I have long admired the chic and whimsical style of Bailey McCarthy, founder of the bedding and lifestyle company Biscuit Home and former interior designer. You may recall her fabulous Houston home which was featured by House Beautiful in 2017. When Bailey and her husband Pete decided to develop an 80-acre getaway in Bellville, Texas about an hour northwest of Houston, Bailey asked designer Miles Redd to work his magic with the design. “It ended up just the way she wanted it,” Redd told Architectural Digest. “A little bit [Wes] Anderson, with nods to Texas and a smattering of old lady, and everybody knows I love chic-old-lady style. Basically, it’s a big, happy, fresh, light family house.”
The architect William Curtis of Curtis & Windham Architects, a personal friend and professional collaborator of Redd’s, conceived a simple center-hall Greek Revival farmhouse sheathed in white clapboard with five bedrooms and a spacious porch. It is joined by a couple of barns and the property’s original Victorian residence, decorated by Bailey, which now serves as guest quarters. Extra visitors take over a retro chic Spartan trailer and sometimes a few rented RVs… This is a glamorous compound designed for entertaining! Last Labor Day, 23 children under the age of seven and 22 adults gathered for a weekend getaway celebration. “The house survived the weekend beautifully,” Bailey told Architectural Digest. As for the bubbly decor, “just because we’re in the country doesn’t mean the rooms have to look country,” she said. “The house doesn’t have to prove itself.”
An expansive veranda welcomes guests to the McCarthy family’s Curtis & Windham architects–designed home in Bellville, Texas.
A de Gournay floral festoons the walls of the dining room. Slipper chairs wear a Jasper print.
Miles Redd for Ballard Designs chairs surround a table by Larrea Studio.
Grace, Harry, and Pete in the kitchen. The hand-painted floor is by Chris Pearson. Children’s pajamas from Biscuit Home.
Bailey in the butler’s pantry. Hicks Large Pendant by Thomas O’Brien for Visual Comfort available through Circa Lighting.
Neoclassical chairs with hand-painted details by Agustin Hurtado surround the breakfast room table.
A wood stag trophy watches over the living room. Sofa by Fine Arts Furniture.
BK Wall covering sheathed the powder room walls with images from vintage western magazines and books.
Canopies of a Brunschwig & Fils linen print and Old World Weavers silk shelter the beds in a guest bedroom lined with framed arrowheads. Biscuit Home bedding.
The mater bath features a cast-iron tub by Waterworks. The chair was purchased at auction.
The batik bedroom is covered in a weave by Piece & Co. Custom bed by Morgik Metal; Biscuit Home bedding.
Curtis & Windham Architects designed the beds in the bunk room. Pelham Moon Light by Thomas O’Brien for Visual Comfort and Sophia Small Flush Mount by Alexa Hampton for Visual Comfort. Both available from Circa Lighting.
Grace in the breakfast room. Miles Redd for Ballard Designs table.
The living room features a bar tented with a Brunschwig & Fils stripe. Custom painted lanterns from John Rosselli Antiques.
Biscuit Home bedding pops against a Miles Redd for Ballard Designs headboard covered in a Lee Jofa linen.
Toy poodle Minnie sits on a custom sofa by Jaydan Interiors in the master bedroom.
Cattle graze on the home’s 80-acre grounds.
Wouldn’t you love to be a weekend guest at this chic farmhouse getaway? This article originally ran in the January 2019 issue of Architectural Digest written by Mitchell Owens, photographed by Trevor Tondro, and styled by Howard Christian. Miles Redd worked with business partner David Kaihoi on the project. For additional inspiration, I recommend The Big Book of Chic by Miles Redd.
An Enchanted 1920s Home by Miles Redd
Miles Redd and David Kaihoi Create an Attic Oasis
A Super Chic Retirement Home by Miles Redd
Timelessly Traditional by Miles Redd and Gil Schafer
It’s clear that Minnie rules the house!