Bronwyn Ford thought she’d be designing an East Coast beachside residence for her clients. But the sudden availability of a desirable property in Aspen’s West End resulted in a substantial pivot—in other words, a swap of swimwear for ski attire. “I got a call out of the blue asking if we could switch gears and, instead of doing a beach house, do a mountain home,” recalls Ford. Happily, she could.
Aspen was already a regular destination for the well-traveled family of four, so establishing their own getaway in the area felt like a natural next step. The relatively petite trilevel dwelling they purchased, built in the 1970s, was a perfect canvas for contemporary updates. The new owners originally aimed to just redecorate the interiors, but after Ford took a look at the plans and started sketching different iterations of the layout, the brief quickly expanded into a full renovation—with a goal of squeezing more function out of every inch without sacrificing form. “If you start to pick at that thread, it unravels,” the designer says with a laugh.
Instead of opening everything up, as is so often the impulse in a renovation, Ford saw opportunity in maintaining a separation of spaces. One key idea was to rethink the central staircase. While the home’s plans had reimagined it as an open focal centerpiece, the designer took a completely different tack: opting to conceal it. “We created what looks like a shaft running right through the middle of the house,” she explains. Clad in tongue-and-groove planking and painted deep blue, the enclosed stairwell acts as a dramatic backdrop for the clients’ art collection (“Because art doesn’t always have to hang on a white wall,” the designer points out) while floating treads allow natural light to still filter through the space.
Ford also enacted a clever change in the home’s entertaining area, moving the workhorse elements of the kitchen into a corner and redefining a dining space below the dramatic vaulted ceiling of the adjoining great room. “The kitchen was spread across the back of the room before, so instead of it taking up the entire space, it made sense to place cabinetry behind the dining table, where it looks more formal,” she notes. The elegant built-ins, with open shelves backed by blue-gray marble, now house pantry items and serveware behind closed doors. A different style of cabinetry in the kitchen area—where the same dramatic marble lines the peninsula, counters and range splash—helps the two spaces feel separate and distinct, yet visually consistent.
An impasto painting by Zhu Jinshi hangs in the walkway leading into the dining area. There, a blackened-steel fireplace surround joins rustic white oak floors from François & Co. laid in a refined herringbone pattern.
A blackened-steel fireplace anchors the space between this Aspen home's dramatic great room, dining, and kitchen spaces.
No square footage was added, but the designer shifted walls to add closets, tuck in storage and align doors. A host of tactics make the most of every inch—and even trick the eye. To wit, Ford designed a cozy bed niche to conceal a spot where soffits bump out over mechanical elements on the lower level. On the same floor, a wash of deep navy paint draws attention away from the low ceilings (“It makes the space feel bigger because you can’t see where the room ends,” the designer mentions). She also carved out a practical mudroom to house skis and sporting equipment, but emphasizes, “Everything is designed to be beautiful, even in completely utilitarian spaces.”
Stylistically, Ford’s clients gravitated towards midcentury-inspired silhouettes, but also desired a mountain vibe and wanted to add surprising moments. The designer answered with streamlined furnishings that nod to the past but feel of the moment, combined with heavily grained oak floors and layers of cozy textiles. “We ran through the checklist: bouclé, shearling, wool, fur,” Ford says. Peppered into the palette are energetic pops of red—see the dining table’s glossy scarlet finish—and plenty of playful art, including an installation of felt concession stand candy set within a custom-designed niche. The wife, a close collaborator throughout the design process, advocated for several riskier moves, like the bold blue marble of the kitchen and crimson tile in a bathroom. But at the same time, Ford notes, “My client told me, ‘I want color and I want it to seem unexpected, but also peaceful.’ We settled on clean-lined spaces that feel warm but are very distinctive.”
Art became the home’s proverbial cherry on top. The wife specifically didn’t want pieces chosen just to match a room, or vice versa, which lent the spaces some natural spontaneity. “She was concurrently picking out art as we designed, and we were leaving spots for those final puzzle pieces, even as we often didn’t know exactly what they would be,” says Ford, who credits her client for pushing her to embrace new ideas of how the spaces could look. “We both ended up so happy with the result.”
Ink-on-paper works by Ceal Floyer draw the eye in the great room’s dining area. Studio Van den Akker’s Matteo Cluster fixture illuminates a bespoke red laminate table. Thomas Hayes Studio dining chairs sport backs of butterscotch shearling.
Sherwin-Williams’ Iron Ore drenches a wall of the home’s stairwell shaft, setting off artwork by Futura 2000. Below rests a midcentury-inspired Vonnegut/Kraft bench in a Soliloquy Textiles cashmere blend topped with a bolster of Holly Hunt Great Plains velvet.
In a corner of a great room, the kitchen features a monolithic slab of leathered Calacatta Cielo echoed in the range splash behind a Wolf induction cooktop and hood. Banner’s Cabinets crafted the built-ins, which feature Bäccman & Berglund hardware.
Ink-on-paper works by Ceal Floyer draw the eye in the great room’s dining area. Studio Van den Akker’s Matteo Cluster fixture illuminates a bespoke red laminate table. Thomas Hayes Studio dining chairs sport backs of butterscotch shearling.
An impasto painting by Zhu Jinshi hangs in the walkway leading into the dining area. There, a blackened-steel fireplace surround joins rustic white oak floors from François & Co. laid in a refined herringbone pattern.
A blackened-steel fireplace anchors the space between this Aspen home's dramatic great room, dining, and kitchen spaces.
The lower-level lounge showcases whimsical artwork: concession stand candy rendered in felt by Lucy Sparrow and set into a bespoke niche. A Suite NY table and chairs sit below Schwung globe pendants, with Catherine Opie’s Sunset #4 at left.
Floating oak treads allow daylight from the main level to shine into the stairwell, which is lined with planking painted Sherwin-Williams’ Iron Ore. Spinneybeck leather wraps the steel handrail. Designer Bronwyn Ford specified the brass sconces.
Situated to enjoy aspen tree views, a Victoria + Albert soaking tub fitted with Waterworks hardware beckons in the owners’ bathroom. A nearly invisible acrylic console from CB2 holds necessities and a Julian Chichester bookshelf keeps towels at hand.
Ideal for a petite guest bedroom, Verellen’s Sullivan Bed features integrated walnut nightstands within the headboard’s gentle curve. Haze pendants by Niche Modern flank Genevieve Gaignard’s Vogue #3 (Dreamcoat).
Delta Millworks Thermo Ash siding with dark bronze accents refreshed the exterior of the 1970s-built residence. The sconces flanking the front deck doors are from Visual Comfort & Co.
To make the most of an intimate front deck extending off the great room, Ford customized an outdoor sofa paired with an Ethimo table and teak dining chair from Sutherland. The white-washed teak stool is from Texture Imports.