A Couple of Home Tours and a Little House Update

Today on weekend meanderings, a couple of home tours, a really good movie, and a little house update. And it’s Kim’s birthday!

Happy Saturday, friends!

It’s time for the weekend post with Kim and Elizabeth, our weekly roundup of inspirations and goings on.

‘Tis autumn … well, not really, but after a – thankfully – brief heatwave it’s cooled off, pumpkins are in the shops and I’m leaning in.

All products and links included in this post are selected by me and some may be affiliate links.

Let’s jump in …

Tour a Historic Home in the Hudson Valley

As a real estate obsessive I look forward to the WSJ Mansion section on Friday’s. A recent feature on a historic house in the Hudson Valley caught my eye and captured my imagination so of course I want to share.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

Doesn’t it look like a fairy tale come to life? The exterior colors are perfection.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

The Gothic Revival style country manor was built circa 1840 by a ship captain and stayed in the family over 100 years. Current owners purchased the house as a country home in 2019. After living in it full time during the pandemic they undertook a complete renovation, including an 1800 sqft. expansion. They worked with architect Chip Bohl and interior designer Louise Copeland (more photos on her website here.)

The foyer is so fresh and bright. Look at that tile and view into the green dining room.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

Speaking of the green dining room … swoon.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

Can you imagine my reaction when I saw the small library/study? I sure do miss Snowberry’s library … and all my books in storage. I’ve designated a room in the little house as an office/study/library and this room has given me all the inspiration. I’d love to track down that gorgeous sunburst light fixture.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

The 3.3 acre property includes a pool and greenhouse.

Photo Credit: The Lillie K. Team/Sotheby’s International Realty

The owners have moved out of state and this charming country house is for sale. Here’s a gift link to the WSJ article and photos. The real estate listing and more photos can be viewed on Zillow.

The house is also featured as an example of gothic revival style in AD’s 14 House Styles Everyone Should Know.

 

Tour Eye for Pretty’s Latest Spec Home in Danville

Eye for Pretty’s newest spec home, the Rutherford build, is complete and the doors were thrown open on Thursday for local fans to take a tour. Beautifully furnished with pieces from Eye for Pretty’s design studio and home decor shop, it’s a masterpiece of interior design and styling. Even better, all the furnishings and decor were for sale. I wish our little house was closer to being a reality because there were quite a few things I would have loved to snap up.

If you’re not familiar, Nicole Salceda is the creative mastermind behind Eye for Pretty. I believe she started with a blog, and a must-follow Instagram account. She then opened a wildly successful interior design studio followed by a storefront, Eye for Pretty Home, in Danville. The shop is packed with all the pretty home decor pieces seen on her Instagram and throughout her client projects. It’s one of the first places I go when looking for gifts … and of course decor treasures for my own home.

But back to the Rutherford build. Kim and I met up to tour the house along with every other Bay Area home design fan. The house is a triumph and every detail is thoughtful, functional and, of course, pretty. It’s a quintessential California home centered around outdoor living. And, wow, the outdoor spaces are abundant.

Being thorough, Kim and I tested out all the seating. The wicker swivels were our favorite. We considered ordering Door Dash, a bottle of wine and settling in for the afternoon.

I like the size of the fire pit and took lots of photos as inspiration for our new house.

Get a better look at the outdoor spaces here.

The kitchen is spectacular. And, as kitchens tend to be, a popular hang out spot so there was no getting a good, clear photo. Behind the kitchen on the right is a butler’s pantry and on the left a pantry pantry. No lack of storage here.

I adore a range alcove and hope to do something similar (on a smaller scale – ha!) at our new house.

The great room is light, bright, airy and expansive … with retractable sliding doors opening up to the amazing outdoor spaces.

Love the sofa and it’s so comfy. Same with the slip covered swivels.

Step outside to the oasis. To the left is the outdoor kitchen and dining loggia as well as an in-law suite/yoga room/kids hangout/pool house space.

Make Mine a Spritzer HQ will happily relocate to this office space.

I’m wearing a Marine Layer dress. Thanks for asking.

The primary bedroom also opens up to the backyard oasis. Kim and I loved the end-of -bed bench. My dogs would love it too.

The tile throughout is stunning.

And I really like the super wide edge profile on the bathroom countertops.

Eye for Pretty Home always has a wonderful selection of faux stems and branches in the shop. And they’re very nice about helping to arrange them if, like me, you aren’t particularly gifted in this area. I enjoyed all the stem and branch moments throughout the house.

We ran into a couple of followers at the house. Thanks for saying ‘hi’ Donna and Kerry! Donna was so sweet and snapped our picture in the outdoor dining loggia.

Turns out our new friend Donna was there on behalf of Custom Fireplace BBQ & Spa in Pleasanton and collaborated with Nicole on the Rutherford build’s outdoor spaces … the patio furniture, outdoor kitchen and fireplaces. You can see more of the beautiful backyard here (can you spot me and Kim?) and if you’re local, visit their showroom in Pleasanton. Jim and I will be paying a visit very soon to look at fireplaces, patio furniture and outdoor kitchen ideas.

The Rutherford build is the third spec home Nicole has designed and built in partnership with Barale Builders. The house is already pending – lucky ducks that bought it. I believe project number four is in the works. Yay.

You can see more on Eye for Pretty’s Instagram … be sure to click the Rutherford highlight icon.

 

Little House Update

In exciting news I’ll be working with Ashley White, designer at Eye for Pretty, on our little house project. We had a phone meeting yesterday to catch up and regroup. As the project inches closer to demo day it’s time to get back on track. Can you believe it’s been 18-months since we bought the little house? There’s been a lot of hurry-up-and-wait and now we’re in the need-it-yesterday phase.

Ashely posted this nearly one year ago after our initial design meeting. One year.

When we bought the little house, our realtor Dana Green cautioned that it would likely take two years to complete the project. We scoffed. Well, 18 months later and 10-12 months to likely completion, the old proverb ‘marry in haste, repent at leisure’ comes to mind.

I get a lot of questions about the little house and if we’re still moving forward. Yes, we are … but I probably won’t say much more about it until we’re underway. Which I hope will be very soon.

 

Happy Birthday, Kim!

Our Kim is celebrating a milestone birthday tomorrow! After touring the Rutherford build we went for a celebratory lunch at Danville’s Harvest.

I made Kim order dessert – she chose this gorgeous pavlova – so I could order the bread pudding. Yes, I ate the entire thing. And my summer pasta was delicious too.

 

The Thursday Murder Club

Have you seen The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix? If not, what are you waiting for?! Based on Richard Osman’s novel of the same name, and starring Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Celia Imrie and Ben Kingsley … this is the sort of movie we need more of in my humble opinion. Not a superhero or animated character in sight. Who doesn’t love a murder mystery set in an English manor house? And Helen Mirren’s wardrobe … chef’s kiss.

Englefield House in Berkshire is the fifth star of this charming movie. The house was also seen in The Crown (as Sandgringham), as well as a number of other movies and was the location of Pippa Middleton’s 2017 wedding. Read more about it here.

 

Current Favorites ~

 

That’s what I have for you today.

Let’s see what’s inspiring Kim and Elizabeth.

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