The Willows Retreat

STORY BY LONNA UPTON & PHOTOS BY KENNETH BOONE

AAfter decades of weekend visits to Lake Martin, Sandy and Beth Pitman made the decision to move to the lake permanently when they began working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic and after the last of four children graduated from high school. When the level lots on calmer water in The Willows became available, they bought one during the initial offering from Russell Lands and built their beautiful custom home.

“I’ve been on this lake all my life. I grew up coming to the block cabin my dad built in 1963 on the Dadeville side of the lake; then, brought my own family there. We moved to Willow Glynn in 2013, but with our children grown, we were really ready for fewer steps from the house to the lake,” Sandy Pitman said.

Jeremiah Wade, architect with Mulberry Studio in Decatur, designed the home for the Pitmans, and Mark Bell with Bell Contracting constructed the home. The exterior of the home is stone with HardiePlank siding painted Dragon’s Breath, with a cedar shake roof. The landscaping was designed and installed by Rob Garrard.

The front door opens into a foyer with a view of the living room and a full wall of windows that extend to ceiling height, offering a pristine water view while natural light floods the room. Wide shiplap on the walls and oak floors are found on the main level. The coffered ceiling, 30-feet high in the living room, as well as the kitchen ceiling and beams, are painted gray.

Previous Pages: Cooking, dining and gathering areas make the covered porch the perfect outdoor space for entertaining; This Page Top: The Pitmans chose a level lot on which to build their lake house; Bottom: A banquette bench was built to accommodate a table from their previous home; Facing Page: A solid wood sofa table and an iron chandelier are focal points under a 30-foot ceiling.

“Mark worked on the beams and ceilings with multiple layers of paint to get just the right color. Lisa Flake at Caldwell Flake Interiors in Birmingham provided the design services and seamlessly worked in furniture from our house in Birmingham and the Willow Glynn house with new furnishings, modern light fixtures and rugs,” Beth said.

The living room has a cream linen sofa, three chairs and a taupe leather recliner. A painting on un-stretched canvas, by Alabama artist Arthur Price, hangs above the stone fireplace. A solid wood sofa table with the appearance of stacked stone is a favorite piece. A two-tiered iron chandelier from Brandino Brass hangs above the room. The Pitman family’s original block cabin was leveled in the 2011 tornado, but the couple miraculously found intact a hutch cabinet that now is a part of the living room décor.

The couple anchored the kitchen with a marble topped island measuring 11-feet-by4-feet. The countertops and backsplash over the stove are a matte black soapstone. The cabinet hardware is from Brandino Brass. The copper hood was fabricated by John Howell at Madwind Studio in Jacksons Gap. The 60-inch Five Star range with double ovens is a focal point just beyond the island.

The refrigerator, sink and large cabinets are on one side of the kitchen, while the other side was built specifically to accommodate a table moved from the couple’s previous home. A built-in banquette bench under the window and six chairs around the table provide seating for 10 or more.

Just behind the kitchen, a bar/butler’s pantry with glass cabinet doors, sink, ice maker, dishwasher and refrigerator are easily accessible from the kitchen and the covered porch. A hallway runs through the area with access to the covered porch on one end and the laundry and garage on the other. There is also a back staircase leading to the bedrooms on the second floor.

A guestroom and bath are located behind the butler’s pantry. Among the unique light fixtures selected by Flake, a gold tube chandelier hangs in this room. Appointed with cream and gray colored solid linens and patterned Roman shades and shams, the room is a respite with a view of the Pitman’s raised gardens. This bathroom, as well as the other guest bathrooms, are finished in quartz and ceramic tile.

“Lisa Flake suggested indoor/outdoor rugs from Hiltz Lauber in Homewood for all the bedrooms. They are perfect for a lake house,”

Pitman said.

Also on the main level, Beth’s office is just outside the master suite. The couple’s retreat has a high ceiling and windows with a perfect lake view. On each side of the gray, upholstered bed, windows are covered with a blackout drape option, as do the windows and doors that lead onto the private screened porch. The Pitmans moved a swing bed from the Willow Glynn porch to the porch at their new home.

Clockwise from Left: Two-story windows in the living space provide lake views from the hall upstairs; Calm colors and cozy linens appoint guestrooms with comfort and style; Twin beds placed toe-to-toe maximize space in an upstairs guestroom.

Separate his-and-her walk-in closets are custom designed with his containing a stacked washer/dryer. The bathroom includes a spectacular soaker tub and a shower room with an adjoining steam room. The double vanities and dressing table are marble. A chandelier hangs above the room, adding elegance to the space that is bathed in natural light from windows extending to ceiling height.

Upstairs, the floors are reclaimed pine. Pitman’s office occupies an open loft overlooking the living room and has a perfect view of the lake through the living room windows. A leather ottoman, shaped like a turtle and one of the couple’s first gifts after they were married, stands vigil at the edge of the room.

Three upstairs bedrooms invite guests to relax. A Jack-and-Jill bath connects one bedroom with a king-sized bed to another bedroom with four twin beds. The twins are arranged foot-to-foot to best utilize the space. The third bedroom upstairs includes two queen beds with a bath nearby. Art upstairs includes folk art and a work by Lila Graves, purchased almost 20 years ago.

An area in a hall near the back staircase became a reading nook and doubles as extra sleeping space with a twin-sized bed tucked beneath the window. The Pitmans have a multi-functional room for exercise equipment and a pool table upstairs, which has been a perfect room for inflatable mattresses when needed for overflow sleeping space. A full-sized bath adjoins the room.

Outside, the Pitmans have utilized space to entertain in multiple areas. The back porch has four chaise lounges overlooking the lawn and the dock. The lawn is level and perfect for cornhole, one of the activities they enjoy with friends and family. A covered porch near the kitchen is furnished with a large table in a dining area and comfortable seating near the stone fireplace. A television is mounted above the fireplace. A built-in Traeger and Big Green Egg are positioned under another Madwind Studio copper hood, which provides venting for cooking under the porch. Several raised beds, built by Bell, are filled with vegetables and herbs to be enjoyed this summer.

“My favorite part of the house? I love the kitchen. And I love the porch in the spring and fall. We bought the two rope swing chairs at an arts and craft show in Fairhope. That is our favorite place to sit and have a drink,” she said.

Spring on the porch was in full bloom, as the summer is already busy, but the couple finds time to enjoy moments of peace in swings at the water’s edge.

Top: A private covered porch off the master features an inviting swing bed; Above: An upstairs multi-purpose room, includes exercise equipment and a pool table.