Mountain Meets Modern

When long-term clients from the Lone Tree area contacted the team at Denver-based Kimberly Timmons Interiors (KTI) and said they wanted to build a peaceful mountain getaway, design director Nikki Holt jumped at the opportunity. “We were involved from the very beginning of the project,” she says. “From the architectural layout, lighting design, finishes throughout the home, and furnishings down to the smallest little details.”

A second home for the couple and their children to use on frequent weekends, this was a ground-up build in Pagosa Springs. “We were thrilled,” says Holt, “because repeat business means so much to us at KTI. It means that they value us, value our process, and trust us with their home!”

The main focus was to create a true family home, a place where they could gather with their kids, enjoy the mountains, and escape the city life. Sounds straightforward, but Holt and her team were tasked with combining two drastically different his-and-hers design styles. “He wanted a truly rustic Colorado mountain home,” says Holt, “while she wanted a clean and simple design with more modern elements.”

The finished spaces blend rustic elements, such as the wooden beams, a textural stone fireplace, hand-scraped wood flooring, and lots of leather, with modern design features, such as bright white walls, modern tribal patterns, furnishings with clean lines and fun artwork. “We were able to combine the two styles into one seamless mountain escape,” says Holt. Keeping the kids in mind, KTI created a fun bunkroom on the lower level, complete with custom built-in bunks and a gaming area with a lounge sofa and built-in desk.

Of course, it’s never easy working on a project located nearly seven hours away in a small town. KTI needed to use a builder and crew they had never worked with, and a different receiving/installing warehouse that had never before undertaken a job of this size. It was also nearly impossible to do site visits throughout the project. “All of this was overcome by detailed documentation, lots of communication and—honestly—the best clients that a designer could ever ask for,” says Holt.

The finished home is filled with impressive details. “One of our favorite design elements has to be the fun patterned floor tile in the breezeway from Ceramic Technics,” says Holt. “Don’t think of a mudroom or breezeway as a messy drop zone for all of the family junk.” She adds that including a unique and fun design element, such as the tile, takes the space from an ordinary mudroom to a cool and useful area. The custom metal range hood in the kitchen by Raw Urth Designs is another favorite. “It really elevates the kitchen and pairs so nicely with the oversized industrial pendants,” Holt says.

The first room you see when you walk through the front door is the great room, so KTI wanted to ensure it made an impact. “In this space, we balanced out the rustic architectural elements and finishes with clean-lined furnishings, a modern, tribal-inspired rug, and a contemporary painting with a mountain theme,” says Holt. The large stone fireplace, wood beams and posts, tongue-and-groove ceiling, and wood-framed windows are all staples of mountain design. However, says Holt, “pairing these items with bright walls, a modern light fixture, and these furnishings, makes this the perfect balance of mountain and modern.”

The kitchen is all about texture. Although the color palette is relatively monochromatic, the space includes layers of elements, such as wood and stone, to create a visually stimulating space. In addition, Holt says, “something that a lot of our clients come to us believing is the idea that you cannot mix metals. At KTI, we strongly disagree with this and love showing our clients that mixing metals is not a faux pas and can be done seamlessly. In this kitchen, we have a stunning chrome faucet, black iron light fixtures, and a copper-tone metal hood.”

This beautiful equilibrium between seemingly contrasting design preferences persists throughout the home. In endeavoring to please both clients, KTI combined these styles and created a mountain modern home perfect for any family.