Tour of the Tudor
GROVE CITY — Jim and Diane Dixon have created not only a home for themselves, but a tranquil retreat.
The couple, who live on Blueberry Lane, will share that retreat on Sunday with participants of the Grove City Library House Tour.
The fundraising tour will feature five homes, including that occupied by Richard Jewell, president of Grove City College.
The tour is the first since 1999, said Linda Bennett, head librarian.
"The woman who used to organize it passed away then and her name was Hilda Kring," Bennett said. "She was a professor and was very active in the community, and she really loved the library."
Visitors to the Dixon home will notice the newly built structure incorporates nature into its design, which also includes mementos from the couple's travels.
"We wanted to be a part of a neighborhood and out in nature as well," Diane Dixon said.
She said the house was built in a Tudor style with French influences rooted in European history.
A noticeable feature near the home's entrance includes large windows that line the back of the home, exposing the woods in the backyard.
The rest of the home also maintains an open space feeling, with pillars separating the entrance from a dining space.Diane Dixon said she wanted an open space where company could flow freely from one room to the next, rather than having a closed space with sharp corners."We use the dining room a lot more in the winter because in the summertime it is so nice out," Diane Dixon said. "We didn't want a pokey dining room because when you have family gatherings, you need it to be bigger so we wanted to open it up."Past the dining room lies the great room, where a large fireplace is decorated with a Corinthian pot from Greece, as well as a blue and red pot from China with dragons stretching across its curves.Hardwood floors extend through the first floor of the home, along with wood pieces constructed by Jim Dixon.A study to the left of the entrance contains prints from Canterbury, England, along with a full bookshelf. Diane Dixon said the couple loves to incorporate the artistic mementos from their trips around the world as reminders of where they have been.Next to the great room, a large kitchen contains a granite countertop that runs around the room, with an island in the middle where company tends to congregate, Dixon said. She said she always wanted a large kitchen, and often the two call it their solarium because of the large windows that encompass the room.At the entrance to a bedroom, bamboo paintings from Korea and Japan hang in black and white. The bedroom provides a cozy space with an alcove designed for reading."We have little niches for reading carved out all over the place," Diane Dixon said.
The stairs leading to the second floor show another open space, as a hallway leading from bedroom to bedroom overlooks both sides of the first floor."We wanted to be self-contained on the first floor so I rarely come upstairs unless we have company or if I am sewing," Diane Dixon said.The first bedroom is called the Forest Room as it overlooks the woods near the house. A handmade rocking horse lies near the bed, along with a wooden toy chest near the door.The second bedroom is called the Sun Room, and contains many of the Dixons' daughter's mementos. The upstairs loft also provides a display for family photographs, both historic and current.The third bedroom is called The Garrett, containing extra sleeping space for company, as well as large closets. Both of the room's beds have quilts draped over them.A patio on the first floor is made of exposed aggregate rock with a fountain outside as well. A pond and wetlands are also in view, and the placement of the home allows the patio to constantly remain in the shade."We have fun pulling the woods into the yard and always make sure we have evergreens to look at in the winter," Diane Dixon said.She also said they can sit on the patio and watch the birds."It's really like a retreat," she said. "We've tried to think of things that were low maintenance so we can enjoy the quiet pace, and still some convenience."The tour also will feature:• A Georgian colonial home at the Lee and Don Falcobridge residence• A contemporary home at the Dayle and Richard Jewell residence• An hybrid timber-framed home at the Jeff and Debbie Mincey residence• A New American three-story home at the Michael and Rachel Renick residence.
<B>WHAT: </B>Grove City Community Library self-guided house tour featuring five homes<B>WHEN: </B>1 to 5 p.m. Sunday<B>WHERE: </B>Tickets and maps available at Grove City Library during library business hours and on the day of the tour.<B>INFO: </B>Cost is $10. For information, call Linda Bennett at 724-458-7320.
