The Dressing Downton exhibit wasn’t the only thing to see at Cheekwood Estate and Gardens. We also got to tour the mansion, and enjoy the various gardens on the grounds of the estate.

The limestone house was finished in 1932, and was modeled after English country estates admired by the Cheek family when they traveled abroad. The estate is named after Leslie Cheek, who purchased the property and commissioned the building of both the house and gardens, and his wife, Mabel Wood Cheek.

You get a sense of the mansion as soon as you enter the building. There is a grand staircase with a beautiful tapestry hanging above it:

When you go upstairs, there are a variety of rooms to explore. The table in the dining room is set, and looks like it’s ready for a grand meal:

The morning room looks like a pleasant place to enjoy a cup of coffee, and there are also a few displays detailing the family’s history:

The library may have been my favorite room. So many books, a lovely spot to write letters, beautiful furniture, and even a game table!

The parlor is lovely, and the ceiling is amazing!

The upper floor of the house is now being used as galleries, so you can’t tour the bedrooms that were once there. There are a few Cheek family mementos on display, however, including the family silver chest:

The grandest feature of the home may be this light:

There are so many beautiful details scattered throughout the home…chandeliers, mirrors, vases, and more!

The outisde of the house is quite imposing:

The grounds immediately around the house look like something from a movie…the views are spectacular!

The rest of the estate has other gardens as well. In the water garden there is a pond that used to be the family swimming pool:

We were especially interested to see how the Japanese Garden compares to the one here in St. Louis. It’s not nearly as big, but it does have some features that ours doesn’t, including a bamboo forest:

The color garden, which was in full bloom when we were there, really lives up to its name!

I’m so glad we were able to visit this beautiful estate through our Missouri Botanical Garden membership. If we have time, we may even go back in the spring, when over 100,000 tulips are in bloom!