The winding approach to Southern Living's 2025 Idea House creates an atmosphere of anticipation as visitors travel through towering pine trees and past babbling springs before arriving at the welcoming two-story home. Situated on five wooded acres along a lake in the Keswick Estate neighborhood near Charlottesville, Virginia, this carefully positioned dwelling represents the collaborative vision of Virginia-based design professionals who prioritized both hospitality and harmony with the natural landscape.
Designer Charlotte Moss of Charlotte Moss, LLC spearheaded the interior design, working alongside architects Julie Kline Dixon and Keith Scott of Rosney Co. Architects, landscape architect Eugene Ryang of Waterstreet Studio, builder Allan Pettit of Alexander Nicholson, and developer Molly Hardie. The team's deliberate approach focused on creating a home that appears to have been part of the landscape for years rather than a new construction.
The architectural design emphasizes a low profile that integrates seamlessly with the surrounding foothills. The team maximized square footage while maintaining minimal visual impact, tucking second-story bedrooms under attic eaves to blend with the landscape. James Hardie clapboard-inspired siding and Marvin bay windows pay homage to local architectural traditions, with the center window height specifically mimicking those at Thomas Jefferson's nearby Monticello.
A deep front porch serves as the home's welcoming gesture, featuring columns scaled to create a distinctly Southern impression. Planters crafted from Appalachian hardwoods by North Carolina artist Raleigh Adams punctuate the entrance, while benches from Richmond-based McKinnon and Harris invite relaxation. Steph Green of Contained Creations framed the front steps with pots of October Magic Ivory camellias from the Southern Living Plant Collection, creating a pleasant first impression that looks toward the planted orchard and pine woodland.
The octagonal foyer exemplifies what Dixon describes as "a very Virginia thing" – providing a clear sightline from the entry hall through to the lake beyond, giving visitors the sense that the home sits lightly on the land. Charlotte Moss emphasized this geometry by covering the walls and ceiling in Thibaut's Norfolk Stripe wallpaper, creating a tent-like environment illuminated by Visual Comfort & Co.'s Carrington Lantern. Antique reclaimed Spanish marble tiles from Versailles Surfaces, LLC form a classic checkerboard pattern underfoot.
The formal dining room, positioned just off the entry, anchors the hospitality-focused floor plan with an oval table and chairs from Williams Sonoma. Moss incorporated a mahogany cabinet from Kenny Ball Antiques alongside a Bunny Williams Home console and Colonial Williamsburg mirror, creating what she describes as a "silver-gold, antique-new, reproduction-modern mix" that celebrates both past and present design elements.
In the living room, a large window brings the landscape directly into the interior space, inspiring Moss to paint the walls in Sherwin-Williams Chartreuse (SW 0073). She tempered this electric shade with Schumacher's Daydream in Citron fabric for draperies and a Fibreworks Zira rug, explaining that the color choices allow "the inside to breathe out and the outside to breathe in." The space functions as what Moss calls "a perching room," offering multiple seating options including a tiger-striped ottoman near the propane-fueled fireplace.
The spacious kitchen balances creamy walls and cabinets with darker wood elements, featuring integrated Monogram Appliances and a butcher-block island top made by Erin and Ben Napier's Scotsman Co. Moss drew color inspiration from cafe curtains, incorporating Pierre Frey's Amalfi Carreaux in Prune fabric on Century Furniture stools to add warmth to the light palette and create a more lived-in feeling.
The library serves as a cozy retreat with floor-to-ceiling cocoa elements, including a Newport Rug in Cobblestone and Westmont window treatments in Brown and Slate, both from Thibaut. A neighboring bar allows guests to serve themselves, while candlestick lamps flank the sofa and a brass-and-iron Ralph Lauren Ancram XL Chandelier by Visual Comfort & Co. provides ambient lighting. Moss emphasizes that the overall design should convey "an aura of invitation" through comfortable furnishings, reading materials, and accessible refreshments.
Practical spaces receive equal attention, with the boot room featuring built-ins coated in Sherwin-Williams Studio Blue Green (SW 0047) and benches wrapped in Lee Jofa's Nevis plaid. The laundry room showcases Thibaut's Ashton tree-print wallcovering with GE Profile's steam washer and dryer in deep green, demonstrating Moss's belief that utilitarian spaces deserve careful consideration since occupants spend considerable time in them.
The primary bedroom functions as a complete retreat, intentionally separated from the home's activity areas. Moss dressed the Reid Classics four-poster bed in Thibaut's Moselle print and covered numerous windows and a Lee Industries chaise in their Garden Club pattern, creating what she describes as a "very light and airy" sanctuary enhanced by an antique secretary desk and warm-wood chests that provide grounding elements.
Children's bedrooms showcase distinct design approaches, with the girl's room featuring layers of Lisa Fine Textiles patterns including Augusta on curtains and chair, plus Calico Floral Stripe on the Reid Classics bed, creating old-soul character enhanced by a colorful pouf ottoman from HomeGoods. The teen boy's bedroom draws inspiration from luxury sports cars, with walls painted in Sherwin-Williams Dovetail (SW 7018) and punctuated by white Williams Sonoma nightstands and quilted bedding from the Southern Living Home Collection Exclusively at Dillards, plus a leather ottoman from Lynchburg's Moore & Giles.
The guest room revives a 1970s decorating technique by upholstering the bed, slip-covering chairs, and framing windows in textiles from Villa D'Ascoli's collection for The Company Store. Moss included a card table with two chairs along one wall, noting that "every guest needs a place to escape to with their laptop, their writing paper, whatever it is."
The screened porch extends the interior design philosophy outdoors, with Moss treating it like any other room that "just happens to have screens and not glass." She created three seating vignettes to accommodate various group sizes, including a dining table, fireside conversation chairs, and loungers for napping, all from Woven. TimberTech English Walnut decking mimics the oak flooring inside while better withstanding outdoor elements.
Landscape architect Eugene Ryang took a patient approach to establishing what he calls "a true homestead," incorporating front yard orchard plantings and a meadow designed to attract birds and pollinators. His philosophy centers on "what it will become" rather than instant gratification, understanding that time is an essential element of meaningful landscape design.
The 2025 Southern Living Idea House opens to the public August 14 through December 21, operating Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. Tickets are available at keswick.com, with a portion of proceeds benefiting three local organizations: Yellow Door Foundation, Hospice of the Piedmont, and Building Goodness Foundation.
