Hi! Ready to keep walking through this old house?
Before we wander down that hallway, I did want to mention that my friend Ashley is responsible for renovating this house, but it actually looked a lot different when she lived here. The current homeowner prefers a lighter feel, so she personalized it with a lot of white paint and in a slightly different style after Ashley moved out. Maybe I’ll put together a separate post that compares the two looks just for fun next week!
Okay, now back to the tour of the first floor! The first doorway on the left (in the photo above) opens to a formal sitting area:
That door on the left side of the photo above opens to the butler’s pantry and you can see the kitchen in the background just beyond that.
My favorite little touch: the (burnable) fire balls in the fireplace!
Apparently you can’t actually burn that stacked up like that (they need to be arranged in rows or on a tray) but I just love the way they look, don’t you? (PS- Ashley sells them in her shop if you’re interested in more info about them.)
Here’s a look at the room from the other direction:
There’s another gathering room through those (original to the house) pocket doors, and around the corner from that, you turn the corner to this room at the very front of the house:
My favorite details in this space? The sidelights around the front door and the newel posts on the staircase!
Moving back down the hall towards the kitchen, you’ll find the guest bedroom:
Again, it looked a little different when Ashley lived here, but I cannot tell you how long I have waited to see the “shower armoire” she designed!!!
Isn’t that just the neatest thing?
Ashley said the guy who built it used some kind of marine-quality sealer on it so that water beads up on it just like it would on tile. I asked her if it got much use, and they said they (and their guests) used it a lot while she lived there. I forgot to take a picture of the floor, but basically, there’s white hex tile down there and there’s a (sealed/removable) wood grate on top of that. It really was quite spectacular, and it was so surreal to be standing in front of it after staring at photos of it for so many years- ha! 😀
(Thanks again to the current homeowner for allowing us to tour it with Ashley and Jessica! XO)
The rest of the bedrooms (and another bathroom) are upstairs, so join me here on Friday if you’d like to continue the tour!
PS- For pics between posts, join me over on Twitter, Facebook and/or Instagram!
The side by side comparison you mentioned would be really cool to see.
Loving this week’s home tour! I just love all the contrast of white & those beautiful wood floors. After all of your stunning Southern home inspiration & this awful Midwest Winter I am day dreaming more & more about moving South, ha!
This house is spectacular. I wish I could live there. 🙂
Shower Armoire?–love it! We have wood counter tops with marine sealer on them and it works just like she said.
I just did a post today about “Light and Bright” design. This house really has it goin’ on! How fresh and pretty. Not so great for lots of teenage boys or dogs, but beautiful, nonetheless.
I love all the whites and neutrals, but I can’t help imagine a space like this after my 3 dogs have stayed for a week! I’m in love with the warm wood in the bathroom and on the shower!
Layla, If you go to ( her shop ) and search cannon balls they don’t come up. Apparently they’re called something else.
Oh no, I’m sorry, they’re not listed on her site. You’ll need to call or email her if you’d like more info on those! 🙂
simply gorgeous! I love your idea of doing the side-by-side comparison of how it looked before when Ashley lived there, vs. the new owner. Please do that (all in your spare time…haha!) 🙂
I used to work at a marine supply store in high school called West Marine, My dad still works there! They sell a lot of products that seal wood from the elements really well. Typically sailboats have more external wood such as teak and so it with a good sealant you might only have to refinish them every 10 years or so. I would assume for the doors like that in a shower, might have to be resealed sooner. This whole post just gave me a great idea on how we could incorporate something like that into our guest bath!
Beautiful home! The wood floors are absolutely amazing. I too would love to see the side by side comparison.
It’s an amazing home with such a glamorous yet homey feel. The neutral palette blends seamlessly from room to room, and if offset beautifully with dark accents like doors and lighting. DREAM HOME!!
I would love to see the house democratic two different ways! We are working on decorating a new to us house and I keep looking back at the before pics and how style changes things.
This house is absolutely gorgeous!
The house is just gorgeous! Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait for Friday!!!
GOSH Layla I love LOVE love this post. You sure do got a “eye” for detail AND I’m with ya 100%. MAN I could do this kinda thing for ever and these house’s make my heart SINGGGG!!! Those side lights ARE amazing, and that stair case, OH MY word, breathtaking. They sure don’t build’em like they used to OR you gotta have a million to do so….ahhhhhhhh
Thanks for making my day, looking forward to friday for sure!
Oh I love this house!! I also would love to see the Ashley decor compared to the homeowners decor now….
De-light-ful! Of course, that armoire shower is cool . . . but how on earth does one persuade one’s (male) significant other to have such a thing? Just wondering. 😉
Lovely home! Could you provide a link to the burnable cannon balls? What a great idea for a fireplace. Are they wax?
Thank you.
Hi Kathy!
I don’t have a link to the cannon balls, but Ashley told me she can order them through her Parish shop if you’re interested! 🙂
They are actually called fireballs and can be purchased through Rasmussen.biz. Hope that helps!
Oops! Thanks, Ashley! 😀
Layla, just love this house. I would love to compare pictures of when Ashley lived there. Love, love, love the shower amoire! I must remember this one!
I agree the side by side comparison would be neat 🙂 I’ll stay tune next week! And tomorrow 🙂
This is so fresh. And what better word than fresh to describe an old house? It takes a lot of work – and a lot of paint – to achieve that.
The mirror in the sitting area (above the fireplace) – ahhhh gorgeous.
Great job on the photos.
OMG! that house is just amazing! I think its my favorite new house to look at! I love everything about it. That bathroom door is awesome but do you think its ok to get wet?
Yep! Check out the paragraph right after those photos, Patricia. That talks a little bit about the sealer and Ashley’s experience with the shower. 🙂
GORGEOUS!!! Thanks for sharing — I really enjoyed both posts!