Dave and Jenny Marrs Take on Their Most Ambitious Renovation Yet

Jenny and Dave Marrs have gone international. Their most ambitious project yet is a centuries-old villa in the Tuscan countryside known as Campo Sasso, which means “the rocky field” in Italian. The name is fitting, seeing as the pair faced a series of rough obstacles while renovating the historic property overseas. But through a language barrier, unfamiliar processes, flight anxiety, limited on-site trips, and lack of sleep, the pair didn’t back down.

The property is a former sharecropping home for a monastery. It’s currently owned by Rebecca Christopherson Gouttenoire and Pierre Gouttenoire who purchased the villa for around €800,000 ($858,000). They enlisted their longtime friends the Marrses to transform it into a vacation rental using the rest of their savings. With an initial budget of €400,000 ($435,000) and a seven-month timeline, the husband-and-wife duo behind HGTV’s Fixer to Fabulous got to work.

Since the Marrses aren’t licensed contractors in Italy, they teamed up with the Florence-based architect André Benaim and project manager Sofia Lalli of Studio Benaim to draw plans, help with permits, and keep the project on track when the Marrses were back home in Bentonville, Arkansas. Local builders were brought on to carry out major updates. The villa, which has good bones made of concrete and stone, needed an overhaul to maximize functionality and appeal. The former stables were turned into a spacious kitchen with ample storage. New terra-cotta and olive wood flooring were installed. Additional windows were created to let in more natural light and reveal countryside views. An en suite was designed for each of the three bedrooms. The Marrses even built a shed for the owners’ sheep.

—Jenny Marrs

Bringing the vision to life meant the Marrses had to build their networks from scratch. Dave explains: “In America, if I need something, I’ve got a subcontractor that I can call. I’ve got a shop that I can go build something in. I know where to go to get the products that I need to get the job done. In Italy, I knew none of that. I was reliant on other people.”

It was the same for Jenny. “I couldn’t ship lights from my normal sources here in America because they wouldn’t be compatible,” she explains, noting that she eventually found some trustworthy vendors within the owners’ tight budget through word of mouth.

To pay homage to the building’s history and surroundings, the Marrses tapped local craftspeople. “Everything we got for the house was handmade, from the windows to the doors, so nothing’s mass-produced,” Dave says. “It’s really cool.”

The home’s showpieces are the cheese and wine cellars. The owners specifically requested a cheese cellar for aging cheese with plans to host tastings and sell it in their Florence-based cheese shop Formaggioteca Terroir. To weave in more Italian tradition, the Marrses constructed a wine storage room with a hole for keeping special bottles and a wine window just beyond it for handing out glasses with gracious pours.

—Dave Marrs

Now, the three-bedroom, four-bathroom retreat is ready to welcome guests who want to embrace slow travel and immerse themselves in the local culture. “Not a lot of people can say, ‘I’ve taken a centuries-old villa in Italy and helped to restore it,’” Dave says. “There were so many days where we were just exhausted, but it was a really amazing experience.”

Jenny agrees, adding that she appreciated the creative challenge. She explains: “You get sort of stuck in a rut when you’re doing the same thing over and over and over, which we’ve been doing for so long. I mean, every house is different. Every house is unique, but you just sort of are like, ‘Okay, I need a little bit of creative inspiration.’ And this project was so challenging, but in a good way… We lived outside of our comfort zone the entire time.”

Another international stint isn’t out of the question. Dave says, “People always ask… ‘Would you do it again?’ Absolutely, I would. I’d go to another country and do it. I would do it again in Italy. There was bad, but there was so much more good.”

Watch the Marrses restore this villa in the six-episode series Fixer to Fabulous: Italiano.

Cheese Room

italian villa

Creating a cheese cellar was a first for the Marrses. “We’re always trying to get rid of moisture in basements, and this was actually reintroducing moisture so you can promote mold to grow to age the cheese,” Dave says. “But you have to do it where you don’t affect the rest of the structure.”

The resulting space can hold up to 40,000 pounds of cheese. Depending on the variety, that could be $50,000 of cheese. Along with the cellar, the Marrses also created a tasting room and cheese preparation station near it.

Kitchen

kitchen

The 210-square-foot kitchen, which was Jenny’s favorite room to transform, used to be a former stable. Part of the original stone walls in the kitchen were left bare to form built-in art that stands out against a white, plaster-covered interior.

kitchen

Marble for the kitchen counters came from the same quarry in Carrara where famed Italian artist Michelangelo sourced material to sculpt the David. Matte black Smeg appliances add contrast without weighing down the room, and terra-cotta flooring and casement windows complete the luxurious yet cozy space.

Living Room

family room

Handmade terra-cotta tile flooring and a pellet stove warm up the living room. A soothing color palette of neutrals and earth tones creates an everlasting calm.

New windows with seating ensure guests can enjoy the expansive countryside views. Built-in bookshelves hold extra blankets, books, and delightful decor.

Dining Room

italian villa

The dining room exists right off the main entrance and includes an unexpected nook with a sink, courtesy of the room’s previous function as the villa’s kitchen.

The welcoming atmosphere is heightened by an original fireplace, new terra-cotta flooring, and hand-painted tiles with olive tree-inspired motifs made by a local artisan.

Upstairs Hall

table

Herringbone flooring made of olive wood was installed throughout the upper level.

Primary Bedroom

primary bedroom

A custom bed made of olive wood and built by Dave stands out in the primary bedroom.

Primary Bathroom

pink bathtub

The Marrs’ favorite item in the home is the terra-cotta bathtub, which had to be brought into the villa through the window. “The bathtub is literally a work of art,” Dave says. “[It came] from a company in Tuscany that has been making terra-cotta tiles and vases and tubs since the 1700s. So it was the eighth generation of the same family owning it, and they really value craftsmen.”

The family-owned company only makes 11 tubs per year and Dave and Jenny ended up purchasing one for their own home as a souvenir. “I was like, ‘I have to have this,’ and designed our new bathroom around the tub,” Jenny says.

double vanity

A double vanity, made from a desk the duo found at the Arezzo Antiques Fair, and spacious shower with handmade tile complete the en suite.

Bedroom

bedroom

Dave turned old doors discovered in downtown Florence into a bed for a rustic touch.

Bathroom

vanity

Part of a cow trough in the former stable was turned into a floating vanity, allowing that piece of the villa’s history to live on. Green, handmade tile in the shower creates a relaxed atmosphere.

Bedroom & Bathroom

A custom painting of the owners’ dog, Frisbee, is on display in one of the bedrooms. A wallpaper sourced from a vintage shop in Florence envelopes the bathroom. An antique desk turned vanity perfectly fits in the space.

Wine Cellar

wine room

Located off the kitchen, the wine room is inspired by Italian wine caves. The original stone, wine bottle storage hole, and wine window give the room an ancient feel. A custom table is ideal for intimate tastings.

Patio

italian villa