A nook is described as a private place, a small corner, or a recess, and a niche as a wall recess or hollow place. It’s these unique places that add to the character of so many cottages.
It’s the unexpected that makes us love the quirkiness of old houses. There may be a hallway recess that housed the family telephone in the late 1930s and ‘40s. You might find a small nook off the cottage kitchen that was a cold-storage room. The original need for many of these spaces may be long gone, but we still love those cozy, inviting areas.
Today we often build in the nooks and niches from the start. Newly built homes are including window seats, built-in bookshelves, and small spaces for a computer or study area. Look around your cottage, and see if there’s just the smallest niche or nook that you might want to take over as your private place.
A nook off the dining room is redesigned to become a sunny sitting area.
With enough room for a desk, this space becomes a study area.
The wall niche is the perfect display cabinet for family photos and treasures that might otherwise be hiding in a box somewhere.