Updating the perfect family home.

One couple in Country Club Estates has a friend to thank for stumbling upon the perfect home for their family. When their friend heard a neighbor would be selling, she immediately knew who would be the perfect fit. After seeing the home themselves, the future homeowners decided it was meant to be.

“It had really good bones, had been well-loved, built well, was in the area we wanted, and it was perfect.”

After purchasing the 5,700 square-foot, five-bedroom, three-full, and two half-bath home in the prominent Westend neighborhood in April 2007, the new owner immediately got to work on cosmetic updates.

“The house was built in 1993 and had not been touched when we purchased it,” she says. “It was covered in wallpaper with sage green, peach, and carnation pink tones. It needed a revival.”

The first step was what the homeowner describes as “a surface renovation,” which included stripping all the wallpaper, completely painting the home’s interior, replacing all the carpet, installing new countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms, replacing light fixtures, and updating hardware on doors. Without removing or moving any walls, this cosmetic overhaul took place before moving in.

With those updates, the homeowners and their three sons have enjoyed the house and the neighborhood for many years. The first major renovation came in 2008 when the family reconfigured the primary bathroom.

“The shower was an enclosed shower with a fiberglass insert with a ceiling that was really low. It had a sliding door that felt like a cave. I didn’t relocate it, but I de-signed a double-sided, walk-through glass shower with two shower heads.”

With her creative vision and the help of her contractor, the homeowner fabricated the shower to fit the space. A jetted tub reminiscent of the 90s complete with tile steps leading up to it was replaced with a more modern freestanding soaker tub. An extra entrance into the bathroom improved the flow. While the existing vanities remained, the homeowner painted the cabinets, replaced the countertops, and added Calcutta marble floors, marble wainscoting, and ceiling height marble backsplashes behind both vanities.

“It needed a revival.”

With the hope that the home would always be a space for the kids to entertain friends, the family began construction on an outdoor pool, an outdoor kitchen, an outdoor fireplace, and a covered seating area in February 2015. By Memorial Day that year, the revamped backyard was ready for summer and a revolving door of friends and family.

“We went as far into the yard as we could to maximize the size of the pool. Then, of course, we had to have a diving board for the three boys.”

In addition to a fence around the pool, rows of green giant arborvitae, which is a fast-growing evergreen tree, added privacy to the corner lot, shielding the area from the neighbors and passing traffic.

“This house was such a find.”

As her family lived in the house, the homeowner says she began assembling her vision for the kitchen, thinking through the changes, improvements, and efficiencies that would best accommodate her family’s lifestyle.

“We let life steer the phases and direction of the redesign. We started with a lot of smaller projects first and then tackled larger ones after identifying our family’s needs.”

The kitchen renovation kicked off in the summer of 2018. The homeowner made a design decision to absorb the seldom used dining room into a kitchen that now spans from the front to the back of the house. New features included reconfiguring the wet bar off the living room into a much needed walk-in pantry and loads of natural light.

“We let life steer the phases and direction of the redesign.”

Anchored by a 7-seat island, the open kitchen has no upper cabinets. Oversized drawers hold the majority of the cookware and kitchen supplies, while floating shelves highlight a counter to ceiling clétile, Swiss cross backsplash that runs the entire length of the room.

“The backsplash is very graphic, and I didn’t want to cover that up with cabinets.”

Instead of one standard cooking range, the home-owner chose to install two 30-inch Frigidaire Professional slide-in ovens side by side, resulting in 60 inches of cooktop with double ovens below. The sink, conveniently located in the center of the kitchen island, is flanked by a dishwasher on either side. The island and lower cabinets are finished with Calacatta gold Silestone quartz and waterfall edges.

“I put a lot of detail and thought into my kitchen. As an interior designer, a lot of my style choices are out-of-the box for what you see in Jefferson City.

”Now that her three boys are in college, she looks back at the evolution of her home with joy.

“This house was such a find.”