Located near Orangeville and surrounded by untouched farmland and properties with plenty of acreage, the new build on Dufferin County Road 3 was designed by Kelsea Kenny and her Thirteen Design Studio, which is located in Elora, Ontario.
Offering all of the ‘perks’ of country living and seclusion, the house is a two-level design and is just over 4,000 square feet. Kelsea mentions that despite its size and stature, there is certainly a feeling of coziness once you are inside. “The house was finished in a charcoal colour, so the exterior does stand out, but not the same way a bright white house may. Instead, it blends in well with the local surroundings which I believe gives it some extra appeal. Inside, there’s three bedrooms on the second level, one primary bedroom and two children’s rooms. On the main level, there is an office/den that over time could become another bedroom for guests. There’s also three bathrooms, a large mud room and laundry room. Overall, the house is a perfect display of a very open concept.”
Kelsea adds too, that the house includes two fireplaces, beginning with a large floor to ceiling one in the living room that is designed with stone and a reclaimed barn beam to give it more of a rustic look and a cozier feel. There is also a secondary fireplace located on the upper level, as part of the primary bedroom which is actually double-sided, facing the bed on one side and a small sitting room on the other. “It’s more modern looking than the one on the main floor as it doesn’t have that rustic look to it,” she says.
“Outside, there is a three-bay garage and a massive workshop, as the owner of the house came from a farming background and had a few ‘toys’ that he needed storage for, hence the sizeable garage. Actually, there is plenty of room for storage inside of the house as well, including the basement, which eventually the owner does have plans to finish,” Kelsea notes.
When Thirteen Design Studio became involved in the project, the floor plans were about 90 percent complete by the homeowner and his builder and architect. Kelsea says that her company was brought in to provide feedback on the layout and whether changes needed to be made from a esthetic standpoint. The company then provided the actual finishes for the house itself. “You could say that we ‘filled in the blanks’ for the rest of the house and it was one of the larger projects that our company had the opportunity to work on. Typically, we design two or three custom home projects like this throughout the year, with the majority of our business being derived from home renovations.”
Of all the rooms in this spectacular house, does she have a favourite?
“I would say it would have to be the kitchen. The homeowner gave us plenty of leeway when it came to the design of the kitchen. We also worked with a local kitchen company, Paragon Kitchens in Guelph and collaborated closely with their designer Ashley to select some really unique design elements that you don’t normally see in other spaces. The homeowner wanted the space to be very modern and seamless, so although it was good to include some rustic elements throughout the rest of the home, we wanted to give the kitchen a modern and organic look, which is actually our style that we like to work in,” she says.
Kelsea adds that it was over a year from the time her company got involved in this house project, until it was completed. “At the very beginning, because it was just farmland, the homeowner and builder had to do quite a bit of work clearing the land and bringing in all of the services, which does take some time to complete. But, I believe, because of the fact that our company specializes in residential design, this certainly helped us deal with any time constraints that we may have been faced with along the way.”
Finally, why choose the somewhat unlucky number 13 for your company name?
“Good question, but we are a team of three female owners and we discovered that the number 13 is actually considered to be a positive, feminine number when it comes to success and creativity, so it just seemed natural that we incorporate it into our company name!”
WRITTEN BY: LARRY SIMPSON | PHOTOGRAPHY: PAUL SPEARS
