Welcome to cowboy country! Set against the beautiful backdrop of Yellowstone National Park and the Absaroka and Beartooth Mountains, Wyoming represents the last of the "true west."

Situated on 3/4 of an acre overlooking the main streets of a truly historic downtown, this custom home was designed to be a sanctuary... a special place of reflection and solitude. The initial program for this project was to develop a humble southwestern retreat that was focused around a relatively open floor plan. The vision for the project was to integrate an 1800's southwestern "Sante Fe" feel into the design while maintaining the convenience of 21st century comforts. The schematic concept for the home was much like that of the original historic structures built by the railroads that helped settle this western town in the late 1800's. The result is titled "La Casa del Sodeste" or "The House of the Southwest."

During the initial pre-design discussions, it was determined that the flow of the home's plan would evolve from an open relationship between the kitchen, dining room and family room spaces. Like many structures of the southwest, it was imperative that the floor plan be simple and open. The home needed to have a sense of warmth and coziness balanced by the conveniences offered by professional appliances and technology. Traditional materials such as hand-textured walls and saltillo tiles added a much needed warmth to the space. The ceilings were designed with a 9'-0" heighth and brought down further with the integration of a grid-work of rough-sawn fir beams that run at an 8'-0" level.

The layout of the kitchen's workspace has been custom-tailored to the way the clients cook, entertain and serve their friends and family. Much like a commercial kitchen design, there was a strict priority to maintain a separation between the kitchen's cooking and cleaning functions. The success of the design was realized by the disctinct division between the central cooking area and the butler's pantry (cleaning/storage area). Early in the schematic process, clear functional relationships (triangles) were defined between many of the appliances & fixtures in each of the rooms. The 48" GE Monogram refrigerator became the common, centralized point that ties these two spaces together. The luxury and beauty of this single appliance has become the most important element between the rooms.

"La Casa del Sodeste" is a project that really answers the question of why people build their dreams in Wyoming. The home is a successful appreciation of what this amazing state has to offer, and truly encapsulates the history that is rooted here in the "True West."