Georgian Rules

A large two-story cabana off the veranda is equipped with a full kitchen, entertainment room, sitting area and bath. The luxurious outdoor entertaining space includes a screened porch, covered kitchen, gazebo, infinity-edge pool, hot tub with a water feature, pergola and multiple patio areas for al fresco dining, tête-à-têtes and parties. The five-car garage can house a sixth automobile on a lift.

What's especially striking about this home is that every element and detail — new or antique, large or minute — blends into the theme of inspired comfort and period character. Looking at the house from the large circular front driveway and walking through the massive walnut front door into the home's interior is like stepping through time. Hand-scraped, wide-plank oak flooring; Venetian hand-plastered walls; figured walnut doors with custom leaded glass; French doors that open out; elliptical panel jams that give doorways deep arches; breathtaking crown moldings; and ceiling details all add to the home's distinct generational flavor.

Part of that sensibility comes from the perfect balance of larger, public rooms with a number of smaller, private spaces. “It was important to have a nice progression of space,” Joel says.

The formal living room and connecting sunroom is a prime example. The centerpiece of the main room is an Italian stone wood-burning fireplace — one of seven in the home — and beautiful scroll-like dimensional carved molding. Doors with leaded glass open into a sun-drenched room with tile floor accented by a floral and aviary mosaic border. This smaller space also transitions outside to a private patio through French doors.

Other examples of attention to detail are in the flooring: the formal dining room's herringbone pattern, the kitchen's distressed French-baked oak, the foyer's marble, and the lower level's ceramic tile inset in oak.

One of John's favorite design elements is the panel jams that fold open to screen the kitchen from guests in the family room. “A house like this 200 years ago would have had pocket doors,” he explains. “This is a modern solution.”

Joel is fond of the family room's ceiling that has plaster acanthus leaves painted on walnut beams to match the walnut paneling. The pièce de résistance is the gold leafing layered on top of the leaves to add texture, depth and drama.

Two outside elements they admire are the antique Metcalf pavers that line the driveway, patios, veranda, pool and stairs. Joel found the distressed bricks that still have remnants of tar, adding to the home's overall genuine appeal. The show-stopping limestone hand-carved entry surround was hand-carved in Syria. “We designed the piece in our office and then communicated via the Internet with Old World craftsmen halfway around the world to complete it,” John notes. “It was shipped to Kansas in 20 pieces and Joel's craftsmen installed it.”

Visitors to the home respond to the sumptuous visuals, but the behind-the-scenes details ensure the structure's functionality. “This is a totally contemporary house in terms of technology, electrical and lighting, insulation, flashings, energy-efficient doors, windows, and heating and cooling systems,” Joel says. 

This home is going to be around in 300 to 400 years, long enough for it to become the authentic classic it already seems to be. And that Georgian rule was exactly what everyone involved set out to accomplish.