The San Francisco 49ers tight end and his wife purchased their home in late 2024 and worked with Pottery Barn to transform it into an off-season retreat
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NEED TO KNOW
- George and Claire Kittle transformed their Tennessee cabin with Pottery Barn’s help, creating a cozy retreat for the off season
- The couple bought the cabin near their Nashville land for its storybook charm and as a peaceful getaway when they’re not in San Francisco
- George says the cabin’s secluded setting delivers childhood nostalgia, while Claire envisions hosting holidays there after his retirement
When George and Claire Kittle found their Tennessee cabin, it was love at first sight.
The San Francisco 49ers tight end and his wife, both 32, purchased their home in late 2024 and worked with Pottery Barn’s Design Crew to create a cozy retreat featuring earth tones and layered textures. Now the couple are showing off the transformation for the first time, and reflecting on what won them over about the property.
“It literally looked like it was copy and paste out of a storybook, one that we would've read growing up,” Claire tells PEOPLE of the first time they saw the cabin.
The couple first bought land in Nashville in 2020, lured by the mild winters, idyllic scenery and their love of country music, so acquiring the nearby cabin seemed like a natural fit.
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“It was so cute and whimsical and I knew it just needed a little bit of love on the inside to really pop,” says the model, podcaster and fitness pro. “And it was just right down the street from our land, and I was like, this is the perfect story. We can have our guests stay here. We can stay here if we want a little cabin, tree house getaway. So it just felt perfect to add that to our story.”
The rustic setting brings back memories of George’s childhood in the Hawkeye State.
“I grew up on farms all over Iowa, and so I'm just used to space, and that's one of the reasons we live in Nashville,” he tells PEOPLE. “ But anytime you can just be out of town, you're in the forest, can't really see your neighbors, a lot of wildlife, just gives me some childhood nostalgia and I just feel like a kid again. And I just find it incredibly relaxing.”
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"Anytime that I can just sit out back with a cup of coffee and just hang out with my wife, listen to some music, it just brings me back down, centers me a little bit, and then allows me to go be the best version of myself,” the NFL star adds.
One of George’s favorite features of the home is the “massive windows,” while Claire loves the original fireplace in the front sitting room and the spacious sunroom.
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When choosing furniture from Pottery Barn, Claire says they picked the brand’s Union sofa for the sunroom for its large size.
“He can completely lay down flat in it and stick his hands up and have his feet in, and he can take a nap there and it's really comfy and cozy,” she explains of her 6'4" husband. “And that's something that's extremely important to our family because we're all very tall people.”
George thinks the first thing visitors will notice about the cabin is the front porch.
“It just looks like it's out of a magazine,” he says. “I got a nice flag hanging up. It's got the green roof. It literally looks like a Lincoln log cabin. It just hits a lot of bases for me.”
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The couple says Tennessee is a welcome change of pace from the Bay Area during the NFL off-season, and their nearly 100 acres give them the freedom to host.
“I love California and the weather, the sunshine, and the beautiful views and stuff, but you're just constantly surrounded by people unless you go for a long drive to go somewhere else,” George says.
And while they have plenty of privacy, they’re only about a half hour from downtown Nashville.
“We want to go to a show, we want to go to a hockey game, we want to entertain friends downtown, it's very easy for us,” he says. “So it's like we have the best of both worlds and it just is very, very fun to be there.”
Credit: Pottery Barn
Claire calls their time in Tennessee “a blessing.”
“It's really nice for George to be able to take a deep breath after the football season, when it's so high paced and so chaotic and he has cameras in his face all the time and everybody knows who he is in California. To be able to come to our land, he takes a deep breath, and just relaxes and works out and sees his friends and his family, and we have enough space to be able to bring them to us,” she says.
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When it comes to making memories in the cabin, Claire says she’s “so excited” to spend holidays in Nashville — eventually.
“I know we won't really be in Nashville during Christmas for a couple years yet, at least until George retires,” she says. “But I will make myself come and visit because it is just screaming to be decorated for Christmas, and I can't wait to see Christmas trees up there, a wreath on the fireplace, lights outside, the smell of cookies.”
She adds, “I can see it all already, and it's going to be a really magical place that we can enjoy when George is retired.”
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