When their physician father dies, Beatrice and Evangeline Eliott find themselves destitute. All they have left is their gloomy Victorian Gothic house. Aunt Lydia suggests they take in boarders--an appalling idea, but it does provide some income. When Bea goes to work for a photographer, his clients recognize her ability as a dress designer. Soon, with much hard work, the women establish the House of Eliott.