Sailors are a special breed. Intrepid, capable and organized, they set off from the security of dry land toward the vast horizon, confident that they will navigate whatever challenges lie ahead. Asheville may be far from the ocean, but it is this seagoing spirit that a Florida couple — both avid boaters — brought to the renovation of the circa-1980s contemporary-style house they purchased to become their mountain family retreat.
The existing structure was sound, but the interiors felt dated and dull. The lady of the house had very clear ideas about her approach to the overall aesthetic that would guide the home. She planned to have substantial input — particularly in the finishes (and certainly the furnishings). Hence, the couple’s first task was to find a worthy crew to handle the project.
First to sign on was David Ross of Falcon Construction. Ross’ experience with design/build, artistic sensibility, and ability to embrace the ever-morphing, on-the-fly aspects of the renovation would hold him in good stead. “This was very much a collaborative effort between Falcon and the homeowners,” says Ross. “They understood that there was going to be a lot of working-through in the process.”
“That’s where David was really great,” notes his client. “I would come up with ideas and he would say, ‘We can do that’. He helped bring it all to fruition.”
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Hunter Dendy of Carlton Architecture was engaged to help make the most of the existing footprint. “The general layout of the house worked with what they were looking for,” says Dendy. “The contemporary style suited the clients’ eclectic taste. It gave them to freedom to do what they wanted and still feel appropriate for the house, unlike a more rigid period style which would dictate the design sensibility.”
Dendy’s plan called for removing a dividing wall that segregated the kitchen and the sunken living room from the dining room, creating a sense of openness and flow on the main floor and enhancing the experience of the mountain view when one enters the house. The kitchen was expanded to incorporate a butler’s pantry and allow for a recessed refrigerator. Upstairs, unused attic space was reclaimed for a spacious guest bath and a splendid walk-in closet, laundry room, and morning kitchen adjacent to the master suite.
As the home’s new wrap-around decks were being installed, the interior walls were taken down to the studs. Ross’ team replaced all the windows and doors and revamped the HVAC and electrical systems in preparation for the transformation. Custom built-in shelves of maple and teak were added to the living room, fashioned by Falcon’s lead carpenter, Mark Grier. The narrow entrance to the media room was enlarged and fitted with track-sliding barn-style glass doors. Inside, a bespoke zebra-wood entertainment center, designed by Carlton Architecture and executed by furniture craftsman Cris Bifaro, graces a long wall.
Meanwhile, the lady of the house had been gathering her ideas and inspirations. “My husband and I are sailors, so I wanted to incorporate some elements that suggested that,” she explains. “We replaced the floors with Burmese teak — often used for nautical decking — hand milled specifically for this job. We also installed a banquette, which is traditional seating on a sailing vessel.”
For the kitchen, she chose rare and exotic Brazilian Centaurus granite with amethyst inclusions from Mountain Marble, paired with sleek, perfectly aligned, book-matched birds-eye maple cabinetry by Stone Mountain Cabinetry & Millwork. “There’s a ship-like sensibility here, with all the built-ins and clean lines,” Ross notes. “Nothing is cluttered, everything is in its place.”
In keeping with the pristine aesthetic, the stairway leading to the upper level was stripped of its dark, wooden banisters and dressed in a glass-and-stainless steel railing that visually opens the space and provides a gracious transition to the private quarters.
The homeowners are voyagers, and the lady of the house has integrated into her interior design varied ethnic styles and elements collected on her journeys. “I’ve traveled all over,” she says, “so there’s a little bit of Greece, Turkey, Europe, Australia and Asia in the décor.” Nowhere is this international perspective more evident than in the sumptuous master bath, inspired by hamams of Istanbul.
Opulent mother-of-pearl tile covers the wall above the deep soaking tub from Ferguson. Above, a trio of crystal chandeliers by Schonbeck — also from Ferguson — casts spiral patterns on the high ceiling. Just beyond, a steam shower is dressed in marble and accented with harlequin-patterned, diamond-glass tiles that echo the colors of the mother-of-pearl. A massive, pewter-colored vanity by Forest Millwork completes the sanctuary.
But the master bath isn’t the only place in the home for an extraordinary bathing experience. Inset into the lower deck is a massive, tiled, 15-person hot tub that opens to the long-range view; circulating water cascades over its infinity edge onto a stone waterfall, set into the front of the house by Fernando’s Stoneworks.
Perhaps, on summer nights, the homeowners look over that infinity edge and recall those distant horizons at sea. Perhaps they gaze at the compass rose that’s been engraved in their stone entrance courtyard — oriented to true north — and remember stars reflected on the water. Perhaps they reminisce about distant ports of call.
Or perhaps they look around them and simply delight in exactly where they’ve landed.