Layered with pattern, color, and playful folk references, this mountain retreat by Heather Peterson Design embraces a spirited maximalist approach to design. Set in Soda Springs, California, the home blends European cottage influences with touches of the American West, creating a richly expressive backdrop for gathering. Photographed by Josh Grubbs, this cozy cabin reflects a thoughtful reimagining of a classic lofted mountain house into something far more distinctive and character-filled.
From Heather Peterson Design… This house, in a quiet community near Lake Tahoe, is a classic mountain home with a window-filled, peak-roofed great room and a loft above. It was built by a contractor for his own family and was quite literally contractor-grade, with basic finishes and some quirky choices. We tackled the whole home in two phases, first decorating it from top to bottom and, a few years later, completing a light renovation. One of the most transformative changes we made was painting the railings in the great room/loft. They were previously a different wood species from the rest of the wood elements in the house, possibly cherry, which made them feel heavy and mismatched. A coat of fresh green paint instantly woke up the space.
The client’s main functional objectives were to maximize sleeping capacity, organize the lower level so a family could stay together down there, add storage to the mudroom, and create a private space for working from home. The house now sleeps fourteen people comfortably. The mudroom has cubbies and a new tile floor, the lower level can accommodate a family with several children, and the loft now includes a separate private office with double barn doors to close it off.
We worked with this client on her primary residence in Piedmont, California, and knew she was something of a maximalist. We also knew she wanted to lean into a different aesthetic and palette from her primary residence. In fact, we had to avoid repeating anything that even had a whiff of the first house. While we rarely repeat items anyway, it was funny to rule out whole color families based on prior use.
Overall, the vibe is Country house to the max. Each bedroom is very much its own environment, with a different patterned wallpaper from House of Hackney, striped wool carpet, vintage and European furnishings, layered bedding, and a multitude of reference points.
One of the first things we bought for the house was the Jan Kath living room rug from the Common Threads collection, which was inspired by darning samplers created by young women in Sweden and Germany. This set our main palette of red, green, ochre, and black and put us on a path of global folk references. There are dozens of patterns in this house, but red gingham became a thread that repeats in several locations and in different scales, including on the couch in the loft, which came from the client’s previous home and was reupholstered locally.
We also wanted to acknowledge our setting in the mountains of the American West and incorporated some Americana, including buffalo check, gingham, and patchwork quilts, along with Pendleton blankets, a birch bark lamp, and faux bois pieces including side chairs in the loft and an accent table in the twin room.
The loft is a dreamy place to be, as it feels like you are in a treehouse. We covered the walls in a Thibaut linen, paperbacked for this use, and filled the space with an amalgamation of vintage finds, including a marquetry coffee table, wicker screen, floral embossed lamps with William Morris shades and rooster finials, and a rustic Italian daybed.
We created a number of collections for this home over the course of several years, including dozens of baskets on the great room walls, a gallery wall of vintage floral paintings, vintage scenic needlepoint and paint-by-numbers, and roosters. Inspired by a brass rooster lamp used in the basement, roosters now appear on stoneware plates, lamp finials, needlepoint chair seats, a vintage etching, and more.
Discover the talent behind the story… Interior Design: Heather Peterson Design · Photography: Josh Grubbs Photography · Styling: Leila Nichols · Contractor: Chris Holcolm, Highmark Builders
