Chic in the Creek

It’s hard to imagine that anyone could miss a large stone manse, yet sited deep and steep into The Reserves at Cedar Creek, this home nestles out of sight surrounded by 360 degrees of natural habitat. Architect Scott Bickford is quite pleased about how many trees were saved during construction. The homeowners, equally pleased with the turnout of their home, have added their own roots to the 2.5 wooded acres. 

After traveling the country from California to Colorado and Texas, the family gleaned design ideas from various homes they’d seen and brought them to Kansas for compilation and coordination. “In my mind, the combination of contemporary flair with the elegance of casual, distinctive touches was a winning combination,” one homeowner says. Builder Kirk Cornelius and interior designer Lisa Mermis interpreted these wishes in a most unique way. Mermis describes it as Texas Tuscan.

The home is the perfect intersection of a stone villa crossed with a Texas ranch house — two seemingly disparate styles yet both originate from rural roots. The plan is three stories, with the master suite on the first level, separated from the public spaces by a gallery hall and private wood-paneled office. The children’s bedrooms and loft are upstairs, notably with the best views in the house overlooking a lake, while the lowest level is a playground for adults and kids with a gym and sport court.

The tone is established through the carved wood and cascade glass double doors, where a handsome travertine-tiled foyer imparts an engaging welcome, neither fussy nor gussied-up. “Immediately, there’s a sense of yin and yang — at once elegantly appointed yet casual and organic,” Mermis says.

That feel is dramatically highlighted in the living room directly across from the foyer. “We wanted to merge textures, blending stucco and stone, glove-soft leather with linen and velvet, even a row of feathers trimming the various furnishings. The room has a curl-up-and-stay presence — not intimidating in the least,” Mermis adds.

Overhead, a hand-forged iron and crystal chandelier is a statement in itself. But, then again, so is the ceiling, accentuated with rough-cut beams from a Minnesota barn. That rustic touch became a design element replicated throughout the house.

Lighting is another of the house’s most impressive aspects. “We had many of the fixtures hand-forged, some using rock crystals blended with wrought iron, again the yin and yang,” Mermis notes, referencing the oversized lantern sconces flanking the foyer wall, the hanging circular chandelier in the staircase and a row of delicate, hand-blown pendants lining the vaulted, double-barrel gallery hall.

Balancing the artificial light is plenty of daylight shimmering in from oversized 8-foot-tall windows throughout the house. The dining room boasts a wall of seven windows curving around a table for 10. More light spills into the nearby hearth room, a frequent gathering spot with its slouchy linen-covered chairs and stone hearth sheltered under an octagonal beamed ceiling. On the other side of the hearth is an enclosed lanai featuring massive 10-foot-high, 15-foot-wide glass doors that slide back into the wall, opening the room to the swimming pool in summer or making it another usable room in winter. Complete with a bar, fireplace and waterproof seating, it’s a premium hangout.

But the kitchen is still the preferred locale. “We love to entertain and designed the house around that notion,” says the homeowner, who banters with his wife over which of them is the better cook. This space also served as the design inspiration for other areas. “If you look at the colors (smoky gray and soft teal, grayish browns, burnished metallic and soft, flaxen neutrals) embedded into the granite at the kitchen island, you’ll see the palette we used throughout the house,” Mermis notes. The silvery gray-blue and brown wash on the island is one direct example.

Everyone involved recognizes that the exceptional appointments — from the grand three-story circular staircase to the functional utility spaces — sum up the family’s style and lifestyle to a T. “We’re going to be here forever. This is a home that we will grow into, not out of,” the homeowners say.

RESOURCES
Architect: Bickford + Co. • Builder: Cornelius Homes • Interior Designer: Twigs Interiors • Custom hand-forged iron lighting and fixtures: Antigua Furniture Guild • Custom wood furnishings, carved cabinet fronts and master bed: Antigua Furniture Guild • Custom furnishings: Twigs Interiors  •  Italian hand-blown light fixtures: Twigs Interiors • Custom cabinetry: Miller’s Cabinetry  • Faux finish and glazing: Real Living Services  • Excavation: Overland Grading • Foundation: Louisburg Foundation • Framing: VanDaele Const. • Lumber: McCray Lumber • Windows: K.C. Millwork • Sheetrock: Swift Drywall • Roofing: Jaberian Roofing • Trim Work: K&L Const. • Painter: Roth Painting Co. • Cabinets: Miller's Cabinetry • Countertops: Solid Surface • Appliances: Ferguson Enterprises • Hardware: Home Hardware • Tile: Young's Tile • Flooring: Acme Floor • Glass & Mirrors: Olathe Glass & Home Décor • Heating & Cooling: Lancaster Bros. Heating & Cooling • Plumbing: Mike Cox Plumbing • Plumbing Fixtures: Ferguson Enterprises • Electrician: Elite Electric • Light Fixtures: Twigs Interiors • Fireplace: Fisher Masonry • Garage System and Closets: Sawdust • Audio/Video: Home Connections • Landscaping: Topeka Landscape • Hardscaping: Topeka Landscape • Sprinkler System: Topeka Landscape