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Apr 17, 2024

Modern mix: Maple Ridge home is reimagined to suit its new owners

Texture runneth over in the family room with an endless sectional by Bensen, Soch table by Imperfetto, armchair by Poltrona Frau, Mughal Cloud Oushak V30 rug by Odegard, as well as custom draperies

Texture runneth over in the family room with an endless sectional by Bensen, Soch table by Imperfetto, armchair by Poltrona Frau, Mughal Cloud Oushak V30 rug by Odegard, as well as custom draperies and pillows.

The remodel was a complete overhaul. Everything was touched — from paint to light fixtures to doorknobs — but no major structural changes were made. So, personalizing this Maple Ridge beauty was a matter of putting a new fingerprint on an existing footprint.

Owners Tracy Spears and Rosemary Harris had been looking in the area for years. “We loved the idea of Maple Ridge,” Spears says. But during the Realtor showing, the couple gave the house “a hard no.”

They discussed all the work they would need to do and the gap between the listing price and their budget. To their surprise, the next day they found a contract from the seller in their email for the exact price they had named. “We later realized our conversation was likely the impetus for the offer,” Spears says. “It definitely worked in our favor.”

Rounding out existing pieces from the homeowners’ collection is a Flock of Light pendant by Moooi and a Saarinen dining table by Knoll paired with Passion chairs by Cassina. Soothing Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter on the walls here and throughout the first floor sets the tone for the home.

The couple brought Beth Sachse, lead designer and co-owner of SR Hughes, to the signing. “We can’t say enough good things about Beth,” Harris says. “She knew our taste (from furnishing their last house).” Sachse and fellow SR Hughes designer Cassie Johnson collaborated on the project. “We got a yes on almost everything,” Johnson remembers.

Spears travels the world lecturing from her leadership books and works with several Tulsa businesses. Harris is a retired oil and gas business owner and current community advocate. Together, they know what they like and are quick to make decisions. “We don’t overthink things,” Spears says.

In the family room, a green leather recliner and a side table resembling a tree stump add an organic texture to the room.

The nine-month remodel happened during COVID-19, but the couple was not bothered by pandemic delays or supply chain issues. “We believe people are doing the best they can,” she says. “We knew the timeline would be a moving target.”

The home was built in 1988 as one of four new homes constructed on the lot where Leon Russell’s former Maple Ridge mansion was located. Theirs sits where Russell’s tennis court once stood. Spears liked the privacy of the gated driveway and how it sits off the street. Harris was drawn to the courtyard. “You feel like you’re in New Orleans,” she says, noting the fountain feature and lagoon-looking spa.

Inside, the home is a mix of modern with antiques and artwork Spears and

Harris already owned. “We like to include old things and new things,” Sachse says.

The formal living room features a mix of modern furnishings. French doors lead to Spears’ office, which the designers painted a dark gray with built-in bookcases.

“What we have is primarily Oklahoma,” says Harris of the home’s art, naming Otto Duecker and Booker T. graduate James Andrew Smith. Animal motifs are unmistakable throughout — zebras, dogs, horses, birds.

The designers divided the living room into two sitting areas. One features a boucle sofa facing a fireplace, and two orange Utrecht chairs across from a single Delta Club Chair. The other includes two swivel Dodo chairs on a cowhide rug. Almost everything was purchased over a decade ago, for their previous home, yet it looks just as fresh in 2023.

The powder bath features a custom marble vanity, bold wallpaper and gold accents.

Spears’ office, off the living area, is painted a businesslike dark gray with built-in bookcases and modular storage. Just across the entry is a surprisingly elegant powder room with bold metallic and neutral horizontal striped wallpaper. A statement mirror sits atop a marble-over-wood custom designed vanity.

“Eclectic” defines the dining room, which features a marble top Sarranin dining table and stylish Passion dining chairs by Cassina, a new credenza and two antique dining buffets. The huge oil painting by Spanish painter Velquaez was a gift from Harris’ late sister, Esther Storey.

The foundation of this customized workspace is USM modular furniture, configured to provide desk, credenza, media console and storage options. Hola dining chairs by Cassina make the space multifunctional.

“We could fill each room with people and it wouldn’t feel crowded,” Spears says of her party-flow home. A tucked-away butler’s pantry connects the dining room to the main part of the kitchen, the epicenter of the redo.

The kitchen was a complete gut, to studs and back. An 8-foot-by-9-foot island occupies center stage with seating for five. Silestone countertops minimize seaming. Generous custom cabinetry, high-end appliances and the decorative faucet are all new statement pieces.

The heart of this home, the kitchen, beats with a graceful approach to daily living or party throwing.

Off to the side is Harris’ workspace. Here, USM modular storage creates the desk and computer area. An acrylic table and shapely chairs double as a conference spot or breakfast nook.

The family room is an adventure in textures. The space includes a Bensen Endless Sectional, a side table that resembles a tree trunk, a green leather recliner, a handwoven Oushak rug and basket accents. The former brick fireplace is now a sleek stone wall.

Everything from lighting to tile to mirrors adds to the spaciousness of the primary bath. The suspension light by Moooi and wall sconce by Foscarini highlight the Moooi vanity chair and Navajo Zebra floor tile by Exquisite Surfaces.

Next is the primary suite. The bedroom is still a work in progress, but the bath is a masterpiece completed. Gone is a see-through fireplace, making room for additional closet space. Heated floors and a soaking tub add to the comforts.

“It really is an oasis in there,” Harris says. “The shower is huge, and the tub looks right out into the trees in the courtyard,” the feature that drew her to the house in the first place.

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