From a renovated mill house filled with antiques to a modern interpretation of a Craftsman home, the Belmont Woman's Club Home Tour will offer an architectural style and interest for everyone this year.
The 13th annual tour returns from 1 to 5 p.m. next Sunday, and features five homes and one garden. Tickets are $20 and include a tea and student art show at Stowe Manor.
"A lot of our attendees like the older homes, so we always try to get at least one renovated house," says tour chairman Avanda Demperio. "Other people like to see the homes in newer neighborhoods. All the growth in Belmont has allowed us to showcase both ends of the spectrum."
Organizers expect 200 to 300 people to attend the tour, which started with Belmont's centennial celebration in 1995. The tour is always held the Sunday after Mother's Day.
This year, two new communities will be included -- Eagle Park and the renovated mill village of Adams Bluff. Other homes will feature unique collections, including Native American artifacts and hand-thrown North Carolina pottery.
In between stops on the tour homes, participants can enter a free drawing for two roundtrip airline tickets and a seven-night stay at a five-star resort valued at $3,500. In addition, the Belmont Historical Society and its gift shop will be open.
Some area residents have attended the tour every year; others are just discovering the gem.
"There are a lot of reasons people are drawn to home tours," says Demperio. "Curiosity is part of it. The weather is so nice this time of year that people want to get outside and enjoy spring. Other people want to get new ideas by looking at others' decorating schemes. And people know they're contributing to a good community cause."
Homes on this year's tour
• 547 E. Catawba St. The home of Paul Sons features a collection of Native American artifacts, including a handmade bow and arrows, Sioux shield, medicine bags and artwork. Sons enjoys working with leather and has a workshop in his home with animal hides, a mounted buffalo and goat skulls. The home's living room revolves around his passion for film with a theater screen, projector and extensive movie library.
• 571 E. Catawba St. Hand-thrown pottery by regional folk artists Ben Owen, Phil Morgan and Crystal King fit well with family heirloom furniture in the home of Tom and Andrea Crowley. Authentic African spears and batik in the dining room and a large clock in the living room make for other finds.
• 215 Sixth St. A renovated mill house, the home of Terry Spoerle is the first to be featured on the tour in the historic Adam's Bluff neighborhood. Spoerle has several interesting family heirloom pieces, including her great grandmother's ice box and treadle sewing machine, and her grandmother's bedroom suite. Family portraits displayed in the hallway date to the early 1800s. Guests also are invited to see Spoerle's garden and koi pond.
• 316 S. Main St. Many Belmont residents have watched what happened with Agnes Horsley's home near the busy intersection of Central and Main. When the original home there could not be renovated, Horsley created a 2,500-square-foot modern interpretation of a Craftsman home. The three-bedroom, three-bath home features an open floor plan, high ceilings and soothing shades of khaki and taupe with calm, relaxed interiors designed by Joan Mauney. The efficient, beautiful kitchen was designed with a gourmet cook in mind.
• 1042 Assembly St. The convenience of a new home with the charm of an older one was the allure of this Eagle Park house for John and Shannon Gouch and their three young children. Inside, the home blends interesting buys from Piccolo and Emporium on Main in downtown Belmont with family heirlooms such as a dining room table that belonged to Shannon's great-grandmother. The first floor offers an open floor plan, while the upstairs has a play area perfect for children. Leigh
Pressley
