My Houzz: Lush, Wooded Setting for a Live-Work Home
Peaceful streams, rolling green hills and sheltered areas are the stars of this homeowner’s 100-acre New York property
After: Originally, there was only a front porch on the home, and that was falling off. “When I did the living room addition in 1992, I put on a new porch and made it a wraparound,” Hestle says. “My favorite part is sitting in the rocking chair. It sat on my great-grandmother’s front porch, and I even have a picture of it there.”
Browse similar outdoor rocking chairs
Browse similar outdoor rocking chairs
The home has needed a lot of work over the past 40 years, but Hestle quickly saw the potential in the gorgeous surrounding landscape, which made the slow remodeling process worth it. The yard had been completely overgrown for years when she bought the home.
“I was young, ambitious and did it all myself in the beginning,” Hestle says. “A lot of the stonework was done by Adam Wild. He actually started out just doing small jobs; then he progressed to the yard and gardens. He loved it so much, he went to college and started out majoring in landscape design.” Wild is now a professor of plant and animal science.
“I was young, ambitious and did it all myself in the beginning,” Hestle says. “A lot of the stonework was done by Adam Wild. He actually started out just doing small jobs; then he progressed to the yard and gardens. He loved it so much, he went to college and started out majoring in landscape design.” Wild is now a professor of plant and animal science.
A special feature of the yard is this fenced-in garden with raised beds that add a magical feel.
There was no yard at all here, just briars and brush. Hestle first used this particular area as a vegetable garden. “Then, in 1994, I redid it and added the fence and raised beds and made it into a perennial garden,” she says. “It is a wonderful place to sit in the evenings and watch the hummingbirds.”
There was no yard at all here, just briars and brush. Hestle first used this particular area as a vegetable garden. “Then, in 1994, I redid it and added the fence and raised beds and made it into a perennial garden,” she says. “It is a wonderful place to sit in the evenings and watch the hummingbirds.”
Hestle built this barn on her property in 1979. “When I bought the house and property in 1977, I had horses and a cow, so I needed a barn,” she says. “It was built using local labor. I raised my horses here. Even though I no longer have horses, I sure have great memories.”
Behind the fenced-in garden and through some shrubbery is a project that Hestle and Wild worked on together, a serene stone patio designed for sitting and relaxing. “Adam and I did this the summer before he left for college,” she says. “I actually gave him pretty much a free hand in doing it, and I am very proud of his work and artistic skills.”
The perennial garden (shown here and in the previous and next photos) was one of the first that Hestle put in. She started it in the 1980s, and it is still flourishing today.
“My parents came from Tennessee one summer to help me work on this. I can still see my dad moving the rocks,” Hestle says.
The aerial view from the deck above the living room-sunroom provides a great vantage point from which to admire this garden.
The aerial view from the deck above the living room-sunroom provides a great vantage point from which to admire this garden.
The back of the home consists of additions that Hestle had done. The patio and garden beds are easily accessed from the new kitchen back door and the studio.
Hestle added this patio, seen here from the deck above her living room-sunroom, to the back of the home when she added her studio, which opens directly onto it.
After: This garden has morphed throughout the years. “I actually just did the raised beds this year, and I love them,” Hestle says. The stones for the raised beds are from Lowe’s.
Find raised-bed planters
Find raised-bed planters
After: A beautiful inground pool and pool house are in a secluded area that was originally a pasture. “I wanted to put in a pool, but I wanted it to be completely private with a wonderful view,” Hestle says. “This seemed the perfect place to me, as the views of the valley are lovely. The stars at night are beyond amazing, and then, when there is a full moon, it is truly magical.”
The pool was installed by Beauty Pools. “Their craftsmanship is tops as well. It took seven crews to build the pool. Each crew had their own experts as well,” Hestle says. Contractor Joe Crisafulli helped with adding slate along the pool and building the pool house.
The pool was installed by Beauty Pools. “Their craftsmanship is tops as well. It took seven crews to build the pool. Each crew had their own experts as well,” Hestle says. Contractor Joe Crisafulli helped with adding slate along the pool and building the pool house.
The pergola and patio in front of the pool house provide a perfect spot to relax. “I have had some wonderful meals there with friends,” Hestle says. “Good food and drink and lots of deer with their babies in the pasture. Heaven!”
Hestle loves the views of the surrounding landscape and has made her home a getaway destination that she gets to experience every day. She watches the deer, raccoons and occasional bears in the fields where her horses once roamed.
Tucked away in the woods next to a stream on the property is a screened-in wooden structure that Hestle calls The Summer House. She built this in 1996.
“I just had a dream to have a getaway from the world … just quiet and simple. It is used for solitude and occasionally for dinner and an evening with friends,” she says. “It is wonderful to sit and read and relax here. All of the stones on the fireplace came from the streambed. I call this my little gem, and every moment I get to spend here is special!”
“I just had a dream to have a getaway from the world … just quiet and simple. It is used for solitude and occasionally for dinner and an evening with friends,” she says. “It is wonderful to sit and read and relax here. All of the stones on the fireplace came from the streambed. I call this my little gem, and every moment I get to spend here is special!”
Hestle had this staircase built to lead down the hill to the summer house.
Wild also helped Hestle work on these stone stairs on the side of the house. They lead to the patio in the backyard.
“We hauled the stones out of the woods and streams on my property with my golf cart and tractor,” she says.
“We hauled the stones out of the woods and streams on my property with my golf cart and tractor,” she says.
An old shoe planted with succulents adds a touch of whimsy to this area.
On a corner of Hestle’s property is a charming log cabin that she rents out.
In 1980, before the cabin was built, Hestle had the pond dug out.
“In 1982, a neighbor pulled the logs out of my woods with a team of horses,” Hestle says. “Then he took some of the logs to his sawmill and cut it into boards. We stripped the rest of the logs of their bark and notched them and built the cabin. It is a true log cabin and not a prefab!”
The interior of the cabin (shown here and in the next two photos) is very rustic and cozy. It provides the perfect getaway spot, not only in the warmer summer months, but also in the winter, when the area offers skiing and other cold-weather activities.
“It is such a quiet and peaceful part of my world,” Hestle says.
More: My Houzz: An Updated 1850s Farmhouse Gem in New York
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
More: My Houzz: An Updated 1850s Farmhouse Gem in New York
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Who lives here: Bette Hestle of Golden Hill Studio, her home-based glassware and decor business, and her cats, Mr. Miller and Claudette
Location: Great Valley, New York
Size: 100 acres, with an 1850s farmhouse of 3,008 square feet (279 square meters)
The lush views of a green valley and rolling hills from a 100-acre property in Great Valley, New York, instantly stole Bette Hestle’s heart, despite the terrible condition of the existing home. The structure was in shambles with a lack of siding, missing windows and a leaky roof. Since buying the property in 1977, Hestle has fixed up the house and made the sprawling grounds into a postcard-like landscape.
Her first project was to make the house livable, replacing the roof and missing windows. Hestle then continued to work on both the inside and outside of the home itself. The original exterior had only one wall with siding, which was painted red. Hestle loved the red color so much that once she restored the exterior, she decided to paint the entire house a similar color.
My Houzz: An Updated 1850s Farmhouse Gem in New York