Bringing A New Style of Living To The Desert: Sunset Magazine Opens First Southwest Idea House

Menlo Park, CA (August 2004)-Defining desert living at its best, Sunset magazine will open its first Idea House in the Southwest on September 10th. The home, a contemporary farmhouse designed for social interaction inside and out, is located in Verrado®, Arizona and brings a different aesthetic and new level of architectural diversity to the desert. With its welcoming front porch, open floor plan, and casual feel, the design reinterprets the basic forms of a country farmhouse for today's lifestyle.

Packed with home and garden ideas, the Southwest Idea House is a real-life, hands-on showcase of "bests"-both from the pages of Sunset magazine and a host of local and national sponsors who provided the latest in home products and technology. Much like its Idea House predecessors, the Southwest house beckons Sunset readers to come explore the home with no limits or restrictions-visitors will leave with an abundance of easy, accessible ideas to adapt to their own home design plans.

Located at the foot of the White Tank Mountains with spectacular views of Arizona's newest world-class golf course, The Raven at Verrado, the house takes full advantage of the idyllic setting-a raised viewing platform above one side of the pool and spa offers uninterrupted views of the golf course and inside, all rooms offer vistas toward the mountains. The gabled metal roof, dormer windows, spacious L-shaped porch, and sheltered courtyard spaces reflect the old farmhouse style.

Open to the public from September 10th-November 14th 2004, the Southwest Idea House will also be featured in the October issue of Sunset magazine.

Do-it-yourself projects and sponsor products featured in the house range from the simple to elaborate, from inexpensive to luxurious. Each visitor receives a free guide featuring step-by-step instructions for projects seen throughout the house, many of which come from the pages of Sunset magazine. Signs in each room highlight areas of interest along the self-guided tour, during which photographs and note taking are encouraged. Visitors also receive a handout providing a complete room-by-room listing of products with resource contact information.

The Southwest Idea House Team includes:

• DMB Associates, Developer of Verrado
• Salcito Custom Homes, Builder
• Dale Gardon Designs, LLC, Architect
• Tamm Jasper Interiors, Interior Design
• Sonoran Desert Designs, Inc., Landscape Design
• The Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center (SARRC) and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) are the beneficiaries of the Southwest Idea House.

Inspiration

Following are highlights of the Southwest Idea House, both indoors and outdoors:

Indoors

• The home was designed so that all rooms would be fully used, catering to today's busy families who have limited extra time and value the hours spent together. A gathering room replaced a more formal sitting room, and a big, hearty farmhouse kitchen with a family-style dining table at one end takes the place of a traditional dining room.
• A contemporary look was introduced within the farmhouse vernacular, so most of the furniture has crisp, clean modern lines. A comfortable blend of rich colors based on nature were used-terra cotta reds, vibrant blues, and greens and yellows tinged with the ever-changing colors of the mountains.
• The wrap-around front porch begins an open floor plan on the entry level, where the gathering room, home office, kitchen, and family rooms are all inter-connected.
• The gathering room's hardwood floors and deep yellow walls showcase the stone fireplace and elegant divided-light windows, which provide magnificent views of the swimming pool and mountains. With its own access from the L-shaped front porch, the home office is geared to working without distraction from the pool and recreation areas. The eat-in hearth kitchen is the hub of the house, with a corner fireplace, long center island with bar stools on one side, and a hefty six-burner range with a brick backsplash.
• The family room is designed for year-round, everyday use with its angled fireplace, trussed ceiling, big screen television and comfortable sofa. The laundry/craft room, which adjoins it, also has an area to work on individual projects.
• A pool bath tailored for kids continues the farmhouse feel with a pedestal sink top and light fixture above the vanity.
• The second floor of this 4,000-square-foot home features a master bedroom and bath, including a bedroom with cathedral ceilings, exposed beams, and dormer windows. There also is a morning center with a refrigerator and storage for linen and supplies, as well as separate his and her built-in closets.
• Both kid's bedrooms have views toward the mountains and one has a small balcony. They share a bathroom with a mosaic glass tile walk-in shower and colorful faucets. A bunk room has matching bunk beds, an adjoining bathroom, and vivid blue walls that echo crisp blue desert skies. A homework center is tucked into the hallway with the kid's rooms close by. Dual stations enable two children to work on their own projects simultaneously.

Outdoors

• Location As Inspiration-Outdoor living is an integral part of the design of the Idea House. Much of the outdoor design-like the inside of the house-was directed toward the panoramic mountain views, and all of the spaces, whether exposed or private, reveal views of the mountains.
• Special Features-Like the interior, which offers a number of spaces that fit the needs of a range of families, the Idea House's outdoor area presents a wide variety of destinations with different scales, exposures, and levels of privacy. A sport court and toy shed are located in front of the garage, while a swimming pool and recreation area with a fire pit are placed in the backyard. The outdoor spaces that flank indoor rooms directly relate to that room's form and function. An outdoor dining patio is off of the kitchen; an outdoor "living room" patio is placed next to the gathering area; and a contemplative getaway area is outside of the study.
• Designed For Year Round Use-Since Verrado experiences about four to five months of desert heat per year, the design team created cool, shady areas in which you can enjoy the outdoors even on the hottest of days. A retractable cloth-covered pavilion provides shade in the summer but, in the winter, the cloth can be pulled away so the sun can warm the space. Other sheltered courtyard areas include an outdoor kitchen and fireplace; as a result, there is a balance of shady, private areas and exposed, open areas that cater to wide range of lifestyles.
• Desert Style-All of the trees and plants selected-shade trees and succulent plants, such as agaves and iceplants-perform a specific function relating to shade, color, and texture. The combination demonstrates it's possible to create a colorful, green environment using drought-tolerant plants that thrive in the desert.

Do It-Yourself Projects and Decorating Tips

Numerous Sunset projects are displayed throughout the house and in the garden. Examples include native plants that thrive in the Southwest, clever tips for etching glass, and creative, natural stains that add colors to wooden bowls.