For years, Debbie Rankin took notes of the birds and other creatures that visited and inhabited her Marietta garden. Rankin originally did it for personal use – to remember and pass along when she was older – and filed them away.
Then the “aha” moment hit: She realized a few years ago, when reading a book to kids, that she could share her true nature stories with young readers. A children’s book series named after her “Cottage in the Park” was born.
The grounds are full of native plants and heirloom transplants, pathways that roam through the woodlands and spots to watch birds and squirrels. Like the inside of her Cape Cod home, the garden has a free-form nature, Rankin said, that creates a comfortable setting for visitors and inspires her tales.
Snapshot
Residents: Ed and Debbie Rankin and Korat cats, Churchill and Sadie. Rankin is author of the "Cottage In the Park" series.
Location: Marietta
Size: About 3,000 square feet, four bedrooms, two baths
Year built and bought: 1978
Architectural style: Cape Cod
Favorite architectural element: Cozy, individual rooms that flow well, Debbie Rankin said.
Renovations: New flooring, siding and appliances
Interior design style: Traditional
Favorite interior design elements: Family pieces and antique furniture, including the dining room table and sideboard, beds, chests, desks, a corner cabinet, lamps and chairs. They also have reproductions of family pieces that were destroyed in a fire in the late '50s.
Favorite room: Den/office, which has a view of the woods and antique furnishings
Favorite piece of furniture: An 1850 early American pine cupboard from North Carolina
Favorite collection: Whimsical blown glass pieces – including small frogs, turtles and lizards, each with a Santa Claus hat – from Bermuda
Favorite outdoor features: Their English-style garden is in a woodland setting. The garden has various pathways, a bridge, bird pond, native plants (azaleas, camellias, hydrangeas and butterfly bushes) and trees including oaks, maples, sourwood, poplars and pines. Debbie Rankin said that over more than 30 years, she and her husband have created a private sanctuary that attracts children and about every animal known to exist in their area. The couple also has transplanted these and other items from Rankin family properties in North Carolina: a flowering pearlbush, Rose of Sharon, daylillies, phlox, Confederate Violet, surprise lilies and several varieties of daffodils and mums dating back to the 1920s.
Decor tip: Let your surroundings speak for who you are and what makes you happy, said Debbie Rankin.
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