An Exclusive Look Inside Jeff Devlin’s Sycamore & Stone In Chester Springs

by Melissa Jacobs

Want to stay at Jeff Devlin’s house? Now you can. The Inn at Sycamore & Stone Farm is a 4-bedroom house that Devlin restored himself. Sycamore & Stone boasts all of the historic charm – from original wood to handmade latches – that viewers fell in love with on “Stone House Revival,” the TV show that Devlin hosted for four seasons.

Stepping inside Sycamore & Stone feels like walking into an episode of “Stone House.” Devlin handmade the kitchen cabinets and dining room table, and painted art that hangs on one of the bedroom walls. And, he picked out all of the house’s accessories, from furniture to knickknacks, bed sheets to towels, some of which come from his own home.

The Barn at Sycamore + Stone sits a few yards away from the farmhouse and boasts a magical retail space filled with goods made by local artisans and vendors. The barn also hosts craft-oriented workshops, from watercolor painting to charcuterie board curation – and can host a private party.

“This is almost exactly what I imagined it could be,” Devlin said. “My staff is excellent and we share the same philosophy, which is to make good things and connect with other people who do the same. And the Air B+B house makes me happy every time I step inside it.”

Except, it almost didn’t happen. In 2021, the property’s owners contacted Devlin about architectural salvage they had for sale. Devlin stopped by – and fell in love with the place. “The main house hadn’t been touched,” he said. “The floors are original chestnut wood and were not touched by carpeting, nor were the walls. It had good bones and was taken care of. It was a beautiful house.”

The owners told Devlin that they were selling the property. It was going on the market the next day. Devlin made an offer on the spot. “No questions asked, no inspection, no hesitation,” he said. “I told them my offer – and it was the full price the owners were asking.”

But they rejected it. “I was devastated,” Devlin said. “I thought that owning the property – renovating it and turning the barn into my workspace – was what I was meant to do. It felt like the right thing.”

A month later, Devlin got a call. The potential buyers’ deal collapsed. Was Devlin still interested in the property? “I said yes. Big yes. All the way yes.”

After Devlin announced the purchase, network honchos at Magnolia contacted him. “They wanted to film the process of us restoring it and I said yes to that, too,” he remembered. “It was a rare, weird moment. Not because of the renovations, but because it was my own home. I was the client. I only had to communicate with myself. Which is not as easy as it sounds.”

Jeff Devlin credits his wife Janelle with keeping him on track and relatively sane. With Magnolia filming the entire process, Devlin and his team replaced all of the electric and plumbing. They moved the kitchen from the back of the house to the front. Devlin built the kitchen’s pine cabinetry and the pine table that stands in the dining room. The dining room also has a fireplace, chipped by Devlin’s son.

As they worked, Devlin began to suspect that the house was older than the  1806 date he’d been given as its establishment. He spotted craftsmanship techniques and materials that pre-dated the Revolutionary War. A deep dive into Chester County records showed that Devlin was right.

The house dates to 1735, when it had been The Drover’s Inn, so named for the people who drove cattle and other livestock from Reading through Chester County to Philadelphia. They stayed in the inn and penned their livestock in the surrounding acreage. In 1806, Drover’s Inn became Rising Sun Tavern, which Devlin delightfully described as “one step above a whore house.”

With the house renovations done, Jeff Devlin, his wife and their team moved on to the barn. The structure was sagging, all of the stone walls were covered and some flooring needed to be replaced, as did most of the electrical. “But she’s a beauty,” Devlin said. “We just had to bring her back to her glory.”

There’s still more to be done. Devlin plans to refinish the barn’s floors and rework the basement, which leads to a big outdoor space. Devlin envisions it as a space that could host some of the markets and events that now take place inside the barn.

And there’s a third structure: the dilapidated building that stands near the  farmhouse. “It was a distillery that became a boarding home for girls who rode horses on the property,” Devlin said. “We’re not going to turn it back into a distillery. But it could become a new workshop for me. I’m already imagining what it could be.”

Want to read more about Jeff Devlin? Read our exclusive interview here. For more information about the Air B+B, store and workshops, visit Sycamore & Stone’s website.

---

Connect with Main Line Tonight!

• Facebook
• Instagram
• LinkedIn