A Guide to Fall Home Tours

By Kathleen Hom
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 10, 2009

Here is a roundup of some of the Washington area's home and garden tours this fall:

-- Docents lead visitors through formal gardens during the Fall Garden Tours at Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. Through Nov. 14, Tuesday through Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Sept. 20 at 2:30 p.m. 4155 Linnean Ave. NW, 202-686-5807, http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org. Tour is included with the suggested donation of $12, $10 age 65 and older, $7 college students, $5 ages 6 to 18.

-- Brookside Gardens invites visitors to explore its late-season gardens during one of its Autumn Walks. Saturday, Sept. 26 and 29, and Oct. 10, 13 and 24. All tours start at 2 p.m. 1800 Glenallan Ave., Wheaton, 301-962-1400, http://www.brooksidegardens.org. Free.

-- A landmark in Howard County called Walnut Grove has been turned into Historic Ellicott City's Decorator Show House. The stone home, built around 1780, features 20 design spaces. Sept. 19 to Oct. 18, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. 5192 Sheppard Lane, Ellicott City, 410-461-6908, http://www.historicec.com. $15 in advance, $20 on tour days.

-- Visit the Woodrow Wilson House, the French ambassador's residence, the Embassy of Portugal and more during the 25th annual Kalorama House and Embassy Tour. The self-guided tour is Sept. 20 from noon to 5 p.m. 202-387-4062, http://www.woodrowwilsonhouse.org. $25 in advance, $30 on tour day.

-- Ten homes will be open to the public for Ocean City's Sand Castle Home Tour. The homes, in West Ocean City and outside Berlin, vary in size and style. Sept. 24 and 25, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. 410-524-9433, http://www.artleagueofoceancity.org. $25 for both days.

-- "Potomac Fever" is the theme of the Washington Design Center's Fall Design House. Each of the home's eight rooms will be decorated to represent different historic areas of the city, such as U Street, LeDroit Park, Georgetown and Capitol Hill. Sept. 25 to Dec. 12, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 300 D St. SW, 202-646-6100, http://www.dcdesigncenter.com. Free.

-- Fourteen local designers have transformed the rectory of the Church of the Holy Trinity into the Country Rectory Showhouse. The 19th-century waterfront home is open Sept. 26 and 30, and Oct. 1 to 3, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sept. 27 and Oct. 4, noon to 4 p.m.

502 S. Morris St., Oxford, Md. 410-226-5400. $20.

-- Docents will lead tours of Quaker buildings, Victorian homes and Federal brick houses during the Waterford Homes Tour and Crafts Exhibit in Loudoun County. Five different homes will be open each of the three days. The craft exhibit will feature 155 artisans. Oct. 2 to 4, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 540-882-3018, http://www.waterfordfoundation.org. $13 per day before Sept. 21, $25 for two-day ticket before Sept. 21, $15 per day on tour days.

-- See solar hot-water systems, photovoltaic panels, alternative fuel stoves and other green features on the Solar Tour of Homes, which includes more than 60 sites in the D.C. area. Oct. 3 and 4, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 202-564-1088, http://www.solartour.org. Visitors must have a Tour Guide for admission into the homes; download it free from the Web site or pay $5 for a copy at the stores listed on the site.

-- At the Potomac Country House Tour, visit four homes, including a French Provincial manor house with a 3,200-bottle wine cellar, and a renovated townhouse filled with antiques and artwork. Oct. 3 and 4, noon to 5 p.m. 301-365-2055, http://www.potomaccountryhousetour.org. $20 in advance, $25 on tour days.

-- Among the 12 sites in the Dupont Circle House Tour are the Denman-Werlich House, decorated in Richardsonian Romanesque style; a Louis XV-style home; and a secret garden. The tour focuses on 16th Street NW, which is nicknamed the Street of Presidents. Tour participants are invited for tea at the former residence of newspaper heiress Cissy Patterson, now home of the Washington Club. Oct. 18, noon to 5 p.m. 202-431-9254, http://www.dupont-circle.org. $25 in advance, $30 on tour day.

-- Walk through five private homes during the Reston Home Tour. Visitors can also stop by the Fairfax Hunt Club for a cooking demonstration and tasting. Oct. 17, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 703-709-7700, http://www.restonmuseum.org. $25 before Oct. 10, $30 after and online.

-- The Washington National Cathedral's All Hallows Guild, an organization that preserves and maintains the cathedral's grounds, is holding a Woods Walk on Nov. 5, starting at 10 a.m. Participants will study native plants, such as the Virginia sweetspire, fragrant sumac and American yellowwood, pointed out by staff horticulturist Maureen Alonso. Bring waterproof shoes for strolling through the All Hallows Guild Amphitheater and Olmsted Woods. Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues NW. 202-537-2319, http://www.cathedral.org/ahg. Free.