Cottages vs Mansions

This week, we are immersing ourselves in 'low country' - the Carolina islands.
Daufuskie, Paris, Port Royal - and also inland, from Savannah to Beaufort.

Here are a few scenes from this morning's ride on a 1920s fishing boat- from the mainland to the island of Daufuskie- an old plantation island in a state of transition. On one had, in a state of intense poverty (the last remaining descendants of the original 'Gulla' African culture, trying to hang onto their ancestor's original island cottages) juxtaposed to the country's wealthiest folks.

In the same few hundred feet you can see the remains of a decaying 150-year old shrimpers cottage (still inhabited) and just next door- the entrance to a golf course boasting marble ballrooms.

We saw multi-million dollar ocean front mansions sharing a property line with abandoned trailers.
Chanel-toting island dwellers sharing a seat alongside the workers who will manicure the landscaping.

The only way to access the island is by ferry or by chartered boat... the developers are quickly taking over. We feel lucky to have had the opportunity to see a few of the last remaining residences of a dying culture.

My iphone shots below don't do it justice- ( I only shot the beautiful decay of the cottage - bazillion dollar golf course resorts are much less interesting)

You have to see this book (shot in the late 70s to early 80's)

CHATAŘSTVÍ / SUMMERHOUSES

I am in love...

With a book.

Sitting here in prague, I discover that I am surrounded by all of these amazing little summer houses, and that the author of the book, Veronika Zapletalova, lives right here.

what it's about:

SUMMERHOUSES - Devoted to original self-build summerhouses, a disappearing Czech phenomenon.  
The Czech "chata" - or "summerhouse" - is a simple, small, out-of-town dwelling, often improvised and self build by it's owner. This project documents summerhouses, that mirror the extraordinary personalities of their builders, in both negative and positive way. These summerhouses dot the Czech landscape in their thousands, yet, very often they are forgotten, unseen and very seldom analyzed.

check it out!

another cabin to save...

our latest project: saving a run down, nearly abandoned little cottage that was once part of a collection of cottages that bordered the shores of lauderdale lakes. 

it was one of many rental cottages that were part of the majestic (now gone) Sterlingworth Inn.

The beauty of this little beauty is that is it... well, little. less than 9x9ft interior space, it was designed for guests to spend their time on the lake, not in the room.

its yet to be determined whether well use it as a play house for charlie or a sport equipment room, but   we saved it for a song and have started our plans to renovated it to its former teensy "glory"

( the perfect perch has been picked, though--- up a hill - tucked into the woods- over looking the grounds. a private little spot shaded by trees.) stay tuned for the before and afters....

the Sterlingworth on Lauderdale Lakes (2 miles from Wandwega) some photos of it in its hayday....

a bit of history on the hotel:

Mr. John E. Wheeler from Chicago bought

the shoreline property and began building

in 1893. The original hotel was four stories.

Later the top floor was removed. At first it

was used only in the summer, there was no

heat in the building. Kerosene lamps and

candles provided light. After the mill was

removed from the area, a hydroelectric

generator provided power until public

electricity came to the area,

Danny Seymour was the last owner of the

Sterlingworth Hotel"

and- some initial plans for the interior (if it becomes a guest room)

INTERIOR:

* black lacquer floor planks.

* vaulted ceiling

* suspended bed from ceiling joists (bed frame of solid black oak timbers)

* antique block and tackle for thick rope suspension

* pendleton navajo wool blanket on single mattress

* antique low trunk storage beneath

* back wall of alternating widths of salvagled clappboard cedar

* convert vintage flashlights into wall sconces

* are rug of hide or natural fiber

EXTERIOR:

* new (vintage) cottage door + screen door

* replace both N & S facing windows with 4-pane vintage

* paint exterior white

* restore original canvas striped window awnings

* new cedar shake roof

* full-cabin width deck off front of cabin

* pair of black adirondack chairs for front deck

TRAVEL & LEISURE: hottest cottages. Wanda!

holy crap.

i guess these getways are insane.

Travel & Leisure just did a round up of their favorite cottages and (i cant figure out how) but we made the list. 

check it out HERE

and the whole intro:

The coolest cottages combine the spirit of summer camp with grown-up style

Remember when summer was endless? It smelled like pine needles and roasting marshmallows and felt like a splash of icy fresh lake water. Well, you can recapture those sensations at new bungalow cottages in Maine—without roughing it and without chintzy florals.

Hidden Pond’s cottages are part of a cool breed that prove an authentic, carefree vacation is still possible and can be even better than you remember, thanks to sophisticated twists. Whether as part of luxury resorts or as independent rentals, these rustic-chic cottages offer classic summertime activities alongside modern comforts and design. You can find them across the U.S. and often at affordable prices, especially when you tally up the included activities.

If you want to swim in the Pacific Ocean and dine on fresh seafood, stay at Nick’s Cove, where the 12 renovated, cheerily painted cottages all come with views of Point Reyes National Seashore, California. Go glamping in a cool A-frame cottage—with 16-foot windows, an oversize soaking tub, and a floating staircase—in the private Far Meadow just outside Yosemite, and hike to your heart’s content. Or hide out in one of the 10 Midcentury Modern cottages at the Colony of Wellfleet, a former artists’ retreat in a Cape Cod fishing village.

These homes away from home pamper guests with simple pleasures and an effortless sense of style and can be tailored to all kinds of getaways. Romantics will fall for The Prairie, a set of six cottages on a Texas homestead with ruffled bedding, chandeliers, flea market finds, and taxidermy. Kids can sleep in a tepee next door to their parents’ cottage at Dunton Hot Springs, CO, or tackle the ropes course and archery at Wandawega, a former camp that opened its cottage doors in 2011, decked out with vintage Pendleton blankets and chandeliers of fallen antlers.

Some of the digs we’ve uncovered have TVs and Wi-Fi; many, like Wandawega, do not. Some have room service and spas—Hidden Pond’s Tree Spa treatment rooms are suspended eight feet above the ground—while others stick to hammocks and screened decks.

One thing’s for sure: these are all true getaways at tasteful retreats where you can slow down, unplug from technology (for a few hours a day, at least), feel the breeze in your hair, and get sand or grass between your toes.

Here’s our roll call of America’s coolest summer cottages.