A sprawling hilltop home on Pevans Parkway brimming with art, antiques and spectacular city views could be the jewel of this year's Homes for the Holidays tour.
The tour, presented each year by the Black Hills Symphony League, is the league's largest annual fundraiser. This year's event will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 9. The tour features five homes, including the Pevans Parkway house.
The home, owned by Constance Lane and David Cameron, includes three levels, mother-in-law quarters and a guest house on nearly seven acres. The six-bedroom home, upstairs and down, and guest house all should be open to tourgoers, Lane said.
"Each room has personality. It's a humongous house, but it doesn't give you that feel," said Lane, describing the house she and her husband bought three years ago.
Lane and Cameron cherish family history, and much of the cozy charm of their house comes from heirlooms and memorabilia on display in every room. Along with an assortment of vintage photographs and such unusual pieces as a large 100-year-old tapestry, the home abounds with the couple's unique collections.
Just inside the front door, tourgoers can take in the couple's floor-to-ceiling library, which was custom-designed in part to hold many books Lane has inherited. Upstairs, in Cameron's office, a collection of religious icons reflects the years he served as an Episcopal priest.
Lane's mother, Frances, was a prolific painter whose watercolors grace several rooms. Cameron's mother, a consummate Southern hostess who owned 40 sets of china, also collected spoons. The spoons, some of which date to the 1800s, are framed and now hang in Lane and Cameron's dining room.
In the music room, a piano, Cameron's guitar and a Native American flute he was given are on display, along with gilt furnishings the couple bought because the pieces are reminiscent of furniture that Cameron's mother owned.
In the guest rooms, Lane mixes funky modern textures, such as leather pillows and window coverings, with collections of antiques. "We have both of our childhood bedroom sets, which I think is unusual," Lane said.
Lane and Cameron's home also serves as a gallery for their art collection, which includes kachina dolls and other Native American art, and work by James Van Nuys, Jon Crane, Paul Jones and Cameron himself. A not-to-be missed piece, which resembles a painting but is created out of wood by artist Kalman Radvanyi, hangs near the entrance to the home's kitchen.
During the holidays, even more collectibles - treasured ornaments and decorations - are on display. The house overflows with Christmas trees inside and out. Lane stores some fully decorated, ready to pull out of her large storeroom when the Christmas season begins.
Tourgoers also will want to take time to enjoy the beauty outside the house. Day or night, expansive views of trees and the city can be enjoyed from many rooms in the couple's home.
"So many of the rooms have an amazing view. It's marvelous," Lane said. "(At night, we like to) turn the lights off and watch the moon rise and see the city sparkle. … We get sunrises that are inspiring. I like to get up … and watch the sun rise."
Their spacious house, with abundant room for cherished heirlooms and family, is just right for what Lane calls "South Dakota hospitality."
During the holidays, there is plenty of space for the couple's blended family of six children to stay, and during the fall, groups of hunters sometimes visit. "It has been wonderful," Lane said. "At Christmas time when I want to invite half the church over, it works. The house is allowing us to do so many nice things. … This house allows us to really entertain."
The featured homes
The Pevans Parkway home is one of the five Rapid City area homes that will be showcased for this year's Home for the Holidays tour. Each home on the tour will be decorated for the holidays by local businesses. Homes featured this year are:
* 1607 Pevans Parkway, decorated by Cobbled Rue Interieurs by Stratman and Flowers by LeRoy
* 23451 Peregrine Point, decorated by The Journey Museum Store, The Quilt Connection Etc. and Cheryl Rudel of Simply Wonderful
* 1330 West Blvd., decorated by hobbyist Patrick Simmons
* 1621 West Blvd., decorated by symphony league members
* 4059 Valley West Drive, decorated by Freed's Fine Furnishings and Victoria's Garden
If you go
What: Home for the Holidays Tour, presented by the Black Hills Symphony League
When: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 9; Sneak A Peek is from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8
Admission: Tickets for the tour are $12 if bought in advance. Tickets are on sale now at Bella Patina, Flowers by LeRoy, The Quilt Connection Etc., Someone's in the Kitchen, The Journey Museum Store, Family Thrift Center West and East, Cobbled Rue, Batchelder's Music, Victoria's Garden and Haggerty's Musicworks. Tickets may be bought the day of the tour at any home (except 1330 West Blvd.) for $15.
Sneak A Peek: Back by popular demand, the Black Hills Symphony League will present Sneak A Peek from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8. The tour homes will be open for a special preview, followed by wine tasting from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Canyon Lake Chophouse.
Donations for Sneak A Peek are by Dr. Tim J. Watt, Canyon Lake Resort, United Corporations, Judy Krull and Smith's Liquor Gallery. Floral arrangements at the wine tasting will be provided by Flowers by LeRoy. There will be a special drawing for a door prize donated by Landstrom's Jewelry. Later in the evening, a live auction will include the following items: two nights at a Terry Peak Cabin, a wine basket, a Harley-Davidson collectible knife, window washing, Christmas light hanging, personal training and Native American art. Tickets for Sneak A Peek, which include the tour and wine tasting, are $60 and are available at Bella Patina, Flowers by LeRoy, The Quilt Connection Etc., Someone's in the Kitchen, The Journey Museum Store, Family Thrift Center West and East, Victoria's Garden, Cobbled Rue, Batchelder's Music and Haggerty's Musicworks.
