Getaway inn
When Sharlene and Brian Scott found the perfect spot to build their bed and breakfast, they had to keep something in mind. They needed a place big enough to hold their antiques. “One idea was to have people step back in time, to an era when things were softer, gentler,” Sharlene Scott said. “To a time when the pace of life was slower.” In essence, she wanted her guests to be able to kick back, relax and say, “Ahh. Now I’m on vacation.”
Visitors can take a quick step back in time on Sunday when the Scotts’ American Country Bed & Breakfast in Coeur d’Alene joins in the annual North Idaho Bed & Breakfast Association Spring Tour. Nine North Idaho inns will open their doors to the public for this free, self-guided tour.
The Scotts’ 4,000-square-foot inn, which opened in January 2006, features four guest rooms, an open kitchen, two dining areas and a large great room. The 5-acre parcel, located southeast of Coeur d’Alene off Highland Drive, also features three RV sites and soon will be home to an area specifically designed for wedding ceremonies. The couple’s living quarters are situated above the garage and are separate from the guest rooms.
The Scotts’ extensive antique collection is spread throughout the house, but the bulk of the collection has found a home in the great room.
“Shar’s good at decorating, so that helps immensely,” Brian Scott said.
Indeed, the great room resembles a well-stocked antique shop. Or, rather, a vintage American general store.
An 8-foot grain counter — now used to display a variety of candies — sets the theme. The counter is surrounded by a number of antique confectionary boxes. The Scotts even have a can of Bunte brand marshmallows dating from the 1880s, complete with the original contents. “They’re hard as a rock,” Sharlene Scott said. “But they still smell like marshmallows.”
A beautifully restored 5-foot-tall hand-cranked Star Mill coffee grinder is among the prizes of the couple’s collection. It sits between the great room and one of the two dining rooms. High shelves in the great room are filled with the Scotts’ treasures, ranging from vintage Calumet baking soda, coffee and Quaker Oats tins to the helmet Sharlene Scott’s father wore as a volunteer firefighter and the colander her mother used to make preserves.
The country store theme, turns out, comes naturally to Sharlene Scott. Shopkeepers run in her mother’s family, all the way back to the 1700s. One of her prized pieces, a clock with the Calumet baking powder logo, used to hang in her great-grandfather’s store.
The guest rooms all are decorated with a theme, and each has a private bathroom. The Big Sweet has decorative — but inedible — candies and confections, as well as a private patio. The Greenery features decorative vines painted on the walls. The Holidaze is decked out with rich, Christmasy red and gold linens, but accented with seasonal touches. Upstairs, the Nest offers a large sanctuary with views in four directions. At 1,000 square feet, it’s the largest guest room in the inn.
When it comes to breakfast, the Scotts’ open kitchen offers something unusual in the B&B world. Billed on their Web site as the “kitchen dance,” guests get to watch as the Scotts work in tandem to prepare the morning meal.
“Some guests like to come in and help cook,” Sharlene Scott said.
“You don’t often see a six-sided kitchen.”