Welcome to The Woodhouse Lodge. It’s hard to describe exactly how this all came about, in some ways, this was decades in the making in others ways it happened very quickly. So lets back up to the end of March when we made an appointment with a real estate broker to very casually start looking at property in Upstate NY. Our realtor also happens to own a vintage store in Coxsackie NY that we have been coming to for years. I only mention it to underscore that we were super low key about the whole thing and completely not expecting to find anything so quickly but as luck would have it, we did.

As a lover of old houses, I had my sights set on a Victorian gem.  After looking at a few beautiful old homes, one thing was crystal clear. The houses in our price range were WAY too small to run as a profitable BnB business. So at that point, our realtor said, “I know this is not what you are looking for but I’m gonna show you this cool old hotel. I’m not even sure it’s still for sale.” As soon as we pulled up in the driveway, J. and I were sure that this was the place. Our realtor was shocked because this 1962 lodge was a far cry from a grand old Victorian. As any vintage hunter will tell you, you have to buy it when you see it because the true gems don’t last forever. And that’s how we ended up buying Birmann’s Rainbow Lodge AKA The Woodhouse Lodge.

The lodge sits on a 3.5 acres lawn dotted with old pine and hemlock trees. The property is surrounded by 95 acres of forest on three sides and located in the lovely town of Greenville NY. We are in love with the building and the location. Here are a few more images of the exterior of the property. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but after two weeks of work, we are making progress.

Obviously, landscaping and painting the exterior are on the top of our list. Above is a view of the north wing. We have five rooms on one side and five rooms on the south wing.

The porch of the north side is also the entrance to the first floor of the lodge. On the right-hand side, you can see the front door that leads to the inside of the lodge. The first floor of the central A-frame will be open to our guests. It has some major charm including an oversized fireplace and a kitchen with a lot of potential. The first floor of the lodge needs a little updating, but we have already started, and of course, I have a few ideas (more about that later.)

Landscaping Ideas // The Woodhouse Lodge

In front of the wings, we need to do so planting, but I’m not exactly sure what. If any of you have experience with deer resistant gardening, I’m all ears. I’m thinking of using a lot of evergreens and probably rosemary because of it’s bug repellent qualities, but please fill me in! The biggest animal I’ve ever had to contend with in or Brooklyn garden is a squirrel.

Here’s a look at the south wing, we already started stacking stone under the deck to tidy up the edge of the porch. Eventually, the front of the porch will be covered by landscaping.

These are a few images that are inspiring me right now.  I’m not exactly sure how or if they will end up being useful. In the image above, I love the way the posts and grasses create a modern looking but natural screen. I think this could be useful someplace on the property.

In front of the A-frame, I want to create a patio area using raised planters to define the space. If you follow me (@mepflug) or The Woodhouse Lodge(@thewoodhouselodge) on Instagram you probably saw the beginning of that project last weekend. I love the idea of creating a tailored looking kitchen herb garden in the planters. The mix of plants in this image looks natural but not overgrown. Because the plantings will be right in front of the lodge, it’s important that they feel considered.

So, here is my next question. I’m 90% sure we will paint the exterior of the lodge a dark color, but I’m having trouble picking the colors.

Here are a few colorways that I’m considering. Let me know what you think!

Paint Ideas // The Woodhouse Lodge

We will be using a solid stain to “paint” the exterior of the lodge but color wise. I’m torn between these three (very similar) options. I think I am leaning towards an off black -charcoal gray color similar to the blue-black option with black trim around the windows and possibly also the doors. I’m looking at a few Farrow and Ball colors, but I need suggestions. What color do you think the lodge wants to be? It is such a big decision I’d love to hear from you!