Produced by Steed Hale / Written by Jonna Gallo Weppler
Styling by Anna Molvik
Once upon a time in the early 2000s, UNC Chapel Hill students Becca Foy and Scott Lenahan met and fell in love. After graduation they decided to take a little break—only to reunite a few years later in New York City. The rest is history.
Copious windows in this space serve a dual purpose—they flood the room with natural light and help fill and frame all the extra wall space that comes with vaulted ceilings.
Fast forward through 15 years of living in Manhattan apartments, during which the couple welcomed two sons, now 5 and 4. Avowed nature lovers, they were eager to find a weekend place elsewhere. “In all that time, we never lost our love for being outdoors,” says Foy. And that’s where their story takes another delightful turn.
Foy had long enjoyed spending holidays in Woodstock with her favorite cousin and best friend, Deede Dickson, whose partner of 40 years, Wheeler Jackson, owned a century-old family place that overlooked a 2.4-acre field. “When we started seriously considering our options in the area, knowing we wanted to be as close as possible to family, Wheeler made our dream a reality by offering to part with the 2.4-acre plot so we could build something special,” says Foy.
Open shelves provide a great platform for personal touches. Fun fact: these pretty plants are faux.
Once they had land, Millbrook-based architect Jimmy Crisp of Crisp Architects got going on plans. Initially, the process was a bit slow, because the couple was stretched thin navigating work, new babies, and the onset of the pandemic. “When Covid was in full swing, we got our acts together, broke ground in February 2021, and moved in 13 months later,” Foy explains.
Crisp and his team immediately grasped their desired modern farmhouse vibe. “We love black windows and wanted them to be a big focus of the aesthetic,” says Foy. For the main living area, open concept was the goal. People cooking in the kitchen, playing a board game in the breakfast nook, or watching TV on the couch can all carry on a single conversation. The space spills out to the large porch, through two sets of French doors, for the feel of one large expanse. Mid build, Lenahan had the idea to add overhead heaters, in addition to the fans, making the porch a nearly year-round favorite hangout. “I’m pretty sure our boys would sleep on the porch if we’d let them,” says Foy.
In terms of an overall color palette, the gardens that line the front and side of the house set the tone for cool grays, blues, and greens throughout the interior. As for the exterior, multiple cameras were a must. “Not so much for security, but for capturing wildlife,” Foy shares. “And we’ve seen it all. Black bears, foxes, coyotes, turkeys, deer. Sometimes we even get a notification mid-day and open the camera app to see a couple of horses from the farm across the street grazing on the lawn.” And then there was an unexpected Christmas Eve guest—a bird who had made a nest in the wreath on the front door and flew inside. For a family of animal lovers, life couldn’t get any better.
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