Happy Weekend! I don’t always post on the weekend but we’re smack-dab in the middle of touring this beautiful Victorian home belonging to Governor Roy and Marie Barnes, so I didn’t want to leaving you hanging for too long. If you missed any of the previous posts, you’ll find links to those at the end of this post.
Today we’ll be touring some of the upstairs bedrooms, but before we head up I’ll share a couple of pics I took in the master bedroom downstairs. Unfortunately, most of my pics in this area didn’t come out that well since the area was very softly lit. The lighting in this room is really beautiful. It’s actually located back behind the crown molding. You can see it a little in this photo of the tree in the master bedroom. This tree had an angel theme and it was breathtaking! (Sorry about the blurry picture.)
Here’s a photo from a local Atlanta paper showing the rest of this room.
The fireplace is directly across from the bed and though my pic came out a little blurry, I had to share it with you. It was really beautiful!
I only have one picture from the master bath but this area was too beautiful to not share. I think if I were Marie, I’d have to leave those lights there all year long. Both vanity/sinks were decorated this way. Isn’t it beautiful?!
Okay, let’s go upstairs…can’t wait to share the upstairs bedrooms with you!
At the top of the stairs, I found another beautiful tree. This tree was in a large area just outside the bedrooms where the grandchildren stay when they are visiting.
Before we tour the grandchildren’s bedrooms, let’s check out the guest room down the hall. It was decorated in a whimsical winter/snowman theme. This room was originally going to be left unfinished for storage but the Barnes decided to go ahead and finish it in. The trunk at the foot of the bed was passed down to Marie by her grandmother and is filled with handmade quilts. There’s a beautiful secretary in this room but unfortunately I missed getting a picture of it.
The guest room tree is decorated in icy silvers and blues and is surround by lots of adorable snowmen. Marie puts a lot of thought into coordinating the trees with the rooms and I love it!
The Barnes have six grandchildren and two are boys. One of their grandsons is a huge UGA fan so Marie decorated their room in a University of Georgia theme and it is amazing! She only painted two of the walls in the room, red, so that kept the red from feeling too overwhelming.
The tree is absolutely delightful! Don’t you know their grandsons love sleeping in this room with the tree lit at night. I have especially loved seeing how Marie has surrounded the base of each tree. The winter tree had snowmen and this Georgia Bulldog tree is surrounded with cute doggies. So creative!
One of the things I’ve learned from seeing how Marie decorates is how versatile and beautiful a white tree can be. I never really considered buying one of those but seeing this one in the boy’s room and her tree in the kitchen in THIS post, I’m really loving how the ornaments pop against the white tree.
The foot of the beds were decorated for Christmas…again keeping in the UGA color scheme. Notice the bulldog lamps. I missed a lot of things during the tour that I’ve noticed looking back at the pictures. I absolutely love all the little details Marie has included. Sooo whimsical and so much fun! Is that a little dog in Santa’s bag? 🙂
We’re all big UGA fans here too, since that’s where our son graduated from, so I loved this room!
The UGA theme continued into the adjoining bath. Love those bulldog knobs! The tile Marie found/installed even looks like doggy footprints! Love all the wonderful details!
I’m dying, aboslutely dying to show you the bedroom the Barnes’ four granddaughters share when visiting, but I loved that room so much I took way too many pics to add into this post. It will have to get a post of its own. I’ll save it for our next and final post.
But I couldn’t leave you today without sharing this wonderful staircase that leads to the attic where Marie stores all the Christmas wonderfulness you’ve been seeing.
At the top of the stairs leading to the attic, you’ll find a whimsical “upside-down” Christmas tree. I’ve always seen these trees but could never think of a good spot to use one. This is perfect! You see it from the foot of the stairs leading to the attic and it is completely enchanting! It draws you up the stairs….
It appears to be decorated in a Mardi Gras theme…soooo whimsical! Don’t you love the mask staring down at you as you ascend the attic stairs. lol Love it!
As mentioned, I’m saving one of the most amazing rooms for last…the bedroom Marie created for her granddaughters. I have another post planned for Metamorphosis Monday that you will not want to miss, as well. It’s an amazing Before and After. Then, on either Tuesday or Wednesday, I’ll share the last post of this wonderful home tour.
If you’ve enjoyed this series, please be sure to leave a comment for Marie letting her know. She is so generous to open her home up each year and share all this magic with us. So many folks just don’t do that these days.
You’ll find my previous posts in this series at the links below:
You’ll find additional posts/tours of the Barnes beautiful Victorian Home here:
Tour a Beautiful Victorian Home Decorated for Christmas, Part I (Exterior, Entry, Powder Room)
3 Party Table Settings with Coca-Cola Dishware and Memorabilia
Four Beautiful Christmas Table Settings, One Gorgeous Victorian Home
Loving the tour and please share thanks to Governor and Mrs. Barnes for sharing their home with us. I’m a huge supporter of Governor Barnes for his dedicated support of Atlanta Legal Aid Society. Love their beautiful home.
Thank you Susan for taking us on this tour. And of course, thank you to Governor and Mrs. Barnes for allowing you to share the photos of their home decorated for the holidays. I’ve visited each post, each one a delight. 😉
This woman is amazing!!! I have totally enjoyed EVERY post of their magnificent home. Thank you, Marie for your generosity in sharing all this. Wishing you and the Gov. a very happy and blessed New Year. Thank you, Susan too. XO, Pinky
What an amazing home to tour at Christms. Governor and Mrs. Barnes, thank you so much for allowing us to visit. It’s over the top beautiful and I love seeing all the items you have collected over the years. A collection like that didn’t happen overnight. I bet there are countless stories to share about all the pretties. Mrs. Barnes, my hat goes off to you. Susan, ask if we can come back this spring. I bet it’s just as pretty the rest of the year.
To the gracious Mrs. Barnes and Governor Barnes: It has been such a pleasure to drink in the loveliness of so many beautiful Christmas scenes. Thank you for sharing your lovely home!
From my home in Alabama to yours, wishing you a wonderful new year!
OMG! So beautiful!! Mrs. Barnes must start decorating in October. Absolutely gorgeous. They should open their home for a Christmas tour and give the proceeds to charity.
Molly, they do. 🙂 They host several benefits for various charities all throughout the year.
What a wonderful and generous thing to do!
It really is. I just found a comment Marie left on another post and here’s what Marie said, “I feel very Lucky to have my family so close that we can enjoy this house. And, we enjoy hosting fundraisers for various group like the YMCA, the YWCA Battered Womens Shelter, 4H, Garden Council of Marietta (which is were I met Susan, such a sweet person, as all of you already know) and others. The house was originally planned around the Grandchildren, but it has turned into a way we can give something back to the community and State that has been so good to us.”
A very big thank you to Governor and Mrs. Barnes for sharing their home. Loved the tour and am in awe of how Marie gets all that decorating done! What a fantastic home. Thank you Susan for always having the most interesting blog posts. I never miss one.
Aww, thanks Vikki…appreciate that so much!
Many thanks to Governor Barnes and Mrs. Barnes for letting you photograph their home so that we may all enjoy it. Their home is beautifully decorated for the holidays. I have personally enjoyed every one of these posts, Susan. Thank you also for sharing! Happy NewYear! 🙂
Susan, I have really enjoyed all the posts for Governor and Mrs. Barnes’ wonderful home. I can’t decide which one is my favorite as they are all beautiful. I would love to walk around their yard and see all they have outside. It must be absolutely beautiful at night with all the lights. Tell them their graciousness in sharing is so appreciated. I look forward to your last post on the granddaughter’s bedroom. Happy New Year from Arkansas!
This house is beautiful and extravagant yet still warm and welcoming. Did the First Lady tell you how long it takes to decorate for Christmas? She must have help! I limit my decorations to 25 boxes…wonder how many boxes she has 🙂
Suzi, Marie starts decorating in August and does all of it herself, except the actual physical work of bringing the trees out of storage. She also has some help with the decorating that involves climbing high up on a ladder. Otherwise she does it all. It’s a true labor of love for her family and those who see during the Christmas season.
What a truly phenomenal home! The beauty and attention to detail reflect an air of true gracious hospitality. It’s unusual to ‘feel’ that in photos, but these lovely rooms beckon the viewer to come in and stay awhile.
Many thanks to Marie for sharing her delightful home, and thank you, Susan for sharing your photographic tour.
I’m really enjoying touring this home…it’s gorgeous! Thanks so much for sharing it. I’ll be back on Monday to see the granddaughter’s bedroom!
I used to think that my late MIL created a Winter Wonderland, but hers didn’t come anywhere near this house. What a joy it would be to just get some hot tea and sit and take it all in. Thank you so much for sharing.
This has been an absolute thrill!! THANKS!! franki
Thanks you so much for sharing the beautiful home of Gov. and Mrs. Barnes. I can hardly wait to see the grand-daughters’ room. This home truly looks like a family home that is meant to be lived in and enjoyed.
I can’t imagine all of the work this family goes to with so many wonderful trees and decorations. I don’t know how anyone can take in all of the beautiful sights in one day! Would take at least 3 days to see and truly appreciate this home. So glad I can see it through your blog. It is fun to go back through each of the rooms.
I am emailing my niece, who lives in Savannah a link to this post. Her boyfriend is a HUGE Georgia fan. He will really appreciate the GA decorated rooms! What fun!
Thank you again for the lovely tour!
Wow- that’s the most Christmassy home I’ve ever seen! This has been fun to see 🙂
Thank you for bringing us on the tour with you! What is even better is revisiting whenever I want! Please thank The Barnes family for opening their lovely home to us! Anxiously awaiting the granddaughters’ room!
Thank you so much for this fabulous Governor’s holiday home! I got many ideas for next year, although, nothing like this, either!…since I get so tired and exausted from just decorating mine, which is probably two sizes smaller, lol..
Happy new year Susan!
Fabby
This has been one of the most wonderful house tours I have ever seen. My thanks to Governor and Mrs. Barnes for being so gracious and allowing you to share their lovely home with us. Since I live in Texas, it is a little far for me to come take a real tour but the tour you have provided for us, Susan, has been absolutely wonderful. I am so thankful that you have shared all of this with us. I have loved every minute, every tree, every whimsical touch, every bauble, bangle and bead! Bless you!
Thanks so much for sharing pictures of this gorgeous house. ANd thanks to The Barnes’s for opening their home. It would be worth a trip to Atlanta next Christmas just to see it in person.
I absolutely have loved this series! Their house is literally a dream for me! Every detail is gorgeous!
Gosh, I don’t know if I can express anything that hasn’t been said already. Like your other readers, I have thoroughly enjoyed the tour of this house, straight from a Christmas Wonderland! Susan, my cousin that bought the house over near Marietta will have to see this house tour through your blog. How would people find out when there is an open house tour for charity? Can’t wait to see the Girl’s rooms..
Loved the grandson’s room decorated with UGA theme in mind. My sister-in-law that lives in Florida was a breeder of English bull dogs and one of her pups became a Georgia Bulldog mascot..
Also somebody from the set of “Midnight in the Garden of Evil” demanded that my SIL sell him one of her dogs and she said she didn’t like his attitude and refused to sell to him. True Stories!
Betty what an interesting story about the bulldogs! I bet Marie will be able to answer your question when she reads the comments.
I usually do an annual tour for the Marietta Garden Council to benefit the Marietta Garden Center, a wonderful old house that needs many repairs and this is a way to raise some extra money to cover some of those repairs. it is used for meeting, weddings and receptions of all kinds. We have not set a date, but you can go online to the marietta garden center and call for information probably about August or Sept.
WOW, has it ever been a treat to view this incredible home – thanks Susan.
This home is so lovely and Marie is so talented. I would love to recreate all her rooms, they are so gorgeous. thank you for sharing such a delightful home with us. I cannot wait to see the girls’ room. Maybe Marie needs to give online tutorials for us:)
I have thoroughly enjoyed this series and can’t wait to see the granddaughters’ bedroom. The decorations are amazing, the house looks beautiful and cozy. How wonderful of Mrs. Barnes to allow us all to “visit” her home. Thank you Susan for this great blog and all of the glorious photos. Happy New Year to all!
What a treat this has been! I have loved every minute of it! Thank you so much for sharing this with us!!!
My husband & I toured the home on the Sunday it was open to the community thru the Garden Club. What a fun event it was! The home & all the decorations & collections are beautiful. I can only imagine all the fun that is had in this home during the Christmas season when family and friends visit. We met Marie & she was so friendly and agreed to a picture with us. Thanks for sharing all your hard work. I have tried to describe a lot of the ideas with my friends but fell far short. I am so thrilled you are blogging about it and showing all your pictures. I am forwarding these to several friends so they can see what I so poorly described. Thanks to the Barnes for sharing their talent and home. Thanks to “naps” for doing all the hard work of scrapbooking it for us. The stocking on the eating table are my very favorite idea! Happy New year!
Thanks, Eda! So glad you’re enjoying the posts. I’m seeing things in my pics I missed on the tour so it’s really helped me to remember, too. Happy New Year to you!
I’ve been loving this tour! I get so excited now when i see an email from you! All your posts are fun and exciting! Glad I’ve signed on with you! Happy New Year! Sharon
Thanks so much, Sharon! 🙂
Une décoration époustouflante ! Quel travail incroyable pour installer tout ça ! Il faut aussi avoir beaucoup de place pour stocker ensuite ces merveilleuses décorations! ! ou alors vivre Noël toute l’année !…
Merci pour ces sublimes photos et bravo Marie!
Je vous souhaite une année 2013 très créative couronnée de succès.
Une petite pensée pour vous en ce passage très prochain de l’année 2012 à 2013.
Gros bisous.
Thank you Gov. and Mrs. Barnes for sharing your home with all of us! It is BEAUTIFUL!
Happy New Year!
Add my thanks to Governor and Mrs. Barnes ,too! Their home is, of course, beautiful…but more than that, it is so warm, welcoming, and homey! So very generous of them to allow this peek into their home. And a huge thanks to you, Susan, for creating this virtual tour. Happy New Year!
This is indeed a true labour of love, especially as its original conception was for their grandchildren. How lucky they are to have such a wonderful Grandmother. It is an amazing house even without the Christmas decorations and I love every inch of it. In the guest room, are the roman blinds Laura Ashley print?
Many thanks to Governor and Mrs. Barnes for opening their home and hearts to us and everyone they support.
Susan, it is thanks to you that we share in so many homes, innovative informed posts, you indeed are a star in the blogging world. You are my *go to* each and every day.
I wish you and your family and Governor and Mrs. Barnes a Very Happy New Year!!
Yes, that is a Laura Ashley print. When we move back to Mableton from being Governor, Roy and I redid our house there. It had been vacant for 4 years and needed some repairs and updating and at that time we had no plans to move so over the next year we purged the house and fixed it back. One of the new things i bought was a comforter and curtain set by Laura Ashley for my youngest daughters bedroom. Then she moved out and slowly our Children moved to Marietta and our Grandchildren started arriving. Roy’s family had passed away during that time frame except for a brother we thought was going to move to Marietta ( but later decided not to move) and some property came available in front of where I grew up. My daughter and her husband were living in the house were I grew up so we bought the property and built this house. I moved the bedding to this house and had roman shades made out of the curtains. A foot note to the fabric, is that about 6 months after the move I was in an antique store in Atlanta and found the cutest frog lamp for the guest room bath. The shade was made out of the same fabric as the roman shades. What are the chances? 🙂
Thank you Marie about the Laura Ashley pattern. It is the British in me which spotted it. 🙂
I have enjoyed this tour and am in awe of the gorgeous home and decorations. As a practical and minimalist type person, I can’t imagine the time spent on all the decor. I love that Marie does tours to benefit charity. Now I want to visit someday when I could see this gorgeous place in person. Thanks so sharing!
Thank you so much for sharing your photos–and thank you Governor and Mrs. Barnes for sharing your magnificently-decorated home with the rest of us. I can’t imagine starting to do Christmas decorating in August. What a labor of love to share with others…
Happy New Year!
i want to thank all of you who have posted such wonderful comments about our house. I would love to have each and everyone of you over for a personal tour. I guess as close as I can come to doing that is through our wonderful Susan who provides a beautiful tour of not only of our house but many others as well. I love reading and getting ideas from her as much as all of you do. Merry Christmas and A SAFE and Happy New Year to you all.
Susan,
I simply must thank you for sharing this wonderful home with all of us. this would be my dream home if i had a lot of money!! LOL! Love all the decorations. Simply stunning! I have truly enjoyed this!
Hugs,
Debbie
Susan,
Also wishing you and the Barnes a very Happy and helathy New Year!
Hugs,
Debbie
As has been said before, I thoroughly enjoyed touring the Governor and Mrs. Barnes’ holiday home. Thanks so much to the Governor and Marie for sharing this amazing time of year with all of us! Thanks, too, to you Susan for taking your time to share this amazing residence with us! I, too, don’t miss a single one of your posts and have a friend that we email back and forth to make sure neither of us miss anything! LOL! May God continue to bless the Governor and Marie, and you too Susan, in 2013!
Aww, thanks Rennie. Appreciate that so much! Happy New Year! Looking so forward to 2013! 🙂
thanks, Rennie. And a Happy and Safe and Blessed New Year to you also in 2013.
We lived in Georgia for a while and really liked Governor and Mrs. Barnes. They were great leaders and fine people. This house is so warm and friendly, and I would love to be one of their lucky grandchildren – even if it is in the Bulldog room!!!!
How fortunate you were to get to visit!
What a magical wonderland Marie creates for her grandchildren. They will have wonderful memories of the holidays at their grandparents home. Hope the home always stays in their family.
Everything is so thoughtfully put together, making our tour so enjoyable with every glance, in every direction, being full of beauty, whimsy, or both! A lot of fun in the bunk bed room, and the little touches – bulldog drawer pulls – just completed the whole look. It is all so welcoming and full of beautiful details, tho I did pause the moment I looked up the attic stairway….I thought the vision of the lady at the top of the stairs was a little scary. I asked my 5 year old niece..she looked at it and said, “It might be a bad lady”, perhaps the eyeless mask was too much of a contrast to the lightness and loveliness for our tender hearts. Other than that glance, from the architectural details of the house to each nook and cranny, it is all a celebration of love, peace and joy. Delightful! Thank you for sharing this.
This tour has been enchanting! I can’t believe Marie decorates the whole house herself – that it truly a labor of love. Two things (among many) stand out for me about his house: the themes and decorations for each room coordinate beautifully with the existing colors, patterns, textures, and purposes of each room. Stunning! I also LOVE the fact that Marie uses things like dishes and bedding from HomeGoods. Everything she does in her home shimmers with warmth and the love she has for her family. This has been one of my favorite blog series ever! Thanks for sharing, Susan!
Thanks, Kelly! I’m so glad Marie let me share her beautiful home here on BNOTP. It’s been a treat posting about it.
Thank you so much for this tour and please thank the Barnes. My daughter loves decorating and has 5 trees,
I sent her the link to your blog. Her response was, “holy cow, I love the decorations and the house.” I keep going back over the series…just beautiful! Enjoy your blog so much and looking forward to more.
Happy New Year!
Thanks so much, Cindy!
Susan – these posts are wonderful. Many thanks to Mrs. Barnes for allowing this. I have come to believe that there are 3 kinds of Christmas people -1, those who don’t care for any of the activities. 2. those who like it but aren’t interested in putting a tremendous effort into it and 3. Christmas lovers who think any amount of effort is worthwhile because after all – it is Christmas! Being in the 3rd category – I have to say Mrs. Barnes must be The Grand Poobah of that group. Bless her – what a gift to her family and friends and other guests – and now to us via you. Thank you both so much!
Thanks so much to the Governor and sharing this lovely home with us little folks. Mrs Barnes what a great job of decorating and the colors.. are so vivid.. Just astounding. I loved the whole tour.. went back and looked again. Of course the upside down tree was way tooo cool.. Loved it.. thanks again for sharing.
Hi Susan–I found your page on Facebook when someone posted your link. I’ve enjoyed looking at all your posting, especially the tablescapes of Gov. Barnes’s home. I lived in ATL most of my life and recently moved to Naples, FLorida a couple years ago. I am an Elementary teacher in the process of changing careers. In addition, I am an interior decorator who does just about everything. I am looking to see which of my talents are marketable. Since I make all custom decor, there are many avenues I can take–just not sure yet. After nearly 30 years of teaching, I am looking to other options. Feel free to brouse my Facebook page –Jon Allison Designs and tell me what you think. I am also interested in advertisng. I will email you for details.
Happy Blogging,
Carol
Do you store the trees decorated, so each year they will be ready to use? Also, you have so many decorations and Christmas balls and etc….how long does it take to take it all down? Do you do that by yourself too? And how long to find all the decorations, must be years, or do you have help to shop? Everything beautiful! Please send me an email…Thanks
I don’t store the trees decorated. I have two men that bring everything up from the basement or in the case of the trees down from the attic. They stand the trees up and put the lights on them, then it is all up to me. I do have one woman that helps me some, but she has a grandchild she keeps now so she is not able to help much. I decorate the top floor first and put out all the moving figures in their place. Then move to the main floor. All but the live trees go up and the moving figures go out too. Then, I work on the things like nutcrackers, tablescapes, etc. All this starts in at the end of August and hopefully ends before Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is when I put up my 2 live trees.
Also keep in mind that I do Halloween decorations outside for Halloween while doing Christmas inside.
Now taking it down takes no more that about 5 days, because I will let the men help take it down, I am just funny about putting it up myself.
ps. I have shopped for years. I buy things after Christmas for next year and add thing from Home Goods and Hobby Lobby, etc. from year to year
Do you know where the Mickey/Minnie/Donald Duck/goofy dolls came from???
I’m not sure, but I’ll email Marie and see if she remembers.
Thanks! And thanks so much for sharing!
If she could tell me what the names or whatever the tags say on the dolls were, I could find them online.
Taylor, Marie replied saying, “I have had these for probably 20 years. Some of them are available on eBay but they are rather expensive. They are Disney products but they have been out of production for many years. Look under animated Christmas figures or something like that.”
Thanks so much!!