The Bingham Estate Tour

 

I hope that you had a good week. I  am so excited about today's post. Months ago, I came a cross across @binghamestate on Instagram.  I had a birds-eye view of a renovation in progress of an antique house.  It was a little while later that I discovered that this beautiful transformation was happening ten minutes away!  I Dm'd Erika, and she invited me to see it in person. I asked if the Mister, our company's consecutive Employee of the Month, could accompany me because nobody loves old houses like him.  

Erika met us at the door.  She is such an impressive young woman. I'm not just saying it because she is a Horned Frog, either!  Erika has a great eye for design as well as detail. Erika believes in keeping the integrity of old homes.  She gave us a fabulous tour of the house as well as the property.    

Erika’s love for old houses came early in her marriage when they purchased a 1928 two-bedroom Tudor on Clover Lane. Nestled in the River Crest area of Fort Worth, the Clover Lane house reflected a rich character and comfortable sensibility found in bygone days. 

A graduate of Texas Christian University with a master’s degree in accounting, Erika worked in accounting over the past fifteen years at Deloitte & Touche LLP, and Globe Life Inc. In 2022, with three restored historic houses under her belt, Erika took the courageous step of retiring from her accounting career to pursue her dream of historic restoration full-time. 

With each restoration, Erika hones her ability to find a home’s true character. In turn, those homes help Erika further develop her own attention to detail, her appreciation of grand millennial style, and her love of wallpaper.
 
Erika and her husband have owned and restored 5 historic houses (1 in Fort Worth and 4 in McKinney). Erika just loves the way an old house feels and smells. There is always something special to look at or discover when you’re decorating. Erika highly recommends reading about Carolina Cottage on her website here. This was the largest house that they restored, and they had a ghost…Frances Abernathy!

And now, I present Erika McWilliams in her own words.

 

www.haleykphotos.com

 

There are small details throughout the house that are special: for instance, typewriters to represent Captain Bingham owning the Enquirer and being an infamous typesetter.

 

Schumacher wallpaper in the dining room was in Gone with the Wind movie (my daughter’s name is Scarlett).

 Bowood wallpaper from England reminds me of cotton on a plantation where Captain Bingham saw the house originally. 

There is the brass swan - the signature item that I do in all my properties.

  The color throughout the house is SW Sleepy Blue.

 

Rooms upstairs are the Master, Captain’s room, Schoolhouse room, and Garden room.

Here is a little background on the cottages that we are currently building.  One year ago, I was purchasing architectural pieces for the Tulip House and met a man named Bill Lynch. Bill and his wife owned and operated the Bingham House as a bed and breakfast for over 20 years. While visiting, he asked if I knew anything about the Bingham, and of course, always loved it from afar, but never knew what it was or who lived there. A couple days later, my daughter’s best friend’s dad called to let me know that he knew of a historic house coming up for sale in the district and to see if I would be interested. I said, “Which one?” The Bingham he responded. And the rest was history.

 

I firmly believe that God had his hand in this transaction to guide me to save one of our city’s gems. It’s truly an honor. When I walked outside for the first time in the backyard of the Bingham Estate, I had the vision of the cottages. With 1.4 acres, it is one of the largest historic estates in McKinney. Bringing in the cottages would allow me to preserve the integrity of the estate and run it as a business. Much better than modern houses next door, don’t you think?! The six cottages will be named after the six Bingham children.

Here is a tour of another house in the area that we restored.

Thank you, Erika, for sharing your fabulous journey with us. We hope that you will come back when the cottages are finished.

 

You can follow along on Erika's journey on Insta @cloverlanemckinney or @binghamestate or check out her website here at Clover Lane Properties.

I wish you all a wonderful Mother's Day!

Canine Companions for Independence

 

Talbots

Talbots

 

 

Talbots

J Crew

J Crew

This cutie is in my cart.

J Crew

Thank you, J Crew, for making petite sizes.

JCF

JCF

AT

I ordered this shirt.

Belk

Cute coverup

VV half price

Belk

Use coupon on site.

ON

BR

Gap

I refreshed my cardigan supply because they're under $20.

Lulu

Big sale going on over at Kate Spade!

Nike

LL Bean

How cute are these?

Indoor/Outdoor rugs, along with outdoor furniture and accessories on sale at Wayfair.

RayBan

I am thrilled to partner again with Necessaire this month.  They just dropped their new Body Retinol, which targets creepy skin and uneven skin tone.  I've been using it on my arms for about a month now, and I see a difference.  They are offering the Body Retinol and the Body Serum for $70.00 (30% off).  You will get an extra 10% off with my code.  Click here, and don't forget my code PREPPY10.

Belk

LG

I use this over my foundation for a sun-kissed look.

Btw... it lasts forever.

Last but not least, I am partnering with Nom Nom which provides healthy, delicious meals for dogs.  Mille has been enjoying the food and loves it.  If you would like to try it at 60% Off, click here. 

Only a day or two left on the offer.