Dreamy summer afternoons spent meandering through fields. Picnics of sandwiches made from freshly baked bread and homemade lemonade, eaten leisurely beside a babbling brook. 

Wearing long floaty floral dresses on a walk along a country path mindlessly picking wildflowers. 

Endless days spent crafting and making things as a family.

Tending to your vegetable patch or gathering food for dinner.

It all sounds lovely, doesn't it? Very 'Little House On The Prairie' or 'The Good Life'.

And it all makes up part of the new trend 'Cottagecore'.

Never heard of it? No, I hadn't either.

Essentially it's the term being used to describe a life that is a little more 'country'. It's become super popular on social media and is a rapidly growing Instagram hashtag.

And you don't even need to move to the country. Even city dwellers are embracing this new movement.  

The phenomenon of Cottagecore is sweeping social media and the internet at large. The images populating Pinterest and Tumblr are a mixture of pastoral Little Women-style Americana and quaint 1950's UK countrysides.

Cottagecore is about the simple lives of the past, before technology and the complications of modern life.

With an emphasis on homemade and homegrown, Cottagecore embraces artisanal products over mass production items.

Clothing is either homemade or vintage, with styles taken from a by-gone era. Think chunky knit cardigans in winter and cotton floral dresses in summer.

And it goes beyond food and clothing, looking at homewares and interior design. 

There is a real nod towards sustainability, using vintage glass jars to store products rather than single-use plastic. We've all seen those pantry videos on Instagram where everything is decanted into beautiful matching mason jars, neatly labelled and lined up orderly on the shelves.

Cottagecore is all about muted colours and Farrow & Ball colour palettes for property interiors.  

Furniture is rustic and vintage, often using mismatching wooden chairs around an old farmhouse dining table. Some furniture could be upcycled and painted a lovely soft colour with chalk paint that has gently rubbed off in places to emphasise the rustic nature of this aesthetic. And there is not a flatpack bookshelf in sight!

Soft furnishings are likely to be vintage linens or floral fabrics a-la Laura Ashley.

The origins of this aesthetic is a form of escapism from the brutal realities of modern life. It's easy to see the appeal, a sun-kissed fantasy escape to simpler times of lush forests, linen fabric, and twee countryside cottages. 

With this rise in popularity comes an increase in trends and fashions leaning towards this style. Rustic furnishings and chalk paint instead of the grey, white and chrome finish or the stark white walls and large monstera plants we have seen in recent years.

In many ways, Cottagecore is a way to lean into a time when life was simpler. A slower, calmer lifestyle.

It's a romanticised interpretation of western agricultural life. A desire to live a simpler life and to harmonise with nature.

Essentially, if you could have seen it in photos from the past or taken it from your Nan's house, you could probably call it Cottagecore. 

So lookout. We may all start wearing vintage floral dresses to the supermarket, carrying everything home in a wicker basket very soon.