BY MARILYN M. GRUBE

Special to The Pilot

The Camellia Cottage in the historic village of Pinehurst may never reveal her secrets, according to Kay Lund of the Tufts Archives.

Real property records establish that it was built on one acre of land in 1930. After that, visitors on the Kitchens . . . and Moore home tour can let their imaginations run wild.

Interior designer Johnsye White has spent a lot of time thinking about the cottage's past. She points out load-bearing walls that may once have marked the exterior of a smaller cottage and how she thinks the entry has been realigned. She likes the quirky and kooky aspects of working with cottages, that certain floors slope and that some corners aren't necessarily square.

Mostly, White believes in "being true to the house." She has lots of experience with cottages in the village, estimating that a quarter of her interior design business is spent with older properties. In this case, her clients, who wish to remain anonymous, sought to emulate the clubhouse feel of The Carolina and The Holly.

The shingled cottage and its detached garage are situated in the middle of a grassy lot bounded by a scalloped white picket fence. Pines were cleared from the lot long ago, leaving mature hardwood trees and under-story dogwoods, Japanese maples and mature foundation plants to thrive. Old brick paths add character to the entry.

The structures are visually connected through the use of off-white shingles and by six separate porticos shading the exterior decking. The double-car garage could one day accommodate guest quarters upstairs, but for now simply provides an interesting focal point with its second story balcony.

Wayne Haddock, of Pinehurst Homes, did the renovation work, including taking the bathrooms down to the studs. Running through the center of the cottage are the entry, kitchen and dining areas. On one side are guest quarters and on the other side a sitting room, small office, laundry room and, White's favorite, the master bedroom and bath.

In the heart of the cottage, the kitchen sports a Wolf stove, a Bosch dishwasher and a French-door Kitchen-Aid refrigerator. Countertops are Bianco Gita granite, which mimics the look of marble. The backsplash itself is marble and features a basket weave design behind the stove. Ample pantries hide behind doors flanking the refrigerator.

Here caterers from The Fresh Market's European Delicatessen will serve visitors as part of The Fresh Market's continuing support of community initiatives. Expect a taste of Fresh Market Italian soda and a sample of enticing hors d'oeuvres.

The master suite is roomy and uncluttered. A flat screen television is mounted so that it rotates 180 degrees for comfortable viewing from the sitting area or from the luxuriously dressed king-sized bed. The bath boasts a silver claw-footed tub, a walk-in shower, water closet and glass pulls on the vanity.

In view on the porch is a line of white Pinehurst Presidential rockers, a tribute to the Pinehurst Resort's rockers. Installing ceiling fans was difficult because there is limited headroom under the porch overhang, but was accomplished with flush mounted ceiling fans called "huggers."

Of architectural interest are the exposed beam and bead ceilings elevating the entry, dining area and master bedroom and the period detailing in the crown molding. Interior doors, some quaintly narrow, were replaced with custom five-panel doors and period hardware.

A decorating challenge for White was the fact that the cottage has more exterior glass-paneled doors than windows. Most rooms have at least one exterior door, but not all rooms have windows. Plantation shutters for the doors as well as the windows unobtrusively unify the look.

The cottage is now brightened with carefully selected period sconces, light fixtures and canned lights. An easy palette of historic color flows from one room to the next. The original fir flooring was lightened to show the grain.

Local trompe l'oeil painter Charles Goforth added artful touches to a distressed mirror in the entry, a faux-painted "linen striae" vanity in the master bath, a distressed vanity in the guest bath and by distressing the black "furniture cabinet" in the kitchen.

At her clients' request, White supplemented their furnishings with deep-seated, masculine club chairs and a mix of antique and reproduction furniture, such as the "circa 1880" two over four chest in the sitting room. She softened the look with vegetable-dyed Pakistani rugs and colorful area rugs cut and bound to fit the space. For the decks, she found polypropylene outdoor rugs resembling sisal.

Among White's decorating tricks, a visitor will notice old flower market containers used as trashcans, worn books providing elevation for objects on display, a well-tarnished silver ice bucket put to use as a vase and semi-custom linens gracing the beds. White, who has been designing in Moore County since 1998, reveals her background as an art teacher with her artwork selections, particularly botanicals, displayed throughout the cottage.

The hostess-in-charge will be talented stitcher and crafter Dora Ann Maness, a resident of Carthage, who lived on Dundee Road in the 1950s.

The Moore County Extension and Community Association, Inc sponsors the Kitchens . . . and Moore tour. The proceeds will benefit the Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina Inc. and other local youth programs.

Other participants in the benefit tour are Lloyd Allen and Diane Anello, of Pinewild, paired with Sandhills Farm to Table; Tom and Kathleen Oleson, of CCNC, joined by The Sly Fox; Arlene and Bob Knapp matched with Elliott's on Linden; Dale and Linda DeBrine, of Seven Lakes West, accompanied by Green Gate Gourmet; and, Sonya and Tim Koehler, also of Seven Lakes West, with tastings provided by The Bonefish Grill.

Tours begin at 10 a.m. at The Village Chapel, Pinehurst, where brochures and tickets will be available and refreshments will be served.

Tickets will also be available at each house on the day of the tour for $20. Advance tickets may be purchased for $15 from the Faded Rose, Daphne's Hallmark, Seagrove Candle Company, Phoenix Fashions, and the Cooperative Extension Office at the Moore County Agriculture Building in Carthage.

For more information, call the Moore County Cooperative Extension Office at (910) 947-3188.