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| Guest room sitting area |
My husband and I were in Serenbe on the 22nd, and I just had to go on the Green Home tour once more, since June 24th is the last day of the tour and this was my last chance. Luckily they were accepting walk-ins for the 3:30 PM time slot, so my trusty camera and I made the rounds for some pretty room images this time. There were a lot more people compared to the tour we did last month. So far over 7,000 people have visited this house -- a HGTV Green Home record! The front entry foyer was pretty full, but we all managed to fit in and get our booties on before the guide gave the introductory welcome speech. One new tidbit of information was shared. Remember the nailhead studs on the walls of this foyer? Well, as soon as the tours end the whole house will be thoroughly cleaned and repainted for the Green Home winner. To repaint the foyer walls, all of those nailheads must be removed, and then replaced when the paint dries! There must be thousands of those things, in two different sizes and arranged in a very precise pattern -- I can't even imagine how much work this will be! At least it's good to know that HGTV takes care of all the details for the lucky winner of this home.
We all then headed upstairs to the kitchen and got a little more information from another guide before roaming through the house on our own. I learned another new fact -- the Green Home has six solar panels, which provide one-third of the energy needed for the home, but there is room to install another 12 panels if the future homeowner would like to have a net zero energy use home. I also found out that the outside Trex decking will require no maintenance, ever, except for an occasional power washing to keep it clean. For someone who has had to deal with wood deck maintenance on just about every home we have ever owned, this sounds particularly sweet!
My first photo destination, since I forgot last time, was the infamous powder room:
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| Sorry this is so dark -- the lighting was not great. |
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| I'm not sure what all of those switches are for! |
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| The small bar on the side of the sink vanity is for hanging toilet paper. |
I did not see a towel bar or hook. The only other place it might be hiding is on the back of the door, which is the only area I did not check!
Here are more photos of the retreat room, which is my second favorite space:
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| I love everything in this photo -- the wall color, the sofa, the pillows -- I even like the coffee table! |
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| Love the big horse photo art! |
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| There are so many little sitting areas in this house -- you could sit and read in just about every room. |
To me, the retreat room is just so warm and inviting -- I could live in this space!
The day was very hot (temperatures in the mid-90s with no breeze and some humidity). Although all of the doors were open in the Georgia room (this space is not temperature-controlled), midday in the summer is not the time to spend here. Even so, it still looked cozy and inviting, and would be a great space early in the morning or at night any time of the year:
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| Furniture was pushed close together so lots of people could walk through the room, but there is plenty of space to spread it all out. |
My favorite room in the house is the kitchen. Here is a picture of the open lower half of the pantry that I forgot to take last time:
Look at all of the stuff in there (that's a lot of canned beans!), and there is still room for a lot more. Those black and white mugs on the top shelf are from West Elm. They have an image of a cow and calf on them and were sold as charity mugs benefitting Heifer International:
Unfortunately, they are no longer available -- too bad, as I would have happily added a couple to our collection, especially since they supported a worthy cause.
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| The reclaimed wood dining room table and benches |
Cozy living room images:
This is the hall table in the back entry mud room:
Here is a photo of the master bedroom (still don't know what paint was used on that pretty side table):
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| Photographs from Newington Gallery in Serenbe (see Green Home 2012 fact sheet for details) |
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| Four paintings by Jeff Surace |
I think Linda Woodrum did a great job making the small guest room live large:
She even managed to fit two sitting areas into the space!
Some shots of the upstairs bathroom, laundry room, and craft area:
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| Sorry again for the not-so-great image -- there was too much sunlight on this side! |
And finally, the children's bedroom:
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| The children's room beds (and notice the "Balcony Is Closed" sign!) |
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| View of the "forbidden balcony", AKA the loft! |
After my tour ended, I took a few shots of the Grange neighborhood around the Green Home. There was a lot of activity when we were there, with building progressing in the retail area. Here are some photos of the newly opened Fern's Market, just a couple of minutes' walk up the road from the Green Home:
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| The storefront |
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| A nice little seating area to the side of the store, with espaliered apple trees along the fence and regular apple trees planted in the garden area. |
We were impressed with the selection of items offered. You really would not need to shop elsewhere, although of course it would cost more than shopping at a supermarket. From basic staples like eggs and milk to convenience items like pre-made refrigerated pestos and Mediterranean specialities like falafel and baba ganoush, the variety in this store was amazing. Serenbe Farms produce as well as Serenbe jams and honey are available, of course. There are even sections featuring lotions and soaps, children's toys, and pet foods! The owners are making every effort to stock locally made and organic products whenever possible. Coffee and tea by the cup are available, and there is seating both inside and out if you want to have a light snack or meal on the premises.
More framing is up in the retail area, possibly for the future restaurant and health and fitness center, although I thought those spaces were going to be behind Fern's Market. We had heard that one of the other sponsors for the Bosch Home was interested in retail space as well:
I saw a notice posted for yoga classes in a building behind the Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop, but eventually a gym and yoga studio will be sharing space with the new Grange restaurant -- and the Green Home winner is just a short walk away from this area! The type of restaurant that will be in this space is still a secret, but we do know that a well-known Atlanta chef will be in charge (no names yet, unfortunately!).
Here is a better shot of the Grange post office than I managed to take last time:
No one actually works here -- it is just a small building full of post office boxes. It is across the street and up a slight hill from Fern's Market -- the perfect excuse to take a short walk from the Green Home, pick up your mail, and stop by the market for necessary items before heading back. The Serenbe Stables is right behind the post office, on the other side of the fenced pastures in the picture. Right now there are no horses in the barn because the pastures are being rested. A Stables Market that was being held in the barn stalls on Saturdays in conjunction with the Green Home tours will end this weekend.
If the day is really nice, you can relax for a while in the gazebo down the hill from the post office:
Development continues at a steady pace on both sides of the Grange lake, and this area is really turning into a wonderful little neighborhood. There were a lot of events going on at Serenbe this week, which is probably another reason why there were so many more people this time. The Bosch Net Zero House, just up the road from the Green Home, is now open for tours. The Serenbe Playhouse was doing a matinee performance of "Alice in Wonderland", and apparently hosting a tea party for attendees as well. And the Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop was featured on an episode of Food Network's "Cupcake Wars" last weekend. The theme was the LA Marathon, and they won the challenge! This week only, the bakery was offering a four-pack of their winning cupcakes, which were selling like hot (cup)cakes! We tried them, of course -- my favorite was the Orange and Apricot flavor.
In nearby Senoia, Georgia, the Southern Living Idea House is now open for tours until the end of December. Also, this town is the site of a lot of location filming for the AMC television series "The Walking Dead", and filming is currently going on in the area. They were even set to film in the town of Newnan, which is about 15 minutes from Serenbe. Who knows, zombies may be invading Serenbe next! (Just kidding -- I hope!) We did get to meet a lovely couple at Serenbe, one of whom is associated with the show, and we met a lot of other wonderful people as well, both Serenbe residents and visitors. I really encourage anyone who has the opportunity to visit this unique development, as it truly is a marvelous experience!
I have a busy week coming up, but I hope to finish one more post about the Bosch Net Zero House, since I toured it as well and have a lot of photos. Look for Part Two tomorrow!
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| A small fig tree near the Grange post office -- fig season is practically here! |
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