On their regular walks around Scottsdale’s Silverleaf neighborhood, one couple often found themselves pausing to admire a new residence in construction. “When someone is building a home in our neighborhood, they’re required to have a large rendering on display,” the wife says. “Not only was I watching the beginnings of it, but I also could see what it was going to look like in the end.” In addition to the Mediterranean estate style of the abode, the lot drew her in with its unique positioning and ample views at every turn.
“This particular home has a true southwestern axial alignment to Camelback Mountain, but it also has a southeastern alignment into the McDowell Mountains, and it’s directly oriented on their highest peak,” points out general contractor Anthony Salcito. With architect Dale Gardon and landscape designer Jeff Berghoff, he devised an orthogonal structure that would celebrate those showpiece vistas from each room. “If you make a 90-degree angle through the house, depending on which room you’re in, you get two perfect axial alignments with very iconic pieces that you are normally only lucky enough to get one of,” Salcito adds.
Home Details
Architecture:
Dale Gardon, Dale Gardon Design
Interior Design:
Devon Wegman, Devon Grace Interiors and Ashley Willoughby, Salcito Design Group, LLC
Home Builder:
Anthony Salcito, Salcito Custom Homes, Ltd.
Landscape Architecture:
Jeff Berghoff, Berghoff Design Group
During the build process, the original owners decided to move elsewhere, and a new sign appeared on the lot: for sale. Spying the update on one of their strolls, the destined-to-be new owners knew it was their chance to make an offer. To furnish the space, the wife enlisted the eye of interior designer Devon Wegman, with whom the couple had previously worked. “Things went so well with our first project that when this came along, it was not even a question to us,” the wife recalls.
To honor the dwelling’s sleek design, lean into the surrounding environment and keep the views pristine, Wegman focused on low-profile decor. “We wanted to be able to see the exterior from any point in the house but still have these amazing sculptural pieces of furniture that feel special,” Wegman explains. Finishes, selected by Salcito with interior designer Ashley Willoughby, establish a neutral and comforting tone with a combination of oak flooring, walnut cabinetry and doors, and pine windows alongside Italian porcelain and quartzite. “All the architectural finishes in the house were very much aligned with ours and the new owners’ aesthetics,” Wegman says. “It was seamless.” To add warmth, she pulled in organic, natural materials and textures. Shades of brown throughout evoke the desert landscape, brightened by pops of green and blue equally inspired by nature.
In an outdoor seating area adjacent to the living room, a Montauk Sofa sectional wraps around a Lumacast concrete fire table. Just beyond, a Bover pendant from Lightform Lighting illuminates an RH dining table and Harbour chairs.
In the breakfast nook, a banquette crafted by Desert Design Group and Maiden Home chairs surround a table with a Bluette quartzite top from Terrazzo & Marble Supply Companies. A Roll & Hill pendant hovers in front of the Jim Polan artwork.
Style meets functionality in the kitchen, where easy-to-clean Taj Mahal quartzite from Cactus Stone & Tile on the countertops, backsplash and hood gleams alongside walnut and beige-hued aluminum cabinetry by bulthaup. The Wolf range faces a Kallista faucet.
A Design Within Reach stool pulls up to the kitchen island. Wire-brushed oak Opus flooring leads to the entry vestibule for the owners’ suite, accented with an aged wall mirror by Dawn Sweitzer for Ethnicraft.
The open living, dining and kitchen areas flow seamlessly with each other and the outdoors. Decor, like the Maharam-upholstered Montauk Sofa sectional and Apparatus light fixture, was kept low-profile and sculptural.
Krasnogorov Studio’s Pearl Chandelier crowns the primary bedroom, which is clad in an ivory suede wallcovering by Phillip Jeffries. Positioned for prime views, a Riva 1920 bed from Haute Living dressed in Parachute linens is joined by a Verellen chair and ottoman.
An Antonio Lupi tub and Trueing double pendant act as the focal point of the primary bathroom, which functions like an indoor-outdoor spa. Facing the glass-enclosed shower is a travertine bench by CB2.
In an outdoor seating area adjacent to the living room, a Montauk Sofa sectional wraps around a Lumacast concrete fire table. Just beyond, a Bover pendant from Lightform Lighting illuminates an RH dining table and Harbour chairs.
Black chairs by Imperfettolab act as both artwork and additional patio seating. On the lawn, an Arhaus Ping-Pong table invites play while giving the illusion of a sculpture carved from rock.
The entry provides immediate transparency through the soaring great room to the mountains, golf course and city beyond. “The idea was to give some gracious volume upon entry without being overly large or ostentatious,” Gardon reflects. Lining the large entertaining space, composed of a living room, dining area and kitchen, a 10-foot-tall floor-to-ceiling window wall opens completely to a back deck fortified with its own seating, dining and kitchen areas. As the layout flows into the kitchen, the ceiling drops for a sense of intimacy. “You feel that immediate relationship of the two spaces, but each one is scaled appropriately for its use,” Gardon notes.
Soft, neutral materials reign in the owners’ bedroom, starting with the buttery suede wallcovering. “It makes the room feel so cozy and warm,” Wegman observes. A fireplace clad in a white geometric pattern adds to the textural vibe, while above the upholstered bed hangs a tactile dyed tapestry that pulls in the soft greens and warm browns of the rest of the home to keep everything cohesive. An expansive corner window and sliding glass door that opens to the backyard and pool area intrinsically tie the suite to the outdoors.
A private courtyard in the primary bathroom imbues the feel of a resort retreat, complete with a hot tub, outdoor shower and sculpture dear to the owner’s heart. “We have the clearest of skies here at night, and it’s a really special place when the sun has gone down,” she shares. It’s one of her favorite spaces, though she admits that her top spots shift throughout the day according to the light, with the back patio’s plush sofa taking the title at sunset. The way the property lives is a testament to its well-oriented design inside and out. “You feel like you’re in the perfect location,” Gardon says, “and the house catered to it.”
Krasnogorov Studio’s Pearl Chandelier crowns the primary bedroom, which is clad in an ivory suede wallcovering by Phillip Jeffries. Positioned for prime views, a Riva 1920 bed from Haute Living dressed in Parachute linens is joined by a Verellen chair and ottoman.