plant, improvised) used to create country crafts;
• dominance of green spaces. None of the most intricate architectural concepts of solid and light buildings will create an original design of the site without a sufficient vegetative environment.
• the presence in the country of crafts made by hand. They enliven landscape design, create an atmosphere of goodwill and cordiality;

• attention to detail: an interestingly designed place to store garden tools, irrigation system pipes covered with greenery or buried in the ground, protruding differences in shapes and colors of hanging pots, hidden through decoration, etc .;
• maintaining the cleanliness and aesthetics of all objects and elements located on the site.

The idea for a summer residence in reality: possible problems and necessary technical support

If living in a country house is permanent, problems of control and care usually do not exist. If your stay in the countryside is limited to weekends, difficulties may arise. First of all, it is the lack of watering. You can provide plants with the necessary amount of moisture by installing an automatic irrigation system. This system works according to a given program that regulates the time, duration and intensity of water supply.

In the absence of organized security in a dacha cooperative, theft and damage to property left on the site are possible. For the sake of safety, before leaving, it is worth bringing home-made homemade products and other portable elements of country decor, which are a temptation for casual passers-by, into the room before leaving.

Helpful advice! You should not enclose a summer cottage with a high and deaf fence — the unknown always attracts dishonest people and hooligans.

The summer cottage must be provided with all the necessary garden tools so that you can clean the lawn of fallen leaves, loosen the ground in a small pot, weed a wide garden bed, arrange a hedge from shrubs and cut lawn grass.

Everything that is done for giving with their own hands: homemade products that decorate the site, furniture that creates comfort, flower beds and flower beds, trees and shrubs that fill the landscape with a riot of natural colors — creates a unique design. If not only technical skill, but also creativity filled the process of creation, the cottage will become a comfortable and cozy vacation spot for the whole family.