With their picturesque style, English cottage house plans, also known as storybook cottage house plans, became popular across America between 1890 and 1940. An offshoot of the Tudor Revival, English Cottage style depicts medieval building techniques like half-timbering. Charming and romantic, storybook house plans are usually asymmetrical one or one-and-a-half story homes, with steep roof lines and intersecting gables. The home's whimsical floor plans delight with small irregularly-shaped first floor rooms and upstairs rooms with sloping walls and dormers that provide wonderful nooks and crannies. A massive chimney dominates the front or one side of the house, providing a welcoming hearth that draws family and friends together. Casement windows with small panes charmingly frame outdoor scenes and gardens. A fairy tale home come true for families with small children, English Cottage storybook house plans also appeal to individuals and empty nesters who long for a home in the English countryside.