Spicewood is where our studio is, and it's a place of opposites: Lake Travis waterfront on one side of Highway 71, ranch land and the Pedernales on the other. River Jane & Co. is an interior designer based right here in 78669, working on lake homes, ranch houses and everything between. Call for a free 15 minute chat and we'll take it from there.
- From our studio
- Right here in Spicewood
- First step
- A free 15 minute call
- Consultation
- About an hour, in your home or virtual, depending on the project
- Design Strategy
- From $999, plan in 7 to 14 days
- Call or text
- 512-883-3767
Lake side and ranch side
Spicewood doesn't have one kind of house. North of 71, toward the lake, you get Lakecliff, Barton Creek Lakeside, Windermere Oaks and the streets around Spicewood Beach, with lake views, docks and the glare that comes with them. South and west, it opens into ranch land along the Pedernales, Paleface Ranch Road and out toward Round Mountain, where the house might be a mile down a caliche road.
The lake houses ask for durability and sun control. The ranch houses ask for warmth, storage and porches you can live on. A lot of people here have both at once: a lake view and a few acres, a boat and a horse trailer. The plan has to handle both.
Limestone, cedar and iron
The materials are right outside. Pale limestone, cedar, live oak and weathered steel show up on Spicewood exteriors for a reason, and they work inside too. A limestone fireplace, white oak floors, iron hardware and linen upholstery will look right here for decades.
The trick is restraint. One strong natural material per room carries more weight than five competing ones. If the fireplace is rough stone, let the counters stay simple. If the ceiling has exposed beams, skip the reclaimed wood accent wall. Our stone fireplace ideas article goes deeper on working with stone.
Plenty of Spicewood homes from the 1990s and 2000s went heavy on dark wood, Tuscan colors and busy granite. Keeping the stone and lightening everything around it is usually the fastest way to make one of those houses feel current.
Ranch houses that need more light
Deep porches keep ranch houses cool, and they also keep them dark. Add small windows, a low ceiling in the den and a lot of wood paneling, and the inside can feel like a cave at 2 pm. You don't have to lose the porch to fix it.
Paint does the most for the least. Warm whites on the walls, a lighter ceiling, and paneling painted or washed instead of left dark. Then layer the lighting: lamps in every corner, picture lights on the art, and fixtures that bounce light up instead of only pointing down. Where the budget allows, a bigger window or a pair of glass doors onto the porch changes everything.
- Test paint colors on every wall of the room, not only the sunny one.
- Choose a rug lighter than the floor to bounce light back up.
- Put the brightest lamp in the darkest corner.
Designed down the road
Because the studio is in Spicewood, we know how the light moves across these hills in July versus January. We also make our own window treatments. The Shade Haus is our shade line: cordless Roman and roller shades from $299 a window, motorized from $399 a window, with dual shades available for bedrooms.
For most people, the first paid step is a Design Strategy, from $999 per room. If your house is on the lake, read our guide to lake house interior design on Lake Travis. Neighbors in Briarcliff and Horseshoe Bay have their own pages too.
