Garden Club Mountain Tour III

The last two days, I have posted about the garden tour that I was privileged to be a part of.  One of the members of my garden club has a vacation home in one of the loveliest areas and she invited us to tour her garden and two of her friends' gardens.  This one I'm featuring today is a true labor of love.  The owners of this home have designed, installed, and maintained these gardens themselves.  When he invited us to tour the inside of the home as well, we were inside in a flash!

He was so knowledgeable about all the specimens and planting details and was so lovely about sharing.  It was remarkable to see the results of that passion.  I was so in love with the sculpture and hardscape.  This pair of dogs was so fabulous.  They sit at the entrance to the first garden.  Aren't they just wonderful? 

This beautiful seating area was carved out of the approach to the cleared area between two English specimin gardens.  Wouldn't you love to sit with a good book and read in this little paradise?

I just had to grab a photo of this lichen-covered Luyten style bench.

It is so iconic to put an armilliary in an English garden, and they found a beautiful one!

This guy stole my heart.  I am such a sucker for any design item that represents the canine species.  I am crazy about how he sits regally among the shrubery.

Some of their design items were in focal points of the garden, and some were subtly nestled among the plants.

Here's his sweeet face up close.

This font is filled with ground cover and sits at a crossroads of the peagravel pathways.

Look at the carving on the bottom.

Although it is almost the end of the blooming season for dalhias, there were several wonderful types of them still giving a wonderful show.  I don't know the name of this one, but it is my very favorite.

And this is another special one.  It is just kissed by lavender.

This beautiful outbuilding held before and after pictures of the grounds.  It's amazing to see the progress of these dreamers.

Across the driveway is this wonderful pond which was also the result of their artistic planning.  The curved footbridge is designed to look like the one at Giverney and the Adirondack chairs are painted to match.

Here's a close up photo.

The inside did NOT disappoint.  This serves as their family room.  It has the feel of a sunroom with the skylights and plants.  It was so beautifully accessorized and had great art.

This is the warm and inviting dining room.  Who doesn't love those chairs?

This is the first floor bedroom.  It doesn't show in this photo, but they have the biggest ottoman in this room that I have ever seen.  I think several of their Golden Retrievers sleep on it!

I could spend forever in this living room.

The anteroom to the powder room sports these great fern crewel panels.  Aren't they beautiful?

One of my all-time favorite things is carved black forest wood.  This book slide is a fine example of it.  I would love to own it.

Here's another wonderful fabric on these sofas.  I love the colors and the fern print.

In the living room, they have this wonderful twig framed mirror.  It gives such texture and the round shape fits the space so well.

This picture is very dark, but I wanted you to see more twigs made into a valance in the bedroom.  Perfect.

This stag head is another example of carved wood.

This is one of the greatest powder room treatments that I have ever seen.  This vanity is so creative, and they use every inch to show their beautiful collections.

You can see a little more of the window and the artwork in this shot.

This shows the view from the inside to the pond.  I can only imagine how gorgeous it will be in a few weeks. 

 I'll post the last part of this trip tomorrow.   



Garden Club Mountain Tour II

This is the log cabin next door to yesterday's post.  This was also featured on my garden club tour.  I'm so grateful that one of our members put this tour together for the rest of us to enjoy.  I respect the privacy of the owners of these homes, so I am not revealing where they are, but I will say that they are in a beautiful mountain area not too far from Atlanta.  Here's the view as you walk from yesterday's home to this one next door.

Just look at the stonework on this chimney.  It was so perfect for this home.

This is the back of the cottage.  It was built in the 20's out of telephone poles.  The builder of these two log homes is well known, and his structures are considered very desirable.

Here's the front view.  Can you imagine arriving here for a long weekend of relaxation?

And here's the wonderful inside!  The beams!  The fireplace!  And I especially love that painting over the mantle and it's rustic frame.  Oh, and how about the barley twist lamps behind the sofa?

This staircase goes up to the upper bedrooms.  It's only half a story up.  Does that make it a split level?

A truely cozy upstairs bedroom.

Then back downstairs to the living room again.  Check out this artwork.  How perfect for this house.

Then a half story downstairs to the lower level bedroom.  These tramp art frames over the twin beds are perfect for this space.

Even the bathroom is perfectly wonderful.  Wouldn't you love to live within these walls?

This pathway leads to a network of hiking trails.  Wine on the porch or a hike in these amazing woods?  You decide.

I have never seen such wonderful rustic pathway lights.  Just a rough wood plank and a semi-circle of rusty metal make down lights that perfectly fit into the woodsy setting.

This gate probably wouldn't keep out bears, or intruders either, but it is totally in keeping with this lovely place.

How lovely is this view? 

I found this sweet little plaque tucked into the beds in a very inconspicuous place.  No screaming "Look at me", just a very subtle little detail.

Most of the summer flowers were done blooming for this year, but these asters were still as lovely as can be.

This little pile of acorns simply made me smile.

And this view made me swoon.

I'll be posting more about this special trip tomorrow and Tuesday. 

Garden Club Mountain Tour I

One of the members of my garden club offered to put together a tour of several gardens near her vacation home.  In respect for their owners' privacy, I'm not mentioning the location, other than to say that they are in a beautiful, upscale mountain area.

This was the first view we had of this charming old log home.  It was built in the '20s out of telephone poles.  I'll show you some shots of the inside, as our garden tour turned into a garden/house tour.  We were a bunch of happy women!!!!

Just take a look at this incredible living area.  The stairway alone was worth the trip!  This beautiful stone fireplace is the perfect focal point for this cozy room.  Wouldn't you love to spend a long, lazy afternoon here?

Even the loo has oodles of charm.

This is the first bedroom upstairs.  There is a bedroom on the first floor, too, but my photo of it didn't turn out too well.  Note how they built the shelves into the wall for spacesaving.

Look at the wonderful handles and trimmings on these built-in storage areas.  They are all made of rustic sticks of some kind.  The wood itself has a beautiful patina, too.

Wouldn't we all love to spend a night in this bed?  And don't you love that hooked rug over it?

Or would you rather curl up with this fuzzy buffalo in this room?

Check out this inventive way to store books.  In a room where space is very limited, this takes the place of an end table.

This is a true sleeping porch.  It has nothing but screens at the windows.  You have the ability to pull up canvas to protect yourself from rain, but it is open to the elements for the most part.

Back downstairs, this area in the living room gives you a peek into the kitchen, too.  Every accessory adds so much charm, but nothing screams "cheesy mountain"

stuff.  What a perfect vignette!

This photo is a little dark, but it shows the bank of windows that have the most fabulous view of the mountains.

And here it is!!  Isn't it breathtaking?

I just had to take a picture of this precious wall pocket.  I would love to own this. It would make me smile every time I saw it.  I hope the owner gets that much pleasure from it. 

Here's a photo of the front door.  Look at the hardware straps.  Just fabulous!

Isn't this porch railing amazing?  This green vine (none of the gardeners knew exactly what it was) actually grows inside.  There is screen on the outside.

Here's the view from the side.  More wonderful railing and a lovely sitting area.

This is that sitting area viewed from the porch.  See the fireplace for those nippy evenings?  Imagine sitting here with a glass of wine and good friends in this unbelievable beauty.

I'm going to post more on this trip all this week.  Log on to see more very special places.