Captivating Mix
Written by Andrea Darr | Photos by Josie Henderson
The Captiva model home garners awards and attention with its mix of coastal hues and mountain vibes.
or husband-and-wife team Bruce and Toni Rieke, owners of B.L. Rieke Custom Homes, design starts with a feeling. At The Captiva, their award-winning model home at Timber Rock in Lenexa, the desired feeling was a sense of arrival. Inspired by a family trip to Fort Myers, Florida, Toni brought home the idea for cool coastal colors, soft textures and comfort in everything.
“We want this house to feel restful and like a relaxing vacation at home—a place you love and enjoy, where you let go and feel comfortable,” Toni says.
Warm, rustic touches, including the company’s signature timbers and stonework, provide balance.
“The western look is in our wheelhouse; we’ll always stay true to that,” Bruce says.
While soothing overall, the interiors are imbued with subtle design details. Shiplap boards and driftwood decor can be found throughout. The couple also credits a collection of talented subcontractors—from the masons and trim carpenters to the iron and lighting artists—for bringing their best work to the project.
“We like to touch every part of the house with something of interest, but it’s still soft,” Toni says. “There are places to wow, but there’s not so much going on that the brain can’t catch up because it’s overstimulated.”
The floor plan supports a leisurely lifestyle, with an open living, dining, and kitchen space upstairs and more recreational space on the lower level—including an extensive bar, an electric fireplace, and differentiated areas to lounge and play.
Landscaping makes the difference in the feeling of an escape" ~ John says.
More privately, the primary suite promises rejuvenation in a spacious bathroom accentuated with a soaker tub against a tiled accent wall.
And if work must get done at home, a quiet, light-filled office/flex space is set aside up front.
The floor plan is designed efficiently for daily needs, from the four-car epoxy-floor garage to the intentional flow of the mudroom, drop zone, pantry and laundry all in one back hall.
The nearby kitchen meets all the demands for cooking while stylistically elevating itself with a mix of stained and painted cabinets and quartz backsplash and countertops.
We want this house to feel restful and like a relaxing vacation at home—a place you love and enjoy, where you let go and feel comfortable.” - Toni Rieke, interior designer
Yet the decorative finishes are almost secondary to the outdoor views that provide both connection with and access to nature. To this end, more “rooms” exist on the outside of the house. A step away from the lower level is the lanai, where swinging chairs hang from the ceiling on a cool patio and, above it, a deck is accessible from the main level at tree-top height.
“It feels like you’re in Colorado when you’re here,” Toni adds.
Bruce was responsible for that. As the community’s developer, he helped preserve decades-old native species and even some 200-year-old oaks in the rocky basin below.
The Arbor Day Foundation, which previously owned the land, released 99 acres for development, requesting proposals from a handful of developers. Bruce simply shared his vision of molding the streets to the terrain, playing to the ridges and hugging houses along the valley.
“There was no dog-and-pony show; we just talked about my vision to keep the trees,” Bruce says. “I wanted the size of the lots to be an opportunity to save the trees, versus smaller lots where you have to clear most of them.”
That appealed to all parties, including future residents, who now have a truly unique environment in a new development.
Bruce also intuited that he’d need to allocate enough funds for professional landscaping to smooth the transition between the natural and built environments. He hired landscape architect John Constant, owner of EPIC Landscape Productions, to create the multiple layers and nuances that define this parcel of land, from the public entry and clubhouse to The Captiva’s private property.
“Landscaping makes the difference in the feeling of an escape,” John says.
He leaned into the natural, forested edge of the property line with the addition of terraced stone steps that lead down to a boulder-encircled fire pit and a separate wooden swing for two.
The front yard—former pasture land—was more of a blank slate, which John sculpted with several sizable planted berms, anchoring a carved-boulder seat in one and showcasing a stone monument with custom lighting in another.
“Scale and proportion are the most important design principles,” John explains. “A lot this large needs something that wows. If you screw it up, it feels empty.”
He also created a continuity of curves across the front facade, starting from a curvilinear mix of materials in the driveway and the walkway to the front entry then visually fading out around the house with a 12-inch-high terrace wall.
Both outside and inside, The Captiva has all the hallmarks of a true getaway. Moreover, the whole community mentality is one of gathering and enjoyment.
“It’s like you’re living in a resort community. Residents drive their golf carts around, and there’s something happening every night. I’ve never seen a neighborhood that’s so active,” Bruce muses.
Just like any good family vacation, The Captiva is memorable.
“We created our own storybook,” Bruce says, as he reiterates the home’s greatest hits. “The swings, the bench, the monument, the beams—these are things people remember. This house will come back to me in conversations five to
10 years from now, it’s that good.”
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General Contractor and Interior Design: B.L. Rieke Custom Home Builders
Custom Iron Fabricator: Bronze Age Designs
Cabinets + Laminate: Miller’s Custom Cabinets
Fireplace Inserts: Midwest Fireplace
Flooring + Tile: ProSource of Lenexa
Garage Doors:Â Builders Overhead Doors
Granite Fabricator: CFK
Hardware: Locks & Pulls
Hardwood Flooring: SVB
Flooring Appliances: Ferguson Enterprises
HVAC: Harrington Bros.
Landscaping + Irrigation: EPIC Landscape
Productions Light Fixtures: Rensenhouse of Lights
Low Voltage Lights: Pro Technology Solutions
Mirrors + Shower Doors: Fountain Glass
Plumbing: Sam Male Plumbing
Plumbing Supplier: Ferguson Enterprises
Roofing (Concrete Tile): Imperial Roofing
Stone + Brick: Superior
Masonry Tile: Timberland Tile & Stone
Ryanlitts
What a wonderful home.