By Mauri Elbel :: Photography by Chris Mendiola
Over the course of their 23-year marriage, Danny and Valerie Petrie have lived in a dozen different houses. But their current house, sitting on a secluded corner lot in Cordillera Ranch overlooking the golf course with sweeping Hill Country views, finally embodies everything they ever wanted in a home.
Over the course of their 23-year marriage, Danny and Valerie Petrie have lived in a dozen different houses. But their current house, sitting on a secluded corner lot in Cordillera Ranch overlooking the golf course with sweeping Hill Country views, finally embodies everything they ever wanted in a home.
“Because we have lived in so many homes, we had a very specific idea of what we wanted and this house definitely meets all of our wishes,” says Valerie, adding that their new home borrows their favorite elements from each of their previous homes.
Boerne residents for the past 11 years, the Petrie’s previous home was just a mile from the quaint town’s square. The family, which includes three teenage children, wasn’t looking to move out of the city limits, but they soon fell in love with the community and lifestyle Cordillera Ranch provided so they purchased a lot in 2012 and began the building process in 2014.
“We started to fall in love with the neighborhood,” recalls Danny. “We had the opportunity to buy a lot that we felt was perfect for our family –– it sits really well on a hill, overlooks the golf course and has really beautiful Hill Country views.”
Last September, exactly 13 months after first breaking ground, the Petries moved into their custom-built home –– a sprawling 6,060-square-foot, four bedroom, four and a half bathroom transitional French Country house complete with a study, craft room, game room, kids’ retreat and a swimming pool and spa with an expansive covered outdoor living space.
The couple had never built a house before so they were admittedly cautious about the experience, but they credit Garner Homes and J Terrian Designs for facilitating a seamless design/build process that transformed the home of their dreams into livable reality.
“We met with Garner Homes and right away we were really impressed,” says Danny. “They were highly concerned with making sure this was our home and we got everything we wanted.”
Due to the couple’s strong vision and great taste, owner/builder Trey Garner says the team was able to bounce a lot of ideas off of each other while making quick progress on the design.
“They knew they wanted a traditional home, done well and right,” says Garner. “We were able to translate that into a floor plan and conceptual elevation easily with the help of the Petries. They were focused and disciplined to their goals of getting this home underway and completed in time for their oldest to enjoy it for his senior year of high school.”
Wanting to mesh the Hill Country look with French Country style, Valerie, who has a background in interior design, was instrumental in the selection process and advocated for blending various elements and natural materials. Traditional and timeless, the home strikes a beautiful balance between masculine and feminine with its extensive use of wood spanning reclaimed oak floors with a wire brush distress finish, unadorned wood paneling, and ceiling beams throughout playing well against a soft, neutral palette rife with luxurious finishes. Elements of the home’s exterior, comprised of chopped and smooth cut Lueders limestone balanced with stucco, continues inside with smooth cut limestone accents in the great room, fireplace surrounds and behind the bar.
Creating open spaces that could become common gathering spaces for the growing family was critical to the home’s overall design concept. For example, the kitchen shares a space with the living area and connects to the formal dining and bar areas.
“It was important to the Petries that the kitchen be open to the main living areas and easily accessed to the others,” says Garner. “The kitchen is at the heart of that idea and the heart of the home. Valerie worked with the designers to select classic materials and fixtures that would allow the major architectural elements nearby such as the great room ceiling and fireplace and the walk-up bar to be, along with the kitchen, design anchors.”
But it’s the custom touches and well-thought-out spaces found throughout the home that create function and flow for the entire family. Danny’s office, for example, is a warm, contemplative space featuring a wood ceiling, judge’s paneling and matching built-in cabinetry, which provides a quiet work area by day and morphs into a relaxing sitting room by night. As part of the master suite at the opposite end of the house, it’s isolated from noise and everyday coming and goings.
“I work from home so both the builder and the architect were very instrumental in making sure this was a very comfortable work space during the day but at the same time, in the evening it has a sofa and chairs so it allows us to have a sitting room,” says Danny. “Most home offices I’ve seen function only as one but this functions as both.”
On the opposite end of the house near the garage, a custom-designed, hand-crafted, wood-paneled gun safe expertly displays Danny’s vintage and new rifles behind a secure, safe door and offers a convenient storage room for his hunting gear. The game room, located right off of the outdoor living area but close to the kitchen and walk-up bar, is complete with a raised platform to make movie and game watching enjoyable for the whole family. An aqua-walled craft room wrapped by stainless steel countertops features a mounted board displaying colorful rings of ribbon and spools of thread and serves as a special space where Valerie and her daughter enjoy coming up with new creations together.
Because the front of the home is oriented toward the views, Garner strategically designed multiple areas to soak in the scenery –– a private master patio, a balcony coming off of the kids’ retreat on the second floor, and a veranda off of the dining room. The private backyard area, complete with a pool and spa and an enviable covered outdoor living area featuring a fireplace, cozy furniture and outdoor grill, is a serene retreat for the entire family to enjoy. The landscaping pays homage to the Petrie’s traditional styling with a manicured lawn while also respecting the raw and rugged natural terrain of the neighborhood. It’s evident the Petrie’s home represents a thoughtful balance between spaces that cater to individual interests with plenty of common ground to gather in and enjoy together.
“This house functions really well for our family,” says Valerie. “It definitely meets all of our wishes of what we wanted in our home.”
Garner Homes is an award-winning custom home builder in and around the Texas Hill Country. Founded by Trey Garner in 1998, the company uses a Design-Build approach which focuses on combining design, permit and construction phases all in-house to create timeless, well-built and energy-efficient homes. The Garner team welcomes homeowner collaboration to create unique and well-designed spaces to suit the needs of their clients. Call them at 210.493.1686 or visit their website at www.garnerhomes.com.
