What’s better than a houseful of great ideas? Why, two housefuls of great ideas.
With one house taking shape in Williamsburg and the other on the Southside, we’ve got you covered, Colonial to Coastal.
The Rose Eleganza
The creation of Jack and Sindy Clifton of Lawson Homes and located in Upper York County in The Oaks at Fenton Mill, this home is a modified version of The Rose—the Cliftons rarely build a model the same way twice—a 3,560-square-foot, ranch-style home with two large, flexible rooms upstairs.
The gracious home’s open floorplan boasts five bedrooms and four baths and expansive hardwood floors. Its black-and-white tuxedo kitchen features black stainless steel appliances—a brand new release—and burnished gold accents. But, there is also an outdoor kitchen. At one end of the indoor galley-style kitchen is a large breakfast area and, at the other, a formal dining room with a pan ceiling for added dimension. A large, walk-in butler’s pantry entices from behind glass doors, while a wine and beverage center and an outdoor kitchen help ensure this home is always ready for a party. The expansive family room, with its handsome coffered ceiling, and the adjacent screened porch share a two-sided stone-surround gas fireplace for merging indoors and out.
While additional features will be revealed in future issues, two showstoppers can be found in the owners’ suite bath: the shower and the tub. Not only is this special space outfitted with the Lawson Homes signature two-person spa shower, but creating good-natured competition between shower lovers and bath-takers, is a free-standing tub. This bathing beauty is tucked into a nook beneath a window that is framed by an enchanting barrel vault stained to match the bathroom cabinetry.
Clad in HardiePlank, stone and brick, the Eleganza is, says Sindy, “our home, though at the end of the day, some other lucky people will live there.”
The Blacksburg
Barely a country mile from Sandbridge, at the cusp of the coast and the country, is The Blacksburg at Ashby’s Bridge in Virginia Beach. Stephen Quick IV, of Stephen Alexander Homes, describes this 3,800-square-foot home as a coastal farmhouse with modern elements. “We’re going further with the modern,” he says.
The exterior is in keeping with the farmhouse aesthetic from its board and batten cladding to its dark gray standing seam metal roof and expansive front porch. Taking a page from ultra-cool and casual Hank’s Filling Station in Norfolk, Quick describes the backyard space as “an amazing gathering space.” Keeping it casual are bocce ball and cornhole courts with inviting string lighting, a firepit and synthetic turf for next-to-no maintenance.
The interior of this two-story, five bedroom, four-and-a-half bath home continues to embrace the farmhouse aesthetic with heavier slabs of wood and larger plank wood flooring. In the kitchen, which sports a walk-in pantry, tet flooring flows up the island in a reverse waterfall. GE appliances—including a newly released cooktop—lend the same commercial elements homebuyers have come to expect, but here with color for an updated twist on the ever-popular silver stainless steel. A palette of gray and white with slate-type tiles—warmed up with custom wood trim, a Stephen Alexander signature—keeps with the neutral color scheme and organic rustic accents of today’s modern farmhouses.
In the owners’ suite bath, the blissed-out vibe is more Zen with modern rectangular tiles and a floating vanity. “Here, you can live the spa experience every day,” Quick says. Style continues in the hardest working room in the house, as this would not be a Stephen Alexander home without a deluxe laundry room whose specialty sinks, fixtures and lighting receive as much attention as those in the kitchen. Downstairs, look for an office nook with specialty doors and walls.
Throughout the home, expect a more interactive, voice-activated approach to technology featuring Cox Panoramic Wi-fi for whole house coverage.
See, two homes really are twice as nice.
Visit CoVaIdeaHouse.com for more on the 2019 CoVa Idea House.
Betsy DiJulio
Betsy DiJulio is a full-time art teacher, artist and curator with side hustles as a freelance writer, including for Coastal Virginia Magazine, and a vegan recipe developer, food stylist and photographer. Learn more on her website thebloomingplatter.com.
