Weekend Recap and Colonial Inspiration

My in-laws were visiting this weekend, so it was jam-packed with historical site-seeing (kind of our bag here in the Tidewater area of Virginia). I thought I'd share some pics from the weekend, including this shot of the guest room. The last time I shared a picture, it was in terrible night-time light, so I thought I'd show you what it looks like in daytime.

On Saturday, we took the Jamestown-Scotland Ferry from Jamestown to Surry. The ferry is FREE and kind of fun in a weird way! We were headed over to Surry, a place we'd never been, because my mother-in-law had clipped out an article about all the historical sites in the area. Surry and neighboring Isle of Wight County are known for two things: pork products and plantations. Nathaniel Bacon, leader of Bacon's Rebellion lived here.

After our ferry ride, we ate at Surrey House, a classic greasy spoon spot known for its peanut soup (a Virginia delicacy), fried flounder and fried chicken.

Sean DECIMATED his fried chicken platter, complete with a fried apple fritter. I had the fried flounder sandwich, which was also a greasy delight.

Surry just doesn't draw the same amount of visitors that nearby Jamestown and Williamsburg attract, so we were lucky enough to get a private tour of Smith's Fort Plantation, so named because John Smith had every intention of building a fort but more pressing matters, like incredibly bad starvation, needed to be addressed.

I found the house's color schemes and simple, rustic look really appealing, even though I'm typically not into Colonial style. It reminded me of the lovely home of blogger Katy Elliott. Colonists were not afraid of color mixing, as you can see.

Check out those built-ins! So fabulous.

I thought the dark frames around these botanical prints were really elegant, especially against the unpainted wood.

And the blue floral pattern was gorgeous, calming and simple.

I liked the little display of shark teeth and bones on the windowsill...a great idea especially for the deep window sills you'll find in Cape Cod-style homes with dormers.

And last but not least, I was straight up coveting this pink striped wool coverlet...it looked like something you'd buy from Sweden. 

How about you? Is there a historical era that always inspires you most? I usually love midcentury, but I'm also drawn to sort of English country style, like this. Simple and lovely takes the cake for me.