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bhe taught me a lot about growing plants,” Cheri recalled. “We exchanged ideas about cooking with herbs, about their medicinal uses. It was a whole new world.”
After spending three years with Mrs. Williamson, Cheri knew she wanted to stay in the herb business on her own. “But it wasn’t feasible economically. I knew I’d have to have a combination business,” she said.
Her second love was furniture. Cheri had developed a talent with wood, working at Country Cupboards in Washington doing refinishing and at Fairlawn Antiques in Sperryville on restorations.
“It seemed like a natural pairing. So many people who like antiques like old things and herbs are kind of an old interest,” she said.
She and Martin were looking for a place of their own to buy, a place the right size for both business and dwelling, when they stumbled on the old house in Sperryville a little over two years ago. “It wasn’t what we had in mind but as soon as I saw it, I knew it was perfect—it was big enough.”
Up to that point, they'd only had a name, Faith Mountain Farm, for their future operation but not a shape or form. “Not even a home,” Cheri added. “I’m a big believer in cottage industries,” she said, explaining that working at home was the only option that allowed her to combine the roles of mother, wife and career woman. “Besides, it’s an ecologically sound business concept to live and work in the same building,” she said.
The old house evokes echoes from the past that meld nicely with antique furniture and herbs. “The front part was built in 1790,” Cheri reported. “It’s one of the oldest houses in Sperryville, maybe one of the oldest in the county.”
During the Civil War, the building was a doctor’s office. “It was used by both North and South, depending on who was in control at the time,” she continued. “Then it was a guest house and then
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