Though it’s marginally less famous, Pender County (home to Burgaw, Hampstead, and Topsail Beach) is just as scenic as some of its more famous contemporaries, like New Hanover County or Brunswick County. In fact, you’ll recognize its landscape from a wide variety of films and television shows. Let’s take a minute to explore a few of our favorite Pender County filming locations — and, just for fun, the window coverings we’d most like to see in each location.
Secret Life of Bees — Southern farmhouse
The main filming location in the movie Secret Life of Bees is an old Southern farmhouse in Watha, N.C., which is located in north central Pender County. The farmhouse is immediately recognizable; it was painted bright pink for filming and is still bright pink today. The movie is based on the book by Sue Monk Kidd. The story, set in 1964, is a heart-wrenching drama and coming-of-age story exploring grief and race relations in Civil Rights-era America.
Best window treatment: For a classic Southern farmhouse, you can’t go wrong with classic draperies. The house already has gorgeous white exterior plantation shutters; on the inside, why not heighten the drama a little with a set of elegant drapes, using that other Southern classic we all know and love as inspiration? (Yes, we’re talking about Gone with the Wind.)
One Tree Hill — Family beach house
Although One Tree Hill, like its predecessor Dawson’s Creek, was primarily filmed in Wilmington, in seasons 7–9 there was one especially stunning location that can be found in Pender County. That’s right: Quinn and Clay’s massive beach house can be found in North Topsail Beach. If you’re a lover of the show, you know a lot of high-intensity scenes happened here. (Don’t worry — we won’t spoil it if you haven’t made it that far.)
Best window treatment: Because the family beach house has a number of large windows and sliding glass doors, we at Strickland’s Blinds, Shades, & Shutters would recommend a privacy-friendly combination of solar shades and sliding panel-track blinds. The solar shades allow for the best of the view with the least amount of incoming heat and sun glare during the day. And the sliding panels will ensure the interior of the house stays private at night. (Now there’s something that Clay and Quinn could have used!)
Luminette® Privacy Sheers by Hunter Douglas
Under the Dome — County courthouse
If you’re a Stephen King fan, you’ll remember Under the Dome, a three-season TV show that ended in 2015. The show is set in a small town in Maine, which had suddenly been enveloped by an invisible force field. The force field trapped the citizens inside and caused injury to anyone who tried to escape.
Little known fact: it was actually filmed primarily in downtown Burgaw, N.C.—the county seat of Pender County. In fact, the Pender County Courthouse plays a huge role. (But hey, if you’re going to get trapped by a mysterious force field, we think downtown Burgaw is a pretty good place to be stuck!)
Best window treatment: At Strickland’s Blinds, Shades, & Shutters, we don’t just do window treatments for residential homes. We also do commercial work. And for an office with a lot of windows, like the Pender County Courthouse, you want a mix of style and function. That’s why we’d suggest roller shades; they’re cost-effective, energy-efficient, and offer a lot of variety. Plus, they can be fully automated, so you don’t have to rely on workers remembering to shut the shades every night.
Alustra® Woven Textures by Hunter Douglas
Ready to give your Pender County home or office a film-industry treatment? Have a style of home that we didn’t cover here? If it’s in southeastern N.C., you can bet it’s been featured in at least one film. Stop by our Strickland’s Home showroom to chat with an expert about the best style of window covering for your home or office.