Sweet Savannah (House Tour)

Georgia weather has been in a crazy up-and-down pattern as of late, and as I sit here cozied up in a blanket, I can’t help but remember that less than two weeks ago, the weather was far more perfect, and I was in a much more relaxed atmosphere…

The story started out a little complicated at first. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine told me she was accepting a new job and moving from Athens, GA (where I attended college, and only an hour from where I live) down to Florida… seven-plus hours away. I knew I’d miss her terribly, but we made plans for me to come see her the following weekend before she left town, and I was excited for our mini reunion. And since I was already making the drive, I invited this cute guy to join me as well (he’d never been to my alma mater before, so who better to show him around?). But, as we all made some last minute-changes to our work schedules, my friend ran into an issue and needed to postpone the visit for one more week. With a nearly three-day weekend without plans and a forecast of gorgeous weather to boot, we got to thinking… what else is within a few hours’ driving distance from Atlanta that could be fun to visit?

I’d never tried Airbnb before, but after making a few suggestions, Savannah seemed like the perfect location to play tour guide for a weekend. For those of you who aren’t yet familiar, Airbnb is an app that allows local hosts to book their offerings (homeowners with extra rooms, entire houses, or unique accommodations like igloos and yurts). And the fares are usually pretty great on the wallet, too. For surprisingly little, we found ourselves less than a week later at HOLY CRAP THIS PLACE IS AMAZING.

As with most changes of scenery, there were tons of little features in this house that were very different from home, so I thought I’d give you guys a little house tour for some inspiration and ideas. We also took an afternoon walk down River Street, so if you’ve never been to Savannah before, a fair warning: this place has a LOT of candy.

Most of these pictures you’ll see below were taken the next morning after our arrival on Friday, and I got a chance to finally look around (we did do the ghost tour thing after we got into town, though!). Off of the upstairs room where we stayed (this was a shared house with other guests), there was an upper porch area, complete with a plush daybed and comfy pillows. The blue window trim and planked ceiling are now filed away in my brain under “things to do to that beach house I’ll buy someday”.

Even the cat knew that relaxation was the theme of this house.

When you come in from the front porch, you are immediately greeted by a formal living room. Love the mixed metals, the light blue color blocking under the crown, and the mix-match vibe of the furniture to keep things feeling less stuffy.

The kitchen was probably my favorite spot of this house. Fresh coffee, old-school stove, breakfast fixin’s, fresh flowers, and a suuuuuper casual spot to make yourself at home.

I love the utilization of extra storage space above the glass cabinet doors (older homes seem to have this a lot, where the cabinets go up to the ceiling… great use of space!). And my favorite little detail…

There was an inlaid glass tile stripe along the floor that matched the island countertop and a few other spots in the house (there were similar glass tiles used in one of the bathrooms as well). I haven’t actually seen this done before, but the color screams coastal to me.

Off of the kitchen was a laundry room (split by a glass-paneled door) and a small bath with gorgeous shower tile (the inlaid pattern used a mix of mirrored and glass tiles).

Off in the dining room, bright white walls bounced around light like crazy and featured a map with pushpins from traveling guests who had previously stayed at the house. Cute idea!

Atlanta was clearly already covered, so we didn’t get to participate in the ceremony of marking where we came from, but I really enjoyed checking out some of the distant cities where fellow travelers originated.

Quick: picture a swing hanging from a tree in your head. Did it wind up looking like this? Yeah, mine too.

Saturday was mostly a self-guided walking tour around River Street and through the historic area. Since there are no open container laws like there are in Atlanta, we could grab a to-go beer from one of the pubs along our cobblestone route and meander between stores (those that allow drinks inside, that is). Of course, a visit to River Street Sweets was a must!

I should probably also add here that I gave up sugar for Lent. So, I didn’t really get to do anything except smell the amazingness that I was missing (caramel apples… ugh). Still, I grabbed a few pralines for Dad and some salt water taffy for Mom (to thank them for watching Charlie while I was gone).

Yeah… temptation everywhere. I thought giving up alcohol last year was hard, but this? It’s shocking the amount of things that you don’t realize have sugar in them (no ketchup on my burger! no salad dressing!). I’ve been constantly looking at packages and realizing that even my peanut butter is off-limits. I’m trying to stay away from artificial sweetener as a normal part of my diet to begin with, so even the sugar-free candies were out for me. And I also learned that withdrawal headaches are a real thing. Ick.

Technically, I suppose I could have gorged myself on the natural honey offered at Savannah Bee Company, but I was too busy looking over all of their products. Cute shop if you ever want to just discover how many things you really can make from something that comes out of a bee’s “special stomachs” (Kit, I know you’d probably correct me if I said it was “bee vomit”… and no, I did not try the mead.).

The next morning, we enjoyed an indulgent brunch before heading out of town (a Bloody Mary was something I couldn’t partake in because most mixes contain sugar, but I was definitely impressed by the presentation!).

It was a short weekend, but the weather was absolutely perfect, and I can’t wait to go back. What was your favorite part of the house? Thanks, Savannah!

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