HIGHER GROUND
By Blake Miller; Photography by Perry Vaile
This article appeared in the March/April 2026 issue of Home Design & Decor’s Triangle edition.
A Raleigh couple discovers their forever home in western North Carolina, where history, landscape, and personal meaning converge in a beautifully crafted retreat.
The first piece of land Perry Vaile and her husband, Shawn Adams, fell for seemed almost too idyllic to pass up. Nestled in a quiet valley at the foot of Chimney Rock and edged by a gently winding river, the setting had an undeniable romance. “It was like something out of a postcard,” Vaile, a photographer, recalls. “The land truly felt like a dream.” Yet alongside its beauty came hesitation. Building so close to the water raised concerns, particularly given the region’s history. “We learned the area had experienced mudslides in the past, and after researching further, it became clear the property was more vulnerable than we initially realized.”
The couple, who reside primarily in Raleigh, forewent purchasing the land—a move Vaile says was a blessing considering what took place in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in fall 2024—and instead went up the mountains to Burnsville, North Carolina, about forty-five minutes from Linville. Fifteen acres of land atop the mountain were for sale, and while the MLS listing wasn’t terribly intriguing, with photos of the undeveloped land, the couple decided to look at it anyway.
What they found was a dream in the sky. “We pulled up and immediately, that view was breathtaking,” says Vaile. “We never planned on purchasing this much land and building our own home, but the moment we saw the view of the mountains, we knew we had to have it.”
Though they had originally planned to wait several years before building, Vaile began quietly reaching out to architects and builders to better understand what it might take to realize their dream home. With a master’s degree in historic preservation, she was intent on creating a residence that felt authentic to its surroundings rather than imposed upon them. Years spent photographing weddings at The Inn at Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina had left her especially drawn to the community’s thoughtfully planned, historically inspired low-country architecture. That admiration led her to Historical Concepts—the firm behind many of Palmetto Bluff’s architectural plans. Once the couple landed on architectural plans that felt harmonious with the mountain setting, patience gave way to excitement, and they decided to break ground.
The cabin’s architecture is deeply rooted in its surroundings. In the late 1800s, architect Henry Bacon popularized bark siding in Linville, North Carolina, leaving an enduring mark on both private residences and the storied Eseeola Lodge. Honoring this local heritage, Vaile incorporated bark siding to ground the home in its history and landscape. “I really wanted to preserve some of the local vernacular in the design,” Vaile explains. The couple even designed and installed their own stream to wind through the yard, a nod to the dreamy piece of land they forwent in favor of this new mountain-view lot. Inside, she let her passion for design, color, and pattern take center stage, thoughtfully shaping each space with intention and style.
“I always like to honor the location when I’m designing my personal home,” explains Vaile, who adds that their Raleigh home boasts high ceilings and “lots of color.” But with this mountain home, there’s so much color and nature outside that I knew it needed darker jewel tones. It just felt like the right thing.” Leaning into heavy pattern and a warm, dark color palette, Vaile drew inspiration from her travels, as well, installing the very same Sandberg wallpaper she saw in the Highlander Mountain House’s guest room into her owner’s bedroom. “Some things just stick in your head, and that wallpaper was one of them,” she says. “It inspired the rest of the home’s design.”
Brimming with vintage treasures, layered patterns, and vibrant color, Vaile leaned into the delightfully eccentric to create a home that feels unmistakably warm. Antique doors from The Bank in Louisiana open to a charming pantry, while the sunroom, bathed in natural light and adorned with William Morris wallpaper, cradles a two-century-old quilt, offering a soft and inviting place to linger. Much of the pieces Vaile sourced were from The Find Vintage Warehouse of Burnsville, which washed away during Helene but recently reopened.
Though the family maintains their primary residence in Raleigh, their ultimate dream is to live full-time in the mountains. From their vantage point, seven peaks stretch across the horizon, a constant reminder of the rare beauty they discovered. “This property, this house—it’s far beyond anything we ever imagined when we began our search,” Vaile reflects. “Sometimes it almost doesn’t feel real.”