CINEMATIC SETTING

One of the houses on this year’s Lake Bluff History Museum Holiday Home Tour evokes a scene from an iconic holiday rom com, which the homeowner plans to lean into for the festive December 6 event.

IF YOU’VE SEEN THE FILM, you know the scene. Cameron Diaz (as Amanda Woods) surprises Jude Law (as Graham Simpkins) with a visit, stepping into a fairytale stone courtyard that leads to his front door.

It’s a magical moment in the 2006 rom com where the English country setting, all aglow, practically takes on a supporting role. So imagine how local interior designer Carrie Savino felt when she discovered a courtyard here in Lake Bluff that felt just like that scene in The Holiday.

“I always loved the movie and this was very much the same,” says Savino, who will be decking her meticulously renovated stone gatehouse in quintessential British Christmas style for this year’s Lake Bluff History Museum Holiday Home Tour. “I will actually play that up in the décor.”

Now in its 16th year, organizers say the joy-themed tour provides participants with an opportunity to visit homes decorated for the holidays “in the unique taste of the owner and style of home” and showcase the village’s welcoming spirit. The popular fundraiser supports Lake Bluff History Museum’s archives, exhibits, and educational programs.

This year’s tour on Sunday, December 6, features houses ranging from the turn-of-the-20th-century to modern construction, showcasing how historic properties are updated for 21st-century living and how newer homes are designed to blend into historic neighborhoods.

Savino’s four-bedroom, six-bathroom home was built in 1925 as a gatehouse on the grounds of the Armour family’s Tudor-style estate by architect Harrie T. Lindeberg—designer of the Onwentsia Club and several Lake Forest country homes. Now a single-family home, the gatehouse has steeply pitched roofs; rough-cut stone walls and chimneys; recessed windows with stone surrounds and mullions; and a center two-story front gable.

“While they were building the mansion, the Amours lived in the gatekeeper house. When the home was ready, they moved into the mansion,” she explains. “After that, the gatekeeper lived here. There were also stables connected to the house, which are no longer there.”

The 3,400-square-foot home does still have two original stone-walled courtyards, which are part of the English manor house “secret garden” vibe.

“By definition, a courtyard is a space that’s totally contained by walls or landscaping,” notes Savino, who studied design at The Art Institute of Chicago and specializes in historic renovations. “So when you walk up to the property, you’re surrounded by eight-foot, 18-inch-thick stone and you’re very much transported. You could easily say to yourself that you’re somewhere in the English countryside.”

When she and husband, John Savino, saw the property for the first time in 2022 (and had that déjà vu moment from The Holiday), it was love at first sight. However, they knew the dated interiors would need some work.

“I would say that the house needed a bit of a rescue,” continues Savino, explaining how she approached the gut renovation with a vision to retain the home’s historic integrity while bringing it into the 21st century. “I’m kind of a truest. I feel like the home needs to lend itself to English country so I didn’t want to take the home and make it super modern inside.”

While not what some would consider a “period home,” the result retains the charm and character of its English-style pedigree. For example, Savino worked with the owner of Ashland Millwork to replicate the single-pane windows and kept as many period details intact as possible, including the original wood doors. She also spent time at the Lake Bluff History Museum to research the home’s architecture and the history of the families that lived there over the last century.

The idea of opening her home to the Lake Bluff History Museum Holiday Home Tour is something she had been mulling for a few years. But after flying to London last Thanksgiving and being reminded how well the British do the holidays, she decided this would be the year.

“I don’t think anybody does Christmas décor better than London. It is phenomenal. I stayed at Claridge’s and was obsessed with repeating what was in their foyers,” says Savino, adding that she plans to replicate that in her home with fresh garlands of dried flowers, including blue hydrangea. “But it’s going to be more elevated English style than simplistic country. It will be as if the royals were spending Christmas Eve in the Cotswolds.”

Each room will have its own theme. One will be decked in red, white, and blue plaid—an homage to urban London sophistication. Others will evoke holiday celebrations on grand English manors.

“I have enlisted the help of partners who I work with all the time to help me blow this up,” she adds, noting a collaboration with Summer Classics in the courtyard to begin the magical experience throughout the home—just like a scene from The Holiday.

For more information, visit lakebluffhistory.org/events.

---

Tour Guide: What You Need to Know 

Tickets for the Holiday Home Tour are $75 per person and include festive holiday boutiques in gorgeous historic Lake Bluff homes featuring art, jewelry and decor from local artisans. Several village shops—including Twigs, Source & Style, Katy Evans Design, and Compass—will also host holiday open houses and local restaurants will be open for seasonal treats and dining.

Tours are self-guided and leave from Lake Bluff History Museum, where participants receive a map, shoe bag, and guidebook with the homes’ addresses. Boutiques and holiday open houses will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the homes will be open from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.