House of Details
Take a bit of Florida, inspiration from France, Quebec limestone, and you have a unique bungalow beside the Jock River writes Michele Oberoi.
It’s unusual to reach for a doorbell and almost poke a plum-sized fossil embedded in a stone wall. Stone fossils and turning plans backwards are a common twist for a real estate agent and a contractor who have made a career out of building custom homes.
Their latest project is a lofty bungalow filled with design details in the rural village of Richmond, on the south fringe of Ottawa.
“Beautiful things don’t go in and out of style”
“I like a house that has interest,” says Cydney Green, a Royal LePage real estate agent with a background in interior design. Her contractor husband, David Wightman, is only too happy to turn her plans into detailed reality.
Located on the banks of the Jock River, the bungalow was intentionally built backwards on the lot to ensure privacy and accommodate an ancient willow tree that dominates the centre of the circular driveway.
The bungalow is a mix of styles, starting with a bit of French château when looking from the road and ending in pure Florida design with pale stucco, a deep curvy stone patio, wooden deck chairs, and ivory columns when facing the river.
“It’s that ying and yang between Old World and Florida Contemporary,” says Ms. Green, adding they eventually plan to spend half their year in the Sunshine State, building and renovating homes.
This is the eighth and most detailed home in the past decade the couple have built or renovated.
The fossil at the front door is one of many embedded in the charcoal limestone they brought from Québec to face the bottom half of the two-bedroom home.
Inside, the couple used large golden tiles of Jerusalem limestone in the front foyer. “This is really gorgeous stuff,” says Mr. Wightman. And horrendously expensive, he adds, but worth the price for the look it provides.
This is a home all about views, starting with the foyer, which opens into the great room with its baby grand piano and multi-coffered, 14-foot ceiling. Two sets of oversized french doors and high transoms provide a big view of the stone patio and the river.
The experienced contractor happily took on much of the labour, including construction of the patio and installation of the flooring. Disliking wood as a building material, he also insisted on concrete-form construction, instead of traditional stick framing.
“I don’t like the way stick frame houses move and I don’t like wooden decks. I like something solid,” he says.
The spacious kitchen is solid and shines with lots of details, including recessed lighting under the antique glazed wood cabinets, crown dentil moulding and chicken wire and glass cabinet doors. Two hidden vertical spice drawers pull out on both sides of the range, and triangular corner drawers make sure there’s no wasted space.
The massive granite cooking island has more cabinets, drawers, a cookbook shelf, a wine rack and a breakfast bar supported by hefty custom turned columns.
The kitchen is wide open to the family room, with its high tent ceiling, a multitude of windows, and two more french doors. After the plans were finalized and before the start of construction, Ms. Green got out her calculator, counting 15 exterior doors.
“She’s always known what she likes,” says Ms. Xarchos, adding she doesn’t follow fashion trends to decorate, but draws elements from different sources. “Beautiful things don’t go in and out of style,” says Ms. Xarchos.
There are also three washrooms, each with a unique theme. Ms. Green enjoys decorating washrooms, calling them jewel boxes, and places where you can be silly.
The guest bathroom is a favourite spot, thanks in part to finishing details, including orange glazed walls, a high-gloss black tile vanity and gold taps with painted leopard spots.
“It’s my oasis”
The taps, the bathroom walls and the antique glazing on the kitchen cabinets are the work of Ottawa mural artist, Karen Xarchos. The artist has added finishing touches to several of the Wightman-Green homes and there is still work to be done in Richmond. The next project is a tone-on-tone Harlequin finish for the home office walls.
Another jewel in the bungalow is the master bedroom ensuite. Here the 14-foot ceiling features an ornate crystal chandelier created by Mr. Wightman. Large shiny floor tiles, a deep tub, a walk-in glass shower and mirrored vanity walls add to the spacious feeling.
The toilet is hidden in a scroll-topped closet behind an opaque glass french door.
Across the room, a small gothic window over one sink is a nod to the church visible through the glass.
“It’s my oasis,” Ms. Green says of the ensuite. “It’s definitely my retreat.” At one point, the couple thought it would be their final home, but the next project is already on the horizon.
“I have hobbies of decorating and moving,” says Ms. Green. “My passion is design.” “It’s the process, not the destination,” adds Mr. Wightman.
By Michele Oberoi
Ottawa Citizen - Saturday, January 10, 2004