We Can Dream: Tennessee Barn House Built for Weekend Fun
This country getaway on a wooded property outside Nashville has room for big parties, four-wheelers and bunking up
Scope of work. When interior designer Sarah Catherine Moore signed on to the project, the barn was an empty shell with a concrete floor. The homeowners hired Moore to give them a comfortable living space. One half of the barn, a large space open to the roof, was to be a storage and event area; the other was designated for living space. The homeowners gave Moore free rein with materials, finishes and furnishings.
For the two-story residential half of the barn, she designed the layout, the kitchen and living area, the bathrooms, a bedroom and a bunk room. She chose flooring, installed shiplap on walls and columns throughout and the vaulted ceiling upstairs, and put in reclaimed wood on the ceilings downstairs.
On the storage side, which also serves as a party space for big gatherings with family and friends, Moore created a large bar. The homeowners clear out the recreational equipment and bring in bartenders and a band for events.
For the two-story residential half of the barn, she designed the layout, the kitchen and living area, the bathrooms, a bedroom and a bunk room. She chose flooring, installed shiplap on walls and columns throughout and the vaulted ceiling upstairs, and put in reclaimed wood on the ceilings downstairs.
On the storage side, which also serves as a party space for big gatherings with family and friends, Moore created a large bar. The homeowners clear out the recreational equipment and bring in bartenders and a band for events.
Exterior. Don’t let the garage doors fool you — the front half of the barn is the living quarters, and the back half is the storage and event space. The doors open wide so people visiting the property on the weekend can catch part of a televised football game indoors and then easily head back outside.
Upstairs
While downstairs is all about entertaining big groups, the upstairs area contains the family’s private quarters. Just out of frame on the left is a large picture window that looks out to the utilitarian half of the barn. “My clients wanted to keep the feeling of a true barn with stables below and a loft over it,” Moore says. “They wanted to keep everything wide open, casual and laid-back in the living quarters.”
Style. “Because it’s out in the country, we didn’t want anything to feel too formal,” Moore says. As mentioned, she had free rein in choosing the style. “I went for farmhouse modern and neutral colors, because the color comes from the views,” she says.
Shiplap on the walls and ceilings provides some depth, and she used different woods and other organic materials to layer in texture. She incorporated a few playful pops of color and patterns, such as buffalo check in the bedroom, snake-print pillows in the bunkroom and mint green on the vintage-style refrigerator and dishwasher.
Refrigerator and dishwasher: Big Chill
While downstairs is all about entertaining big groups, the upstairs area contains the family’s private quarters. Just out of frame on the left is a large picture window that looks out to the utilitarian half of the barn. “My clients wanted to keep the feeling of a true barn with stables below and a loft over it,” Moore says. “They wanted to keep everything wide open, casual and laid-back in the living quarters.”
Style. “Because it’s out in the country, we didn’t want anything to feel too formal,” Moore says. As mentioned, she had free rein in choosing the style. “I went for farmhouse modern and neutral colors, because the color comes from the views,” she says.
Shiplap on the walls and ceilings provides some depth, and she used different woods and other organic materials to layer in texture. She incorporated a few playful pops of color and patterns, such as buffalo check in the bedroom, snake-print pillows in the bunkroom and mint green on the vintage-style refrigerator and dishwasher.
Refrigerator and dishwasher: Big Chill
Layout. The large garage door upstairs opens to a balcony, and picture windows offer views throughout. “At first my clients wanted everything wide open, with a bed tucked in the corner and bunks along the sides,” Moore says. But she was able to persuade them that some privacy options for changing clothes or going to bed early were a good idea.
She created a nook for the bedroom and bunkroom framed with reclaimed railroad beams, and talked the homeowners into letting her install heavy curtains with blackout liners. While the addition “won’t soundproof the rooms, it provides some separation while keeping the open feeling,” she says. A bathroom with a shower is along the same wall as the bedrooms.
Flooring. Throughout the living spaces upstairs and downstairs, Moore used a luxury vinyl floor tile that comes in planks but is low-maintenance and easy to clean.
Oven: Big Chill
She created a nook for the bedroom and bunkroom framed with reclaimed railroad beams, and talked the homeowners into letting her install heavy curtains with blackout liners. While the addition “won’t soundproof the rooms, it provides some separation while keeping the open feeling,” she says. A bathroom with a shower is along the same wall as the bedrooms.
Flooring. Throughout the living spaces upstairs and downstairs, Moore used a luxury vinyl floor tile that comes in planks but is low-maintenance and easy to clean.
Oven: Big Chill
Kitchen. To create a modern farmhouse look in the kitchen, she used Shaker cabinets, walnut butcher block countertops, a bridge faucet, oversize caged barn lights and vintage-style appliances. Because of the vaulted ceilings, she couldn’t fit in upper cabinets, so she opted for open wood shelves painted to match the walls and hunted around flea markets until she scored some antique iron brackets to support them.
Because the oven needed to go in the island to make the layout work, she used a wall-mounted one and paired it with a cooktop. It’s antique white so as not to overdo the mint green, but she used mint green knobs to pick up on the dishwasher and refrigerator.
Just past the island is an eat-in area. It enjoys a big view out the picture window. The window treatments are grass shades, to play off the fields outside.
Counter stools: Serena & Lily; pendant lights: Visual Comfort; check out more caged pendant lights
Because the oven needed to go in the island to make the layout work, she used a wall-mounted one and paired it with a cooktop. It’s antique white so as not to overdo the mint green, but she used mint green knobs to pick up on the dishwasher and refrigerator.
Just past the island is an eat-in area. It enjoys a big view out the picture window. The window treatments are grass shades, to play off the fields outside.
Counter stools: Serena & Lily; pendant lights: Visual Comfort; check out more caged pendant lights
Living room. Moore delineated a cozy seating area with a flat-woven rug. The sofa fabric is linen, and the chair material is rattan. Throw pillows add some patterns to the mix.
Chair: Palecek; sofa: Lee Industries
Chair: Palecek; sofa: Lee Industries
Moore sits in one of the comfy armchairs to take in the views out the garage door across the field to the woods next to the river. It’s a splendid spot for having morning tea and coffee.
Chair fabric: Peter Dunham
Chair fabric: Peter Dunham
Bedroom. An iron bed, an antique trunk, modern brass pendant lights, reclaimed-wood nightstands and bold buffalo checks give the bedroom modern farmhouse style. A vintage kilim pillow brings in more color and pattern.
Bed: Restoration Hardware; nightstands: West Elm
Bed: Restoration Hardware; nightstands: West Elm
Here’s a closer look at that wonderful old trunk, which Moore found on Etsy. This is a good place for storing extra linens and blankets.
Bathroom. A cast iron utility sink and caged barn sconces lend a stylish utilitarian vibe to the bathroom. An antique ladder serves as the towel rack. To eke out enough room for the bunkroom, this bathroom is tight, and fitting in a larger shower took precedence over having a vanity. So Moore brought in a wall-mounted sink and a basket for towels, and added a vintage stool the homeowners can move around.
“They can put their Dopp kit or whatever else they need at the sink on top of the stool when they need to,” Moore says. She also placed a row of vintage teal lockers in the downstairs half bath for storing extra linens and bathroom cleaning supplies.
Sink (similar): Brockway, Kohler; sconces: Atomic Streamline Ring, Barn Light Electric Co.
“They can put their Dopp kit or whatever else they need at the sink on top of the stool when they need to,” Moore says. She also placed a row of vintage teal lockers in the downstairs half bath for storing extra linens and bathroom cleaning supplies.
Sink (similar): Brockway, Kohler; sconces: Atomic Streamline Ring, Barn Light Electric Co.
Downstairs
The downstairs living space is for watching football games and hanging out. There are large sliding barn doors in between this area and the double-height storage area at the back of the barn that can be opened up to create a big event space. The storage space also has a full pub-style L-shaped bar. “For big parties, they clear out all the gear and use both sides of the barn,” Moore says. “There’s room for bartenders behind the bar and space for a band.”
TV area. With the big garage door open, this space is all about people coming in and relaxing after a day out on the property, and moving from indoors to out. In the fall, football games are usually on the big-screen TV that the sofa faces.
“Everything needed to be durable and comfortable down here,” Moore says. She chose a jute rug, a large sectional sofa and two leather armchairs. For the large coffee table, she turned to the local craftspeople at 1767 Designs, who make custom wood pieces. “I knew we needed something unique here, and I worked with them on the design,” she says.
Sofa and leather chairs: Lee Industries; see more sectional sofas
The downstairs living space is for watching football games and hanging out. There are large sliding barn doors in between this area and the double-height storage area at the back of the barn that can be opened up to create a big event space. The storage space also has a full pub-style L-shaped bar. “For big parties, they clear out all the gear and use both sides of the barn,” Moore says. “There’s room for bartenders behind the bar and space for a band.”
TV area. With the big garage door open, this space is all about people coming in and relaxing after a day out on the property, and moving from indoors to out. In the fall, football games are usually on the big-screen TV that the sofa faces.
“Everything needed to be durable and comfortable down here,” Moore says. She chose a jute rug, a large sectional sofa and two leather armchairs. For the large coffee table, she turned to the local craftspeople at 1767 Designs, who make custom wood pieces. “I knew we needed something unique here, and I worked with them on the design,” she says.
Sofa and leather chairs: Lee Industries; see more sectional sofas
Dining area. A large farm table flanked by chairs with rush seats and backs can seat a big group. The chandelier is one of those lucky finds that just needed to find its place. “The homeowner let me know he had this antique chandelier stored in a shed on the property, and wondered if it worked and if it would work in the barn,” Moore says. “Of course it didn’t work, but it was perfect for this spot.” She had it rewired, and its scale and style are just right for the space.
Dining chairs: Serena & Lily
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Dining chairs: Serena & Lily
More home tours: Apartments | Small Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | All
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: This is the weekend property of a family of six, including two kids in college and two in middle school
Location: Kingston Springs, Tennessee
Size: Two bedrooms, 1½ bathrooms
Designer: Sarah Catherine Design
This family’s beautiful country property is in outdoor heaven. It’s located about 30 minutes from Nashville, Tennessee, next to the Harpeth River, where the family members fish, kayak and swim. The property includes beautiful woods and fields, where they ride dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles.
But the homeowners had nowhere to store their gear, and they were tired of hauling it back and forth from Nashville. So they decided to build a barn to house it all.
Then along the way, they realized they could use the barn not just for storage but also for living quarters. While there was a small two-bedroom cottage already on the property, it felt cramped and closed off from the views of the bucolic surroundings. The barn is located about a hundred yards from the banks of the Harpeth, and once the leaves have fallen it offers a clear view of the river.