A handcrafted cottage on a small, historic artist's farm, built of salvaged materials and sustainably forested Virginia timber — featured in design blogs, stocked with genuine care, and unlike anything else you'll find on here. Cedar hot tub. Record player. Fresh eggs. Homemade granola. Beautiful gardens, hammocks, and a 200-year-old White Oak. Minutes to Devils Backbone, Bold Rock, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the Appalachian Trail. High-speed fiber. Library. Hens. Miniature Goats. EV Charger.
The space
Writer and painter couple moved back to the land with design, style, and a deep respect for the history of this farm and neighborhood. The cottage is built of locally salvaged materials and sustainably forested Virginia timber, hosts a rotating selection of original art, and has been featured on various design blogs — though it's very low-key and chill. Beautiful but not fussy. Private, stylish, and comfortable. A total getaway.
(Do you remember when Airbnb was new and cool, and you could find amazing spots unlike anything else? This is that house.)
THE SPACE
An airy, vaulted great room with a Jotul woodstove, a supremely comfortable feather-filled sofa, and a lovely kitchen stocked with quality basics and cocktail necessities — including ice bucket and crusher. The 1950s stove is a workhorse and a genuine pleasure to cook on. Fresh eggs from our hens, homemade granola (back by popular demand), yogurt, and locally roasted coffee will be waiting for you.
The primary bedroom has an organic latex queen bed. The bathroom is a destination in itself: a generous antique claw-foot tub with handheld shower, surrounded by two antique stained-glass windows. A sleeping loft above the living room has a double bed of bamboo-based memory foam. The sofa works beautifully as a third bed — we include spare sheets. (The loft opens to the living room, which makes this ideal for a family or two couples who like each other very much.)
OUTSIDE
The vaulted covered porch has a dining table and a Komodo-style grill/smoker. Off the porch: a hand-built cedar hot tub. The large deck opens to views of the mountains and a majestic 200-year-old White Oak. There's a small vegetable and herb garden just for guests — help yourself to tomatoes and herbs in season — and beyond that, one of our rose gardens and a memorable hen house with an assortment of beautiful chickens.
THE DETAILS
Record player and LPs. Board games, puzzles, and books — including an extensive collection of nature guides. OEKO-tex certified European linen and organic cotton sheets. Homemade soaps. Sustainable bath and cleaning products. Pure, delicious well water — leave the bottled water at home. Fast fiber internet for the work-from-farm dream. Roku TV. A small laundry room off the bathroom.
A curated micro-store carries farm products, art, pottery, and textiles. Lots of guests buy Elise's paintings right off the walls — she's happy to give you a tour of her studio next door.
THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Devils Backbone is 2 minutes away. Blue Toad Cidery is 3. The Blue Ridge Parkway is 8 minutes. Shenandoah National Park is 25. Our Saturday farmer's market is wonderful. The local wine shop will build you a gourmet meal around exactly the right bottle — pick it up on your way home to the porch. Full distance list below, but the short version is: you are extremely well placed.
Before you arrive, we'll send our locally curated guide to All The Best Things — little-known hikes, nearly-unknown treasures, honest neighborhood recommendations.
A guest recently told me it was the best Google Doc she'd ever read. 😌
BY CAR:
Devils Backbone Brewery: 2 min
Blue Toad Cidery: 3 min
Bold Rock Cidery: 4 min
Caihailian Vineyard: 5 min
Three-Notch'd Brewery & Distillery: 6 min
Nellysford (grocery, restaurants): 7 min
Blue Ridge Parkway & Appalachian Trail: 9 min
Hilltop Berry Winery: 10 min
Wintergreen Resort: 10 min
Silverback Distillery: 13 min
Blue Mountain Brewery: 15 min
Wild Man Dan Microbrewery: 15 min
Veritas Vineyard: 20 min
Afton Mountain Vineyard: 22 min
Hazy Mountain Vineyard: 22 min
Flying Fox Winery: 23 min
Skyline Drive / Shenandoah National Park: 30 min
Guest access
The cottage is on a 19th C. organically farmed homestead, about 900 feet above the valley. Watch wild turkeys, red foxes, and songbirds off the porch in the early morning. You’ll enjoy easy access to our hens (no roosters-- we like sleeping in too!). We're always happy to let children help feed the hens. We also have plenty of space to store your gear--skis, snowboards, canoes, backpacks, kayaks, hang-gliders, etc.
There is also a NEMA 14-50 plug and a J1772 EV charger available for guest use. (Please give us a heads up if you’ll need it so we can time our own charging!)
You'll enjoy your own private, hand-built cedar hot-tub. We keep it running year-round, because it's usually cool enough in the evenings, even in the summer, to take a dip.
You are also welcome to walk up the hill to see our gardens. In addition to mature perennial gardens, we grow a variety of antique heirloom & English roses, hundreds of dahlias, fruit, and too many tomatoes. There are also a few short trails to walk through our woods, though the best walking trails are accessible by foot, down the hill.
The hen-house is right behind the cottage for easy peeking, and our 2 goats live in paddocks near the cottage (but not too close!)
Elise's art studio is adjacent to the cottage, and includes a small store with her current ceramics and paintings, open by request.
Other things to note
The cottage is air-conditioned by a small unit in the master bedroom, but generally it doesn't need it-- it stays very cool due to its position by a hill and its state-of-the-art insulated roof panels. Big windows, ceiling fans, and area fans mean you can let the fresh air in. The loft bedroom will get warmer than the rest of the house on very hot summer days.
We cannot promise that your cell carrier will cover you here. Most do, though. Please be aware of your plan’s coverage. The cottage does have VERY high speed fiber internet.
The bathroom has a generous antique claw foot tub with a handheld shower attachment-- not a stand-up shower.
This property is not appropriate for ATVs, and their use in our neighborhood trails is not allowed.
Devil’s Backbone Brewery, which is an easy half-mile walk away, occasionally hosts live music events. Weekend guests may hear live music from the brewery while in our property (often from well known bands). Most guests love this, but if you want silence, you might check their event schedule online.
If you're booking last minute, know that we do keep the calendar up-to-date, so you can trust the availability you see here.
We regret we can only host one pet at a time. We want to make the listing available to all sorts of families, so please brush your pet thoroughly before staying and please be considerate of the furniture, which is intended for humans. Dogs must be leashed outside and crated if left alone in the cottage.
Our most satisfied guests seem to be couples or families with small children-- please be aware the cottage is just that-- a cottage. Those seeking suburban accommodations will perhaps be happier at the ski resort. But those seeking stylish simplicity & quiet will be very happy here— this is a reader’s cottage. It's truly a uniquely lovely space on a beloved piece of property.
We have elected not to use carcinogenic chemicals for insect mitigation because we care deeply about our water quality and your health and safety— these mean so much more to us than the inconvenience of some ladybugs in the windows. We live in the mountains, and humans are the minority species here! Urban dwellers may be surprised to see some insects inside, depending on the season. We vacuum these bugs away, and a lightweight vacuum is provided for guests to do the same. We do set traps and use targeted sprays, but at certain times, especially in the spring and fall, lady bugs and stink bugs are impossible to fully eliminate, despite our best efforts.
Keeping outdoor lights off at night and when you leave the house will help with insect incursion.
We also use only organic farming practices outside. Because of this, the property should be comfortable for people with chemical sensitivities. We use eco-friendly soap for laundry, and we make or buy bulk natural soaps and cleaning products.
We follow CDC cleaning recommendations. (Our family is fully vaccinated, and we clean the property ourselves.)
We provide some firewood when the nights get below freezing, but if you want more wood, it is readily available at the small grocery in town.
