The Gilded Lady Opens Her Doors

For months, Pensacola has watched the restoration unfold.

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People slowed down when they drove by and neighbors would stop mid-walk just to peek through the windows. Every time another original detail was uncovered, another mantel restored, another antique carried inside, the excitement grew. There was this quiet but collective relief in the air that this house wasn’t going to be lost.

It was being saved.

And later we found out it wasn’t just being saved, it was being brought back with intention.

Now, The Gilded Lady, 520 North Spring Street, restored by Nannette Chandler, Owner and Builder of Chandler & Company Construction & Property Management, is officially welcoming guests for boutique short-term stays.

And if you have taken a tour or been following along on social media you know that staying here isn’t just booking a room, it’s stepping inside a story.

A Philosophy of Preservation

For Nannette Chandler, restoration isn’t decorating, it’s curating a time capsule.

Many of the antiques inside The Gilded Lady were sourced in Texas at Round Top, home to what she describes as “the largest architectural and antique fair in the world,” held twice a year. Vendors from across the country, and even Europe, gather there, bringing pieces layered with stories long before they ever arrive in Pensacola.

“It takes a long time to get everything that’s exactly what you want for a project like this,” Nannette said. “We’re antiquing constantly. Because when you’re restoring a home from this time period, the details matter.”

And here, the details are everything.

Original pencil drawings, charcoal sketches, and pressed paintings of real people and real family heirloom portraits line the walls in the entryway and stairwell. An 1880s organ sits in the foyer, complete with its original Montgomery Ward music book. Nearby hangs a rare Victorian hair memorial, intricate artwork created from locks of a loved one’s hair, a sentimental tradition of the time.

“This was something families did to remember someone who had passed,” Nannette explained. “The largest collection I’ve ever seen filled an entire wall, generation after generation, preserved in ornate designs. They’re extremely rare.”

Even the numbers on the suite doors were salvaged from a hotel being torn down. Nothing inside these walls is accidental.

Five Suites, Five Stories.

Each suite inside The Gilded Lady was designed as a tribute to a life that might have existed within these walls during the late 1800s. Each room immerses guests in a narrative.

The Gentleman’s Suite

Moody and contemplative, The Gentleman’s Suite feels like stepping into the private study of a 19th-century patriarch.

Deer mounts line the walls. Sepia-toned portraits of men from the era gaze outward. Antique books and artifacts evoke a time when land, industry, and legacy shaped identity.

It is masculine without being heavy. It’s refined, immersive, and quietly powerful.

The Cypress Suite (with Private Porch)

Inspired by the original commissioner of the home, Brian Dunwoody, a man connected to life on the water. The Cypress Suite honors Pensacola’s maritime roots.

Cypress wood walls wrap the room in warmth, salvaged ship lights cast a soft glow and an antique canoe chandelier hangs overhead, anchoring the space in coastal history.

It feels maritime without being modern coastal and authentic without being themed.

The Socialite Suite (with Private Balcony)

Plum-colored walls set the tone in The Socialite Suite, a room inspired by the women who shaped social circles of the era.

Lace gloves, corsets, heeled boots and vintage purses are displayed as though their owner just stepped out to greet guests.

Elegant and feminine, this suite captures the energy of a woman who entertained, hosted, and commanded a room.

The Wedding Suite (with Private Balcony)

Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue.

Deep blue walls surround antique lace veils, handwritten letters, wedding portraits, delicate heirloom dishes, and a blue chest anchoring the space in sentiment.

The Wedding Suite feels layered with love stories. It’s not overly styled, but reverent and romantic without being fragile.

The Seamstress Suite

Perhaps the most detailed of all, The Seamstress Suite was fashioned after a dressmaker from the late 1800s.

“This room was designed after a seamstress who would have lived in the time,” Nannette explained. “Everything in here is something she would have used or looked at for her work.”

A 70-pound sewing machine manufactured between 1837 and the late 1890s stands in the the corner of the room with its hand-painted artwork still intact. Wooden spools once used to spin yarn rest nearby. Original measuring tools used to ensure the hemline of a bustle gown was perfectly level remain displayed.

“To make sure the hem was even all the way around,” Nannette says, “they couldn’t just cut the fabric, the bustle lifts it in the back. They used this tool to measure perfectly.”

Magazine advertisements from 1898 line the walls, publications promoting the newest garments arriving from New York. An original 1894 marriage wardrobe, hand-painted with delicate florals, remains one of the suite’s most treasured finds.

Modern Comfort, Historic Soul

While the stories transport guests to another era, the comforts are fully modern. Each suite includes a private bathroom and kitchenette, allowing guests to experience history without sacrificing convenience.

It is immersive, but it is also livable and luxury.

And now, for the first time, the community that watched it come back to life can stay inside it.

This is only Phase One

If you think The Gilded Lady feels complete, think again. What guests are experiencing now is just Phase One of a much larger vision.

Coming soon is a lush garden space in the back designed for quiet mornings and golden-hour gatherings. Also behind the home, restoration plans are underway for something extraordinarily rare, the original spring house.

One of the only remaining spring houses in Pensacola, this small structure once housed a natural spring that flowed beneath the property. Long before refrigeration, families used these cool, spring-fed spaces to preserve food and household goods. It is a tangible reminder of how people lived and adapted in another era.

A three bed, three bath guest house is planned for the front of the property, expanding the estate while honoring its historic footprint. A swimming pool and hot tub area are also in the works, thoughtfully designed to blend modern comfort with timeless architecture.

In other words, The Gilded Lady is not finished.

She’s unfolding.

And Pensacola isn’t just preserving its history here, it’s inviting you to stay inside it.

To book your stay click here and make sure you are following The Gilded Lady on Instagram and following Nannette and Chandler & Company Construction’s page to follow their other restoration projects.

Photography by Ashley Livingston