Anglophilia meets Appalachia at Highlands Mountain House, newly opened lodgings in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. There, in a redone 1885 house (and adjacent bunkhouse), charming wallpapers and textiles from Morris & Co. and House of Hackney mix with works by Cherokee artists and by Josef Albers (who taught at Black Mountain College nearby). Each guest room is a delightful lesson in pattern mixing, with the feel of a whimsical English house in an unlikely spot.
Let’s take a tour:
Photography by Maggie Braucher, courtesy of Highlander Mountain House.
Above: The entry to Highlander Mountain House. The owner, hotelier Jason Reeves, has a background in period restoration and received a master’s in historic preservation from Boston University—perhaps why the 1885 house feels lived-in and authentic, not brand-new. Above: Good old-fashioned keys behind the front desk. Above: One of the communal living areas, with a stone fireplace and easy furnishings. Above: Inside The Ruffed Grouse, the in-house tavern, with sage green shipboard-style cladding. Above: Vintage portraits look like they’ve always been in the house. Above: The 18 guest rooms are all done in delightfully mismatched patterns, with wallpapers and upholstered headboards from the likes of Morris & Co., Pierre Frey, Mulberry Home, Cole & Son, and House of Hackney. Above: A sweet but not too sweet floral guest room. The lighting throughout the hotel is a mix of vintage, Restoration Hardware, and Louis Poulsen. Above: A jaunty wallpapered niche with a mix-and-match headboard. Above: Guest rooms are fitted with Wright mattresses, Marshall speakers, and old-school alarm clocks. Above: A lush blue and green guest bedroom. Above: Accommodations also come equipped with Victrola or Crosley record players. Above: The pea stone courtyard, part English country estate, part mountain lodge.
Have a Question or Comment About This Post?
Join the conversation