“We were kind of our own client for this house,” says Trey Garner, owner of Garner Custom Homes, who worked with J. Terrian Designs on the team project. Both firms are in Boerne. “We wanted to take advantage of as much real estate as we were allowed to on a half-acre lot. We needed to be really smart about using the land we had to work with.”
The 3,222-square-foot stunner perches dramatically on the edge of a cliff overlooking coveted Hill Country vistas, including 200 acres of committed habitat featuring nature sanctuaries and a trail system for outdoor fun in lush green spaces.
Now owned by a family that loves to entertain, the three-bedroom, three-bath American Transitional features a three-car garage and approximately 888 square feet of patio space in a creative blend of classic and modern architectural design using soft stucco, painted brick and expanses of glass in wood and steel-framed windows.
Friends and family gatherings take place in the home’s large open floor plan consisting of kitchen, dining and great room. In the kitchen, guests enjoy a wet bar off the cozy wine closet. Home chefs appreciate the large gas range and double ovens by Dacor, Caesarstone® countertops, a huge island and five feet of refrigerator/freezer space by Frigidaire®. A closer look at the striking vent hood reveals that it’s the same material used for the home’s standing seam metal roof.
An open hallway-style dream pantry stretching 17 feet along the back wall of the kitchen has ample storage and display for staples and cookware on shelves, in cabinets and in built-in cubbies. Beautiful white oak flooring was nailed down and finished on site.
Overhead, a custom ceiling design literally shines with illumination provided by LED light channels embedded into wide, shallow beams of sheetrock. The sleek lines of futuristic light are juxtaposed with recesses of vintage reclaimed wood in a ceiling design that’s repeated in the dining area and great room. “We wanted something unique,” says Garner, looking for an alternative to traditional recessed cans for accent lights. “This ceiling is one-of-a-kind. We used existing products in a completely unique way. I’m very happy with how it turned out.”
The flowing indoor space pours into the outdoor space right outside the 20-foot sliding doors in the kitchen/dining/great room. At the kitchen end is an outdoor grill with refrigerator and bar seating. At the opposite end, a comfy rattan grouping around a fire pit mirrors the six-foot linear fireplace in the great room for warmth and ambience inside and out. The patio ceiling has “cool exposed framing,” says Garner. The structure is supported by posts of Douglas fir. “We didn’t want it too heavy or dark out here, and since we couldn’t bury recessed cans we did bullet-type specialty lighting for evening illumination.”
The centerpiece of the outdoor space is a stunning south-facing deck of cedar wood that extends past the cliff’s edge, perfect for taking in magnificent Hill Country views. With clients throughout Boerne, Bulverde, Spring Branch and Fredericksburg, Garner has learned to “take best advantage of all the natural elements, designing around the topography so we’re capturing the dominant breezes, working with the environment and not unnecessarily removing trees.”
The master bedroom has the same mesmerizing south-facing view through a huge wood-framed window. The space also features a barn-style door and a roomy shared master closet.
The spa-like master bath was “our experiment with the wet room concept that is so popular now,” says Garner, “in order to get the most impact we could from a compact footprint.” A modern freestanding tub is located inside the spacious shower that features a towering wood ceiling, porcelain tile walls and marble flooring.
The vanity area boasts gorgeous walnut cabinetry from Michael Edwards Custom Cabinetry, who also did the cabinetry throughout the house. The LED sconces are from Lighting Inc., as are all of the home’s lighting fixtures, including the eye-catching starburst-style chandeliers that light the way along the home’s grand entry past the small but efficient nook that serves as a home office in the front of the house.
Eco-friendly features include spray foam insulation throughout the exterior and attic “to create an envelope that is incredibly energy efficient and extends the life of the air conditioning equipment since the air handlers are located in the attic, which is basically a semi-conditioned space because of the insulation,” explains Garner. The house also has a tankless water heater and all windows have Low-e insulated glass with argon gas between the panes that blocks much of the sun’s UV rays.
The home’s exterior is simple yet impressive, a no-frills look that combines an impeccable, clutter-free silhouette with an intriguing hint of the warm welcome inside. Architectural Metal Solutions (AMS) of San Antonio installed the front door and the two rectangular windows to the left of the door. Capital Hardwoods & Millwork of San Antonio supplied the exterior doors and windows. Garage doors are by Hollywood-Crawford Door Company in San Antonio. Landscaping was by Maldonado Nursery & Landscaping, Inc. in Boerne.
As a family business, Garner Custom Homes is keenly aware of the needs of the inhabitants of the homes they have been designing and building for more than 20 years. “This home is somewhat smaller than what we’re used to building,” says Garner. “What I love about it is that the main core of the house, especially those high-impact rooms, are dimensionally not too different from the larger homes that we design every day. People want homes they can share and enjoy with others and with careful planning, we can give them that, no matter what the size.”
BUILDER Garner Custom Homes
210-493-1686 | www.garnerhomes.com