I’m surprised sims hasn’t done a kitchen counter that functions as a bin. Is it not a thing to have your bin under the sink in the kitchen anywhere else?
it’s really uncommon here, at least i don’t think i’ve ever seen it in someone’s house (england). they’re normally just lidded bins, a recycling one and a small brown foodwaste
@@somegenerichandle the thing is that he didn’t put the wc exactly under the stairs, rather next to it so it has a full height everywhere. Anyway I don’t think you can do a realistic under the stairs bathroom or nook in general in the sims
I’ve helped a friend put a sofa in the Living room via the window. It was free cycle too so we carried it a mile to their home first. (I think we were all drunk lol)
We did that with our bookcase headboard in our first rental home. That place was TINY! I could vacuum the whole downstairs without having to unplug the vacuum once. 😆
We had to take our window OUT to get our sofa in! We only had one door entry to the house and it was so narrow, with an immediate bend, that it was literally impossible and we couldn't even get the armchair through! 🤣🤣
My bedroom window fell out so my parents took advantage of it to get their mattress in and out of the house at the same time. (no, I don't know why it fell out, the house was old.)
I'm bummed that they missed the opportunity to have an off-the-grid typewriter that only works for writing (not regular computer tasks), and linking it to the Simple Living challenge so Sims have to buy reams of paper from the local shops to keep writing. All I want is a Sim who writes books but not on a computer!!
They missed the opportunity to have Sims be able to publish journals too. Maybe a sim had a higher chance at succeeding on publishing a journal from a sim who was their great great grandfather etc
This is the first time I've ever seen a sims build that actually resembles the floor plan of my parent's house! I love how you keep saying that it's small, but I'd actually consider that a big house! Great job making it feel proper british :D
I am so obsessed with this series I count the minutes until it’s out! Will there be enough episodes to keep us entertained for 9 more days? I just want the best for poor Chaz.
About the new terrain paint: they should have done 2 versions of it: one that's only the flowers, and oone with the stones, so you can mix both of them. it would make way more sense.
Tbh, they could have just given us the stones and then some teeny debug flowers that would look like they grow over them. I never use terrain paint cos I hate how 2d it all is
Maybe the idea behind it is that this area is so rural that the path is only used once a week or once a month therefore the flowers survive. But mostly they just wanted something that’s nice and pink and would be liked by younger players
There are loads of plants you can grow between stepping stones. The roots at the end of the day, will spread under the stepping stones quite happily. I've got hydrangea, roses, camilias all growing quite happily
I just love when simmers build closed off houses like this every once in a while. I love the open plan too but as a European these closed floor plans and separated kitchen and living spaces are much more common for where I'm from.
I’m from the UK, it’s pretty common to have a toilet and sink downstairs and also to get big sofas in houses when it doesn’t fit, it’s comment to take the windows out to fit large furnitures in! Amazing build James 😁
Same! In fact, years ago, my friend's Mum impulse-bought a massive leather sofa without consulting her builder husband. They now have huge French doors on the back of their house, because they would have had to take the window out to get the sofa in anyway, so, in his words, he decided to go big AND go home 😂. He tells the story to anyone who steps foot into their house or garden, and has for about a decade. I don't think they even have that sofa anymore.
As a Brit, it’s so cool to see this. The straight stairs that u get when u go into the house is so accurate 😅 most the houses I go into have them, usually with a crappy small toilet beside or under them x
Woah, a house with an entrance hallway, downstairs just a toilet and sink "bathroom", and a small bathroom upstairs.. YES!! all the small rooms in general: YES!!! I don't really understand why, but I love seeing normal old fashioned European houses built! ❤ Love that you clearly do your research for these kind of builds!
I can. I have a whole bookshelf there, & a decorative reef, although I don't usually touch anything on it. I have a ladder in my house. It's mostly used for getting in & out of the loft. There's a clock above my kitchen door, too. Ladders are useful. 🤷🏼♂️
The terrain paint is what is known as "creeping thyme" and if you google that, you should see images of this plant appearing between the cracks of footpaths. It is absolutely a thing over here :)
Being British and living in the countryside by houses that look exactly like this I love watching all these videos and knowing what they're talking about. all of james' builds are spot on
I love the flowers in between the stones on the walk. Here in the southeastern US often we put very low growing flowers, moss, or a low mint or herb between the stones so that when you walk on it, you get light whiffs of the beautiful aromas....also being low-growing you can totally just run the lawn mower over it and not worry too much about destroying the plant or weedeating :)
The dining table in the corner reminded me of my grandparents' old house. After they had so may grandchildren, they added a table in the corner so everybody would have a chair to sit on during meals. The table was a rectangular (between two columns) and four chair were inaccessible. We (myself, my siblings and my cousins) used to climb over the table, sometimes crawl under it just to get to the chairs. It was funny at times, but mostly ridiculous and kind of annoying. We used to fight who get the "good chairs" and who would climb over the table.
From the UK here! Yes we do have a lot of WC’s, a lot of old houses already had bathrooms downstairs so when things were renovated, houses get another bathroom upstairs. We do have laundry stuff in our kitchens, or (if you’re lucky) in a utility room usually off the kitchen. Lovely build!
james is obviously such a brilliant builder but i really admire how he does terrain paint, it's so realistic, he just knows the tools and how to use them so well
Having rented a similar sized cottage in Oxfordshire England I can confirm getting a sofa in is an absolute nightmare. I loved our little tiny cottage but it was too small once a little person arrived so we bought a new build that seemed like a mansion. We didn't have nearly enough furniture to fill it. Lovely build James!
People who don’t live in the English countryside: country houses are huge People who actually live there: the ceiling height is literally 150cm in some rooms 😂😫
@@coryhawley738 Yeah, I think “country houses” became synonymous with the rich during the Georgian era, hence the Downton Abbey-esque homes. I live on the edge of the Cotswolds though and there are doors that look as though they’re made for mice 😂
just wanna say that dining table brought back some memories of my home country that i havent been able to visit for some time bc of covid! my auntie and her family has this rly huge circular wooden table and they put it in a corner of their kitchen. theres 6 seats around it and just like this house its like 3 of them are rarely used bc its so squeezy and when they ARE used you have to climb over the other chairs to get to them. when james mentioned how the other chairs probably wont be used i just thought of them immediately and felt kinda sad but also warm ;-; these lets plays and builds are getting me through tough days recently! thank you!
"houses usually get a little bigger in the country" not by any big margin, from the places I've lived and visited here in the UK smaller is the common size in the countryside
I think a lot of non-UK folk get (understandably) confused between a country house and a Country House. You're absolutely right, older houses definitely run small, as they were originally very much working class residences, nowadays you've got to be pretty minted to afford to buy one, but that's progress (apparently!)
With the exception of wealthier parts of the countryside with distant spaces between houses. You /can/ get larger houses in the country, but its likely just as common (if not moreso) to get larger houses in urban areas. In fact, I'd wager its rarer because England is tiny and there's not a lot of space - the prices for a large house in the country are probably extortionate
i mean not really if you're looking up north in farm land the houses can be pretty big but they're very old and are not modern at all there's a lot of big houses in the country side with sizable land attached that cant sell due to the cost of fitting heating and electrics its costly not to mention it deep in the countryside and only rich people with no job or pensioners could live there due to it being remote but the rich don't want to work on a project house and pensioners don't have the money to renovate it its quite sad to be honest since they're beautiful houses
@@coryhawley738 I know the kinds of houses you mean, they are usually the most beautiful ones though honestly even some of the bigger ones are still not as big as some people think they are
I live in a 'country house' just outside of the Lake District (up north in England for non-English people) and can confirm that houses up here are not very big
As a Brit, you did really well. only thing I'll mention is that you're correct about the kitchen. Our kitchens are tiny. The most common are Galley kitchens, or as my partner and I now like to call them... "Long boi" kitchens. Personally, I hate galley kitchens, but it's really hard to avoid here. In sims measurements, I think the smallest kitchen I've lived with would be a tiny 3x3 room. No door, just an archway. Window if you're lucky. Dim ceiling light if you're not. Edit: Actually no, I'm pretty confident to say that the average British kitchen IS a sims 3x3 room. Either two lanes of counters, and the mid-lane to move around; or only 1 or 2 squares to move and everything else is counters and appliances.
This build is stunning, I live about 10 minutes away from where this pack is set (Cotswolds) and this is absolutely the kind of houses you'd see there. You've even got the layout on point.
@@vaskikissa i think James just used him to build the house so he's got a sims to play test and gave him money for that. But idk maybe he got crazy rich in the LP.
@@DarklightAmy In the time lapse if you look at the top right, there's no option to go to live mode. That means he built it without a sim on the lot, I think?
Credit where credit is due to the Sims 4 team. I was expecting to get a bunch of items that they would *think* that you would find in the English countryside but, for the most part, these bb items are pretty great. I’ve lived in an English countryside home/cottage for half of my life and certain items really feel like the ones surrounding me. All this house needs is an option for shorter walk heights!! If you’ve been in the older, smaller cottages, you know that there’s always the risk of bumping your head 😆 Amazing video and build as always, James!
These are my preferred style of build. Like I just love the challenge of building smaller houses/cottages, since, if done right, the house just feels lived in and cozy
We have some plants in England that grow like that in the path and they like being stepped on. Also the stones normally go into the grass and the grass grows round. I would use debug grass tufts to blend it in
I love this build so much. Like, it's simple and small and so cozy. And I love having super flowery gardens. I feel like the smaller the house, the more garden you can feasibly take care of.
Yes having a small WC downstairs is really common in the Uk, but i find their more likely to be off the kitchen or the hallway rather than the living room. I do particularly love how green the outside of this build is though, i'm really looking forward to the pond update personally.
I really enjoy the way you fenced the lot with curves - it really makes the build blend beautifully in with its surroundings - It's almost hard to tell where your lot starts and the environment begins! 10/10 👍
You truly will not comprehend how much these daily videos, helps me get up in the morning. Having something to look forward to lifts me up so much, thank you for all the hard work you do.
Old houses in the UK were built with downstairs bathrooms (Sometimes outside) to make it easy to fill the bath with hot water before we had boilers. A lot of them have been renovated now but thats why you see so many downstairs bathroom/ toilets here in the uk :)
I love waking up to these videos! I cannot wait for this pack however watching James play is sometimes even more fun than to play yourself 😂 keep doing what you’re doing we LOVE this LP!!!!!!
Can we appreciate how good James is at actually building. I watch quite a few Sims UA-camrs and their building are OK but I usually watch them because I like their personality. With James you get both, great personality and great builds.
@@twigletz7384 the little curtain thingy, but it’s usually a bar going halfway across the width of the window. They’re very old fashioned, not super common anymore.
James, the flowers on the new terrain paint (and flooring) are creeping thyme. People plant it in between stone pathways because it's pretty, and can stand up to foot traffic. xx
Full marks for authenticity! You've successfully recreated my tiny 200 year old English cottage, down to the tiny bathroom and the dining area where you can't use all the chairs :))
Yep little downstairs toilet is perfectly normal, washing machine will go in the kitchen. I really like the table stuffed in the corner with two in accessible chairs 😆 We did that in my childhood home. If we had people over we had to slide the table out a bit and the kids had to climb over to the back chairs.
I'm British and this layout is really close to my step-Grandad's house. Especially the layout of the downstairs. He even had a circle table in the nook by the window just like this. Only difference is instead of a WC, that area was extra kitchen space and the landing upstairs was slightly bigger, so the bigger bedroom was split into two bedrooms. I love watching you build British homes because you do a better job than I do.
Old homes usually had one outdoor toilet and no real washing facilities. They pretty much all got renovated in the 20th century to bring a full bathroom inside, but usually downstairs, usually at the back of the house. More recent renovations saw bathrooms being moved upstairs and the older bathrooms becoming a WC, utility room or just a 2nd bathroom. But modern homes are rarely built with just one now. The norm is a WC downstairs and a family bathroom upstairs.
I'm British, and we had a toilet under the stairs when I was a student at uni, in our rented house. Also lived in a tiny cottage as a kid and had a separate toilet down stairs next to the porch and kitchen area.
Flowers between paving stones definitely a thing! Ive planted a low lying thyme between mine so when its brushed past or stepped on it releases a lovely smell. Has pretty purple flowers too.
We have flowers between our stepping stones in Canada. It looks pretty and they don’t die from being walked on. They do come up higher then the stones. I had to cut a bunch out because they grow over the stones.
As someone from the UK I can tell you there is certainly a lot of pivoting when moving furniture! That sofa would have been hard but not impossible for us brits lol
The path thing. It's usually a low laying scented herb, so when you walk on it the smell wafts up. I like the idea, was going to build/grow one irl. In game, its too vibrant and definitely needs a non stone version blending out. Edit! Irl the downstairs would probably be more open so the fire can heat more of the ds. So you could open up the hall so the dining chairs are usable?
You have absolutely nailed the small British home layout - you have just built my house 🤣 the only difference is my living room is the room with the fireplace and the kitchen dining room is on the other 👍🏻 Amazing build as always - I cannot wait for this pack x
One more thing, Brits are obsessed with carpets, they have carpets everywhere. That flooring on ground floor should be carpet, then it would be authentic.
I'm so glad you playtest your builds to make sure sims can use the objects. I've lost count how many builds I download in the game and half of them have furniture that can even be used by the sim because they don't playtest it.
That moment where he talks about how you'd get the couch in the house-I always think about this when building 😂😂 I used to work in a furniture store and I think it permanently damaged me. (also they would take the window frame out to put the sofa in a house like this)
My British brain got unreasonably excited about the inclusion of the tiny downstairs bathroom under the stairs! You’re right it’s such a feature of houses over here as well as the washing machine in the kitchen (normally under the counter like with dishwashers)
I love the overgrown hedge you did there and how you used the different terrain paints. And that house looks so realistic. My favorite cottage living build of all gamechangers so far. You are getting really good with the landscaping
Gee! I've been watching James since 2015 and I remember being like "wow his buildings are so good!" and still he only keeps on getting better and better and it's so cool to be a part of that! Thank you so much for all the work you put into making videos, James!! I'm not usually one to comment but your content has been with me for such a long time and through lows and highs I feel really grateful for that, they definitely helped and inspired me a lot into becoming more creative!
Who thought of Friends when James said 'pivot' about the couch? 'Pivot! Pivot! Pivot!' I also love how Chaz is the Sim in all these build tours but he's not allowed to live in them as per the rags to riches challenge.
I kinda love the flowery terrain paint , I do have something similar at my house , stepping stones on top of white flowers just that we don't walk there
Hearing James mention things like “washing machine usually in the kitchen” makes me realise how this is not a thing normally seen outside of the UK lol
I’m surprised sims hasn’t done a kitchen counter that functions as a bin. Is it not a thing to have your bin under the sink in the kitchen anywhere else?
Agreed, my actual bin takes up a cabinet by my stove. It would be really nice if that were a possibility in the Sims!!!
No that's definitely a thing in a lot of places 😅 they should've added that by now
Sims 2 had trash compactors... just saying...
it’s really uncommon here, at least i don’t think i’ve ever seen it in someone’s house (england). they’re normally just lidded bins, a recycling one and a small brown foodwaste
@@redfreckles1671 Not quite the same but the closest thing we got to bins under a counter.
Ross must've helped get that couch in the house.
"PIVOT!" 🤣
My thoughts exactly 🤣
It's a ground floor room and there's a large window. I think it's perfectly realistic to get a sofa in through the window
When he said pivot all I heard was I guess PIvOT! And was so happy to find this comment
OMG came here to leave that comment!!!! :-)
WCs under the stairs are really common here. I put them there a lot in my British sims builds 😊
It's usually the other way though, since you don't need full height ceiling about a toilet.
@@somegenerichandle the thing is that he didn’t put the wc exactly under the stairs, rather next to it so it has a full height everywhere. Anyway I don’t think you can do a realistic under the stairs bathroom or nook in general in the sims
@@agme8045 you can put things under the stairs with moveobjects but they aren’t usable. :(
My parents had a toilet under their stairs, then they eventually put their dryer and washing machine under there. Super useful space
I love how he's taking Chaz along to these new builds as if showing him exactly what he CANT have.
Who else is hearing Ross say “pivot” about moving a couch every time James says pivot about the couch? Cute build! 👍🏻
Thank you! I came looking for this comment 😅
Haha! I was thinking the same 😂
Very first thing I thought! Came to the comments to see if anyone else had the same thought!
PIVOT, PIVOT!
Yes 110% was thinking that!
While I absolutely love James’ building videos, I NEED THE NEXT PART TO THE LETS PLAY!!
Same ☹️
@@spannahead6588 that’s so awesome!! What’s the mod called??
@@spannahead6588 what does the mod do?
Saaaaaaameee
I was about to comment the exact same thing lol
Also it's not unheard of for people to put furniture in through the windows! Pretty sure my mum's family had to do that with a piano once!
In my parents old house they had to take the patio doors off to get the beds in
I’ve helped a friend put a sofa in the Living room via the window. It was free cycle too so we carried it a mile to their home first. (I think we were all drunk lol)
We did that with our bookcase headboard in our first rental home. That place was TINY! I could vacuum the whole downstairs without having to unplug the vacuum once. 😆
We had to take our window OUT to get our sofa in! We only had one door entry to the house and it was so narrow, with an immediate bend, that it was literally impossible and we couldn't even get the armchair through! 🤣🤣
My bedroom window fell out so my parents took advantage of it to get their mattress in and out of the house at the same time. (no, I don't know why it fell out, the house was old.)
I'm bummed that they missed the opportunity to have an off-the-grid typewriter that only works for writing (not regular computer tasks), and linking it to the Simple Living challenge so Sims have to buy reams of paper from the local shops to keep writing. All I want is a Sim who writes books but not on a computer!!
They missed the opportunity to have Sims be able to publish journals too. Maybe a sim had a higher chance at succeeding on publishing a journal from a sim who was their great great grandfather etc
This is the first time I've ever seen a sims build that actually resembles the floor plan of my parent's house! I love how you keep saying that it's small, but I'd actually consider that a big house! Great job making it feel proper british :D
Yeah I wouldn’t say it’s a “really tiny” house! It’s pretty average size for the UK 🤣
Really leaving us on a cliff hanger for the let’s play, I WANNA SEE THE INSIDE OF THE BARN 😂😂
yeees
Ike T^T
THIS!
SAME 😂
Ikr!
“Pivot!”
“Pivot!”
“Pivot!!!”
“Oh shut up! Shit up! Shut uuuuup!”
😂
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
glad I'm not the only one to think of that scene when he said "pivot".
If you know, you know :3
Can't wait till this is released. Needs more:
James: AWWW BATUU! YEEEEEAH, HAHAHA!
I am so obsessed with this series I count the minutes until it’s out! Will there be enough episodes to keep us entertained for 9 more days? I just want the best for poor Chaz.
James: I don't know how you'd get the sofa in there.
IKEA: Am I a joke to you?
My thoughts exactly 😄
by window...
Ikea is a joke :p
About the new terrain paint: they should have done 2 versions of it: one that's only the flowers, and oone with the stones, so you can mix both of them. it would make way more sense.
Tbh, they could have just given us the stones and then some teeny debug flowers that would look like they grow over them. I never use terrain paint cos I hate how 2d it all is
Maybe the idea behind it is that this area is so rural that the path is only used once a week or once a month therefore the flowers survive. But mostly they just wanted something that’s nice and pink and would be liked by younger players
oone.
Flowers in between stepping stones is a thing. It requires certain, quickly spreading flowers.
I was going to tweet him pictures of the moss and flowers in between our stepping stones. I live in the UK.
no yeah definitely, especially if they’re wildflowers.
There are loads of plants you can grow between stepping stones. The roots at the end of the day, will spread under the stepping stones quite happily. I've got hydrangea, roses, camilias all growing quite happily
I just love when simmers build closed off houses like this every once in a while. I love the open plan too but as a European these closed floor plans and separated kitchen and living spaces are much more common for where I'm from.
I’m from the UK, it’s pretty common to have a toilet and sink downstairs and also to get big sofas in houses when it doesn’t fit, it’s comment to take the windows out to fit large furnitures in! Amazing build James 😁
I know people who have lived in some REALLY tiny UK homes that had to have the windows removed to get furniture in and out!
Same! In fact, years ago, my friend's Mum impulse-bought a massive leather sofa without consulting her builder husband. They now have huge French doors on the back of their house, because they would have had to take the window out to get the sofa in anyway, so, in his words, he decided to go big AND go home 😂.
He tells the story to anyone who steps foot into their house or garden, and has for about a decade. I don't think they even have that sofa anymore.
As a Brit, it’s so cool to see this. The straight stairs that u get when u go into the house is so accurate 😅 most the houses I go into have them, usually with a crappy small toilet beside or under them x
James: pivot the couch
My brain: PIVOT PIVOT PIVOOOOOT😂
Chaz: has 70k
Me: "Spoiler?" 😂😂
Woah, a house with an entrance hallway, downstairs just a toilet and sink "bathroom", and a small bathroom upstairs.. YES!! all the small rooms in general: YES!!! I don't really understand why, but I love seeing normal old fashioned European houses built! ❤
Love that you clearly do your research for these kind of builds!
So cute, James. I wish they would add an upright piano. That would have gone nicely in your little living room.
I can't imagine trying to change the clock battery
my air conditioner is in a similar place. ever so slightly inconvenient lol
Or winding it up every month lol
I imagine it just has strings that you can pull while standing on the stairs to wind it up
Easy. Take a ladder, prop it onto the stairs and against the wall the clock is on, and up you go! Maybe have someone there to watch the ladder 😂
I can. I have a whole bookshelf there, & a decorative reef, although I don't usually touch anything on it. I have a ladder in my house. It's mostly used for getting in & out of the loft. There's a clock above my kitchen door, too. Ladders are useful. 🤷🏼♂️
The terrain paint is what is known as "creeping thyme" and if you google that, you should see images of this plant appearing between the cracks of footpaths. It is absolutely a thing over here :)
We really should have had a second one of just thyme without stone so we could blend better but alas
Being British and living in the countryside by houses that look exactly like this I love watching all these videos and knowing what they're talking about. all of james' builds are spot on
“literally just a rectangle with 2 levels” my british council house
I love the flowers in between the stones on the walk. Here in the southeastern US often we put very low growing flowers, moss, or a low mint or herb between the stones so that when you walk on it, you get light whiffs of the beautiful aromas....also being low-growing you can totally just run the lawn mower over it and not worry too much about destroying the plant or weedeating :)
The dining table in the corner reminded me of my grandparents' old house. After they had so may grandchildren, they added a table in the corner so everybody would have a chair to sit on during meals. The table was a rectangular (between two columns) and four chair were inaccessible. We (myself, my siblings and my cousins) used to climb over the table, sometimes crawl under it just to get to the chairs. It was funny at times, but mostly ridiculous and kind of annoying. We used to fight who get the "good chairs" and who would climb over the table.
i literally can't wait for this pack to be out, haven't been this excited since eco lifestyle was announced lol
From the UK here! Yes we do have a lot of WC’s, a lot of old houses already had bathrooms downstairs so when things were renovated, houses get another bathroom upstairs. We do have laundry stuff in our kitchens, or (if you’re lucky) in a utility room usually off the kitchen. Lovely build!
Was waiting for the barn renovation of the let play but james content is still james content so this will do.
james is obviously such a brilliant builder but i really admire how he does terrain paint, it's so realistic, he just knows the tools and how to use them so well
PIVOT! Literally the first thing I thought about when he started talking about the couch.
Having rented a similar sized cottage in Oxfordshire England I can confirm getting a sofa in is an absolute nightmare. I loved our little tiny cottage but it was too small once a little person arrived so we bought a new build that seemed like a mansion. We didn't have nearly enough furniture to fill it. Lovely build James!
People who don’t live in the English countryside: country houses are huge
People who actually live there: the ceiling height is literally 150cm in some rooms 😂😫
depends which countryside the ones up north tend to be bigger since there's more room and attached to farm land
@@coryhawley738 Yeah, I think “country houses” became synonymous with the rich during the Georgian era, hence the Downton Abbey-esque homes. I live on the edge of the Cotswolds though and there are doors that look as though they’re made for mice 😂
Same here with older houses in sweden lol
@@anna-karinsager5783 haha men då så!
🤣🤣🤣 the doors for mice made me laugh! I can totally relate!!
just wanna say that dining table brought back some memories of my home country that i havent been able to visit for some time bc of covid! my auntie and her family has this rly huge circular wooden table and they put it in a corner of their kitchen. theres 6 seats around it and just like this house its like 3 of them are rarely used bc its so squeezy and when they ARE used you have to climb over the other chairs to get to them. when james mentioned how the other chairs probably wont be used i just thought of them immediately and felt kinda sad but also warm ;-; these lets plays and builds are getting me through tough days recently! thank you!
"houses usually get a little bigger in the country" not by any big margin, from the places I've lived and visited here in the UK smaller is the common size in the countryside
I think a lot of non-UK folk get (understandably) confused between a country house and a Country House. You're absolutely right, older houses definitely run small, as they were originally very much working class residences, nowadays you've got to be pretty minted to afford to buy one, but that's progress (apparently!)
With the exception of wealthier parts of the countryside with distant spaces between houses. You /can/ get larger houses in the country, but its likely just as common (if not moreso) to get larger houses in urban areas. In fact, I'd wager its rarer because England is tiny and there's not a lot of space - the prices for a large house in the country are probably extortionate
i mean not really if you're looking up north in farm land the houses can be pretty big but they're very old and are not modern at all there's a lot of big houses in the country side with sizable land attached that cant sell due to the cost of fitting heating and electrics its costly not to mention it deep in the countryside and only rich people with no job or pensioners could live there due to it being remote but the rich don't want to work on a project house and pensioners don't have the money to renovate it its quite sad to be honest since they're beautiful houses
@@coryhawley738 I know the kinds of houses you mean, they are usually the most beautiful ones though honestly even some of the bigger ones are still not as big as some people think they are
I live in a 'country house' just outside of the Lake District (up north in England for non-English people) and can confirm that houses up here are not very big
As a Brit, you did really well. only thing I'll mention is that you're correct about the kitchen. Our kitchens are tiny. The most common are Galley kitchens, or as my partner and I now like to call them... "Long boi" kitchens. Personally, I hate galley kitchens, but it's really hard to avoid here.
In sims measurements, I think the smallest kitchen I've lived with would be a tiny 3x3 room. No door, just an archway. Window if you're lucky. Dim ceiling light if you're not.
Edit: Actually no, I'm pretty confident to say that the average British kitchen IS a sims 3x3 room. Either two lanes of counters, and the mid-lane to move around; or only 1 or 2 squares to move and everything else is counters and appliances.
This build makes me wanna buy this pack... lol
This build is stunning, I live about 10 minutes away from where this pack is set (Cotswolds) and this is absolutely the kind of houses you'd see there. You've even got the layout on point.
Poor Chaz, being teased by a beautiful cottage while he lives in an alley and an abandoned barn!
I mean look at his household funds
@@vaskikissa i think James just used him to build the house so he's got a sims to play test and gave him money for that. But idk maybe he got crazy rich in the LP.
@@DarklightAmy In the time lapse if you look at the top right, there's no option to go to live mode. That means he built it without a sim on the lot, I think?
@@vaskikissa maybe? Didn't see that. But we will see what happens b in the LP, I'm very excited for sure! 😄
Credit where credit is due to the Sims 4 team. I was expecting to get a bunch of items that they would *think* that you would find in the English countryside but, for the most part, these bb items are pretty great. I’ve lived in an English countryside home/cottage for half of my life and certain items really feel like the ones surrounding me.
All this house needs is an option for shorter walk heights!! If you’ve been in the older, smaller cottages, you know that there’s always the risk of bumping your head 😆
Amazing video and build as always, James!
This legit looks like my first house. You did a fantastic job getting the vibe right!
These are my preferred style of build. Like I just love the challenge of building smaller houses/cottages, since, if done right, the house just feels lived in and cozy
I love how much this feels like something I would realistically see on 'Escape to the Country'. Such a cute and cosy looking build, I love it 😍
So cozy and dreamy!! I love that the whole lot is securely fenced for all the animals (chickens, rabbits, and pets)!
I think the step stones are meant to have creeping thyme between them. It is common to use it between stones and is a low growing plant.
We have some plants in England that grow like that in the path and they like being stepped on. Also the stones normally go into the grass and the grass grows round. I would use debug grass tufts to blend it in
I love how you're going through the same issues trying to fit furniture in as people in the UK do irl 😂
I love this build so much. Like, it's simple and small and so cozy. And I love having super flowery gardens. I feel like the smaller the house, the more garden you can feasibly take care of.
flashback to the friends episode where they're moving the couch and ross is going "Pivot... pivot... PIVOT!!!"
Yes having a small WC downstairs is really common in the Uk, but i find their more likely to be off the kitchen or the hallway rather than the living room.
I do particularly love how green the outside of this build is though, i'm really looking forward to the pond update personally.
ahh i was dying for the lets play!! i've never been so invested in a series.... thanks sydney lockdown - gladys did something beneficial
I really enjoy the way you fenced the lot with curves - it really makes the build blend beautifully in with its surroundings - It's almost hard to tell where your lot starts and the environment begins! 10/10 👍
james at the diagonal house: with peace and love, you will be tossed
You truly will not comprehend how much these daily videos, helps me get up in the morning. Having something to look forward to lifts me up so much, thank you for all the hard work you do.
when you said pivot, Ross and his couch came to my mind 😂😂
Old houses in the UK were built with downstairs bathrooms (Sometimes outside) to make it easy to fill the bath with hot water before we had boilers. A lot of them have been renovated now but thats why you see so many downstairs bathroom/ toilets here in the uk :)
I love waking up to these videos! I cannot wait for this pack however watching James play is sometimes even more fun than to play yourself 😂 keep doing what you’re doing we LOVE this LP!!!!!!
Can we appreciate how good James is at actually building. I watch quite a few Sims UA-camrs and their building are OK but I usually watch them because I like their personality. With James you get both, great personality and great builds.
Wow, the first simmer I’ve seen to use the window skirts correctly 😂😂
Deli and lilsimsie and so many others have always used them correctly
What's a 'window skirt'?
@@ameliejohnson3308 I don’t watch them lol
@@twigletz7384 the little curtain thingy, but it’s usually a bar going halfway across the width of the window. They’re very old fashioned, not super common anymore.
James, the flowers on the new terrain paint (and flooring) are creeping thyme. People plant it in between stone pathways because it's pretty, and can stand up to foot traffic. xx
Sooo sad its not rags to riches series😭 I’m addicted to your cottage living series🤣 anyway awesome build james!
Rags to riches
@@ameliejohnson3308 pardon my typo 🤣
Full marks for authenticity! You've successfully recreated my tiny 200 year old English cottage, down to the tiny bathroom and the dining area where you can't use all the chairs :))
Me clocking I'm at work....*opens up phone on desk and refresh until James comes up* You make my day go by so fast!
meee
Yep little downstairs toilet is perfectly normal, washing machine will go in the kitchen. I really like the table stuffed in the corner with two in accessible chairs 😆 We did that in my childhood home. If we had people over we had to slide the table out a bit and the kids had to climb over to the back chairs.
I was refreshing my UA-cam like crazy waiting for you to upload! Your videos make my mornings ☺️☺️
I'm British and this layout is really close to my step-Grandad's house. Especially the layout of the downstairs. He even had a circle table in the nook by the window just like this. Only difference is instead of a WC, that area was extra kitchen space and the landing upstairs was slightly bigger, so the bigger bedroom was split into two bedrooms. I love watching you build British homes because you do a better job than I do.
Can't go to sleep with out my James fix. It has become a nightly routine
I'm not gonna lie - I watched all videos about Cottage living, because I got obsessed. But I love yours the most
I’m British. Don’t think I’ve ever lived or been inside of a house with more than 1 bathroom. Good job though 😂
Yess me too haha
But it would be nice in a hypothetical world 😂
I have and I've also been in a few houses that just have two separate rooms for bathroom stuff one W/C and one room with a sink and bath.
Old homes usually had one outdoor toilet and no real washing facilities. They pretty much all got renovated in the 20th century to bring a full bathroom inside, but usually downstairs, usually at the back of the house. More recent renovations saw bathrooms being moved upstairs and the older bathrooms becoming a WC, utility room or just a 2nd bathroom. But modern homes are rarely built with just one now. The norm is a WC downstairs and a family bathroom upstairs.
I'm British, and we had a toilet under the stairs when I was a student at uni, in our rented house.
Also lived in a tiny cottage as a kid and had a separate toilet down stairs next to the porch and kitchen area.
Flowers between paving stones definitely a thing! Ive planted a low lying thyme between mine so when its brushed past or stepped on it releases a lovely smell. Has pretty purple flowers too.
Im so excited to use this pack with the wind turbines in eco living
We have flowers between our stepping stones in Canada. It looks pretty and they don’t die from being walked on. They do come up higher then the stones. I had to cut a bunch out because they grow over the stones.
James, wondering how to get a couch into such a small house.
Me, a european, putting all my Ikea furniture togehter in the destinated room...
As someone from the UK I can tell you there is certainly a lot of pivoting when moving furniture! That sofa would have been hard but not impossible for us brits lol
The path thing. It's usually a low laying scented herb, so when you walk on it the smell wafts up. I like the idea, was going to build/grow one irl. In game, its too vibrant and definitely needs a non stone version blending out.
Edit! Irl the downstairs would probably be more open so the fire can heat more of the ds. So you could open up the hall so the dining chairs are usable?
My first thought was of creeping thyme which has pretty little purple flowers
@@anonknitter yeah, that's the one.. Bet it smells lovely.
In some old houses, you take out the window (in its frame) to put in things like couches and beds into rooms where you can't get them in otherwise.
I’ve been waiting for this all morning
You have absolutely nailed the small British home layout - you have just built my house 🤣 the only difference is my living room is the room with the fireplace and the kitchen dining room is on the other 👍🏻 Amazing build as always - I cannot wait for this pack x
One more thing, Brits are obsessed with carpets, they have carpets everywhere. That flooring on ground floor should be carpet, then it would be authentic.
YES THIS! growing up every floor in my house was carpet except for the kitchen and bathroom which was lino
*feels shame as a brit with her wooden floor everywhere (apart from bathroom and kitchen* 😂😂
@@JinsolLee one house i lived in even had it in the bathrooms! literally only the kitchen didn't
@@veeiris That's gross. I've only ever seen that once and it was in a shoddy flat
I'm so glad you playtest your builds to make sure sims can use the objects. I've lost count how many builds I download in the game and half of them have furniture that can even be used by the sim because they don't playtest it.
That moment where he talks about how you'd get the couch in the house-I always think about this when building 😂😂 I used to work in a furniture store and I think it permanently damaged me. (also they would take the window frame out to put the sofa in a house like this)
My British brain got unreasonably excited about the inclusion of the tiny downstairs bathroom under the stairs! You’re right it’s such a feature of houses over here as well as the washing machine in the kitchen (normally under the counter like with dishwashers)
in 2021 those couches come in pieces, so it's easy to get them in (and they're retractable)
I love the overgrown hedge you did there and how you used the different terrain paints. And that house looks so realistic. My favorite cottage living build of all gamechangers so far. You are getting really good with the landscaping
It’d be a the painting above the TV and a mirror above the couch usually 🥴
Gee! I've been watching James since 2015 and I remember being like "wow his buildings are so good!" and still he only keeps on getting better and better and it's so cool to be a part of that! Thank you so much for all the work you put into making videos, James!! I'm not usually one to comment but your content has been with me for such a long time and through lows and highs I feel really grateful for that, they definitely helped and inspired me a lot into becoming more creative!
Who thought of Friends when James said 'pivot' about the couch? 'Pivot! Pivot! Pivot!' I also love how Chaz is the Sim in all these build tours but he's not allowed to live in them as per the rags to riches challenge.
There are lots and lots of flowers you can plant between stepping stones and they survive the foot traffic just fine.
3 floors is pretty big for the UK's countryside.
I kinda love the flowery terrain paint , I do have something similar at my house , stepping stones on top of white flowers just that we don't walk there
I haven’t even finished watching the video yet and I’m already ✨obsessed✨
thank you for all this content james
((Hugs))
@@irishduchess7577 thank you
Ross: PIVOT PIVOT!
🤣🤣
The terrain paint is based off Thyme pathways, they are usually stepping stones with thyme planted in between they're beautiful!!!
In the UK its really common to have a half-bath downstairs, we call it a cloakroom, I'm not sure if that's a universal term or just a UK thing 😂
Same in belgium. 😂 houses look alike
I call it the downstairs toilet not sure it’s all of the UK
Nah bruh, down south i only ever hear it called a downstairs toilet.
Thats interesting! Maybe it's only certain parts of the UK as you said
In Norway we have it too, they're called "guest toilets" here..!
Hearing James mention things like “washing machine usually in the kitchen” makes me realise how this is not a thing normally seen outside of the UK lol