Unionville in Summer

Last year I did a post on Unionville, the original set of the hit TV show Gilmore Girls. Little did I know that it would become one of my most viewed posts. The pictures that I used were from Christmastime and while the town is very pretty in the winter, it is absolutely gorgeous in the summer. This quaint town, which was founded in 1794, is a popular location for film and television productions and just last week, John Stamos (Uncle Jesse from Full House) was spotted filming a murder mystery.

For those of you who are fans of Gilmore Girls, you might recognize that building down the street.

Any guesses?

It’s the original set for Luke’s Diner. When the show moved to LA, they changed the look slightly, but kept some of these shots in the opening credits.

Nowadays it is a dress shop, but I’ll always think of it as Luke’s Diner.

I’ve always admired the glass paneling above the bay windows. The light bounces off of it beautifully in the evening when the streetlights come on.

Another shop that is often shown in the background is this quaint little building.

You can see it here in the first episode of Gilmore Girls.

I absolutely love this town and always have a great time walking around looking at the older homes. Seeing as so many of you enjoy charming places like this too, I thought I’d bring you along for a little tour and show you how great it looks in the summer (not that it doesn’t look equally charming in winter!).

Walking up the street from Luke’s Diner, there is this sweet little shop with an adorable white picket fence and a sweet little porch.

Wouldn’t you just love to sit on this rocking chair with a nice cup of tea? I also adore that ruby red door and the symmetry of the two large bay windows.

Almost every home boasts its own charming architectural features. From the large porch to the beautiful window frames and even the whimsical pitched roof, this sunny home is incredibly inviting.

Some homes have a much more regal touch with expertly manicured lawns and striking features, like the Juliet balcony of this two storey house.

One of my favourite houses on the Main Street is this historical home that has been very well maintained. It is currently for sale for over $800,000. A little too steep for me, but I can still admire it from the sidewalk.

Aside from the great contrast of the black shutters, my favorite feature of this house is the big barn doors that are at every entrance.

Another heartwarming home is this colourful old farmhouse, with its welcoming front porch. I happened to be walking by right when it looked like they were having a big cocktail party out back. It’s nice to see a great home being put to such good use.

Another highlight of the architecture in Unionville is the striking churches. In the previous post, I showed the church that was used in Gilmore Girls, but there are many other beautifully designed churches throughout the historic town.

Continuing down the road, there are almost too many great houses to keep myself focused. Poor Garrett was walking Whiskey and he had to put up with me stopping every two seconds to take another picture.

Some of the homes are absolutely massive, with many additions that have been added on over the years.

  Aside from the multiple large porches and a glassed-in sunroom, this one has two large garages, a guest house and several storeys.

It also had a quirky little mailbox to boot.

This house reminds me a of something The Addams Family would have, with its Mansard roof and Victorian Second Empire style. Why is it that houses like this always remind me of monster movies?

Garrett really loved all the great garages (no joke) because he’d like to convert one into a home gym someday. I loved them because of the great little windows above the doors. It’s nice to see this style is starting to come back.

Aside from garages, he also liked the porch swings, which I’m happy to agree on. This one looked perfect for sitting and watching the sunset.

Other porches had lovely Muskoka chairs (or Adirondack chairs for all you Americans).

Another wonderful feature of these properties are the expansive gardens. They really put my little city garden to shame. I’d love to have the time (and energy) to create something like this someday.

As we wound our way back around to the Main Street we started to see more homes that had been converted into storefronts (just like the antique store in the actual show Gilmore Girls).

It’s great to see these homes get new jobs as businesses and see them still so well maintained. The historical society here is very strict about keeping the buildings looking good and maintaining the look of a certain time period.

The town really strives to keep its historic charm and you can see it in all the little details that they put into it.

Even the train station has been maintained to still have that old look and feel.

This more modern complex is actually a strip mall full of hair dressers, convenience stores and even a florist where I was able to pick up some flowers to take to a friend. I’d much rather see stores looking like this than all those big box monstrosities you see popping up everywhere.

If we’d had more time (and didn’t have the dog), I’d have loved to go into more shops and maybe even visit one of these patios for a drink. Garrett and I decided that our next dinner date should be up here, watching the sunset over the village.

We already know that we’ll be able to take a lovely post-dinner walk around town and enjoy the sights. Maybe I can even check out some of the decor stores to find some inspiration.

…or pick up some craft supplies. How cute is this knitting store?

If you’re ever in the Toronto area, I highly recommend taking a tour north of the city to Unionville and stopping in for a quick lunch on the Main Street. It’s absolutely adorable, whether it’s in the summer or in the winter! All I know is that this has given me a real itch to watch some old Gilmore Girl episodes.