Five Rainy Day Retreats

Montecito Estate Media Room

Here are five rainy day hangouts, perfect for days like today. If it's cold outside where you are right now, envision yourself relaxing in one of these great spaces...

This pool pavilion has a fireplace, full kitchen, gym and office, perfect for enjoying the outdoors while shielding the rain

This mountain retreat pool house has a cozy stone fireplace, media area and nearby game room

This estate's tower hosts a majestic, hidden dining room with views out over the ocean, valley and surrounding mountains

A Day at the Greystone Mansion

Last Friday, December 2nd, Luxe Interiors + Design magazine put on its "Maison de Luxe" event at the Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills. Twenty-four lauded designers decorated the historic mansion's rooms to their hearts' desires.

We decided it would be a great opportunity to head down to L.A. for the day and check it out. While there, we received a wonderful tour of the mansion's expertly-decorated interiors and attended a lecture featuring four of the designers on the panel.

The over 46,000-square-foot mansion (for comparison, our biggest Montecito estate clocks in at 30,000 sq. ft.) was built in 1928 for the Doheny family on over 18 acres. The property is now a landmark, restored by nonprofit Friends of Greystone with tours and events run by the city's Parks & Recreation Department. Obviously, this estate is truly magnificent, especially what with the internationally-renowned designers having gotten their hands on it.

Here are some photos of our wonderful day there.

Montecito also has some amazing historic homes and estates-- take a look at some of our favorites here.