Entertainment Haven

a soothing bathroomLucie Amundsen is a writer living in St. Anthony Village.
Photos by Jon Huelskamp, Landmark Photography

Formality meets casual comfort in Minnetonka.

Overlooking wooded Minnetonka like a rare, luxurious tree fort, this home boasts more than a lovely setting. The 8-foot-tall tapered columns spanning the front entrance immediately suggest that it is something special. And it is.

This home, at more than 5,500 square feet, possesses the space and personality for proper entertaining and relaxed revelry alike. The shake exterior, classic garage doors, and curved trim lines portend the distinction of the richly detailed interior. The foyer’s elegant and unexpected elliptical soffits draw the eye, while paneled wood columns, stained to match the floor’s dark Brazilian walnut, guide guests into the great room. The adjacent gourmet kitchen and butler’s pantry departs from the expected with oiled, rubbed bronze fixtures and a stone gray oven that stands ready to prepare loads of party fare.

Dinner guests should be advised to look up from their plates, however. Enameled poplar box beams break up the 11-foot ceiling, papered in a golden color. Also adorning the rooms are numerous chandeliers sculpted in heavy bronze. These luxurious elements add uncompromising drama to the formal spaces.

On the lower level, the elliptical line repeats in a curved granite wet bar with wine cellar. These hard-working amenities service the family room, which comes with darkening blinds to create theater-like ambiance for the wall-sized projection screen. “I’ve been to Super Bowl parties with dedicated home theaters, and guests end up scattered in different parts of the house,” says Andy Porter, senior vice president of sales for JMS Custom Homes. “With this blend of family area and media room, the party definitely has a center.”

Also on the walkout lower level are the guest and children’s accommodations, which include a second laundry area. These enormous bedrooms allow for flexible space, in case a homeowner prefers a workout or meditation room. The main floor owner’s suite bedroom picks up the elliptical theme with an oval tray-vaulted ceiling. An adjacent walk-in closet is an added amenity.

This home also offers thoughtful technological comforts for its lucky residents. A command center lies inside the attached garage. It’s a clever built-in meant as a landing spot for life, providing space for a laptop and a hardwired station for an MP3 player. From here, the audio-inclined can charge their players and broadcast their musical library in nearly every room in the house—including to those enjoying the steam shower or freestanding tub in the owner’s suite bath (though they may prefer to watch the miniature plasma TV provided there).

Another innovative amenity is the closed delivery vestibule that allows access for vendors to leave parcels in a private air-conditioned foyer without compromising the security of the home.

Then there are the two attached garages, accommodating four cars, stacked directly on top of each other. Driveways built at different pitches on opposite sides of the home make this unique configuration possible. The lines of the house remain in lovely proportion, while the design provides the necessary garage capacity for a family of drivers. And no more excuses for the poor state of the kids’ vehicles: The lower garage has drain tiles set into the concrete floor and is equipped with a built-in vacuum and a pressure washer.

BUILDER
JMS Custom Homes, LLC

HOME LOCATION
Minnetonka

SUPPLIERS
Elnapress
Harmony Melamine
Creations by Scherer Bros
Lumber Co.
Hedberg Masonry &
Landscape Supplies
Industrial Door Company, Inc.
James Hardie
Kinetico / Aquarius Water
Conditioning
Marvin Windows and Doors
Molin Concrete Products
Orion Home Systems
Peters Billiards
The Tile Shop
Warners’ Stellian

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