Tour this and other stunning private homes in the historic Garden District during the PRC’s 50th annual Holiday Home Tour presented by McEnery Residential on Dec. 13 & 14.
Click here for tickets and tour details.
Will Erickson and Philips Wood had strolled past the Italianate camelback at 1133 Eighth Street plenty of times before deciding to call it home.
It was right around the corner from Erickson’s previous house and had been on the market for a while, but it wasn’t until the couple started looking for a new place together that Erickson, co-owner of Yazoo Restorations, stepped in for a tour and recognized its potential.
“He would see things that I wouldn’t see,” Wood said. “I just remember looking at it and being like, ‘You want this?’”
The home was built in 1869, Erickson said, and has all original flooring, windows, mantels, fireplaces and several doors. Since purchasing the property in 2019, the pair has made significant cosmetic changes to the home, while honoring its structural integrity.
Despite having different aesthetics, Erickson and Wood have seamlessly merged their individual collections of Italian and English antiques and family heirlooms to create a space that is distinctly theirs.
“I like traditional with a sense of humor,” Wood said, gesturing to a Roman bust dressed as Maverick from Top Gun. “I would say I casualized you a little and you dressed me up a little,” he said to Erickson.
Throughout the decoration process, they worked closely with their friend and local interior designer, Ware Porter of Ware M Porter & Co., to strike a balance between their tastes.
1133 Eighth St. (Photos by Liz Jurey)
Most of the home’s neutral pieces are Erickson’s, while the pops of color are courtesy of Wood. At the center of it all is Huck, their chocolate King Charles Spaniel, who even has his own portrait.
That same playful mix of personalities carries through the rest of the house. From wallpapered ceilings to paint checkered floors, no surface is off limits.
In their library, they’ve transformed cypress cupboards into twin bars, one illuminated by a neon cocktail sign by Nate Sheaffer. Across the room is a green floor-to-ceiling bookcase brimming with family photos, mementos and an ever-growing book collection.
“I think we’ve maxed it out,” Erickson said.
It’s hard to choose, but Wood admits his favorite room is the guest room. It’s enveloped in an Indian mural from the Paul Montgomery Studio, and anchored by a wrought iron bedframe designed by Mario Villa, one that Erickson had since before they moved in.
“You mix the old with the new. That was my granddad’s little student desk when he was at West Point,” Wood said about the old-school pupil desk facing one scene of the wall’s detailed murals.
They originally bought the home as a four-bedroom, four-bathroom property but have since reimagined the layout. The upstairs camelback, once a separate apartment unit, is now their primary bedroom, fit with a walk-in closet and en-suite bathroom. Original plasterwork also helps insulate noise, which is important when Wood, who owns a marketing business, is up late working.
Even in the heart of the Garden District, the home offers a sense of privacy and quiet, ideal for both a cozy night in or grandiose celebrations.
“We do love to entertain and with a house like this, you really should because you have to use your space in these older houses,” Wood said.
