House peeping might be our favorite year-round activity, but around the holidays our guilty pleasure turns into an absolute obsession. If you're the type who likes a roaring fire with your pumpkin pie, well—you're in for a treat. This fieldstone home in Bernardsville, New Jersey satisfies every one of our Thanksgiving cravings of the non-edible sort; with exposed beams, wide-plank floors, 5 brick fireplaces, and vintage surprises behind every door (have you seen that kitchen?), it's the stuff that holiday dreams are made of. There's even an oversized brick fireplace inside the bank barn—the perfect place to gather for hot chocolate after a brisk day of snow-shoeing around the 12.5 private acres.
If the house seems out of another world, that's because it hails from the mid 18th-century and was, in fact, not even built as a house. Originally a barn, it was converted to a home by a mill owner named Samuel Reynolds (the mill pond still exists in a picturesque meadow across the street). In the early 20th century, the home gained national significance when it was purchased by Harry Scherman, who founded the Book-of-the-Month Club and is said to have hosted many a notable author inside these walls. The current owners have respected the history of the "Reynolds-Scherman House" by outfitting it in Early American antiques that appear to have been there from the beginning. We wouldn't change a thing.
71 Hardscrabble Road is on the market for $1,049,000 (contract is currently pending). For more information, visit Sotheby's International Realty.
Writer Elizabeth Finkelstein is a self-proclaimed old house addict on a lifelong hunt for her perfect historic home. From big Victorian fixer-uppers to tiny colonials to mid-century modern masterpieces, Elizabeth believes that the best homes show the charm of having been loved over time. She chronicles it all on her website CIRCA Old Houses, which showcases beautiful old houses for sale across the country. See more at CircaOldHouses.com.
