Sunlight streams through a wall of windows and reflects off crystal icicles on a hand-forged antique brass light fixture above Thad and Donna Minyard’s dining table. The panorama beyond the glass affords uninterrupted views of Emerald Mountain and south to the Flat Tops. This recently built home, perched atop Rollingstone Golf Course, is a haven for a Texas-based couple that craves the cool mountain air. 

“We call it the fishing cabin,” Donna says with a wink. Thad is a passionate fly-fisher and spends as much time as he can casting in the waters in and around the Yampa Valley. Despite owning a condo for 15 years, the couple typically came to Steamboat Springs in the winter, until a family wedding lured them to the valley one summer. “I didn’t think there would be a lot of great fishing and golf here, but when I discovered otherwise, it was a game-changer,” Thad says. 

The Minyards decided to sell the condo and came across the half-acre lot they bought in 2013 by happenstance. They enlisted Corey Larsen and Susse Budde at Dimension Fine Homes to design and build a 3,400 square-foot, three bed, 3 ½-bath house. “I had a vision of what I wanted, and after studying Dimension Fine Homes’ work, I knew they were able to come through on detailing,” Donna says. 

A welcoming entryway opens up immediately into a seamless living, dining and kitchen space. Hand-hewn Douglas fir beams and a ceiling clad in reclaimed white barn board create a warm mountain ambience to complement the gray kitchen cabinets and quartz-top island. “Cooking is a passion of mine,” says Donna, who has become a regular at the Farmers Market and Elkstone Farm cooking classes. Caravaggio pendants and stainless steel accents add an industrial touch to the traditional character of the cabinetry. 

The home is designed for main-level living with the kitchen, mudroom, laundry room and master suite on the upper floor. Colorado Yule Marble – the same material used for the Lincoln Memorial – was chosen for the countertops and shower in the master bathroom. Wallpapers by Romo, Cole and Son, and Jessica Zoob were applied throughout the house, including the guestrooms and media room in the lower second floor. 

"From drafting their home to designing their interiors and cultivating their landscape, the Minyards were the best kind of clients; ones who were willing to break the rules and have fun with design," Susse says.

For Donna, perhaps her happiest place on the property is her garden, which has become a labor of love. Borders were built and filled with perennials and shrubs under the guidance of local naturalist Karen Vail. When not digging in her own soil, Donna volunteers at the Yampa River Botanic Park weekly. “My garden is an ongoing project but I love it, and like Steamboat in the summer, there is always something to do,” she says.

Contractors

Architecture –            Dimension Fine Homes 

General Contractor – Corey Larsen, Dimension Fine Homes

Interior Design –       Susse Budde, Dimension Fine Homes

Landscape Design –   Susse Budde, Dimension Fine Homes

Kitchen –                    Thurston Kitchen and Bath

Lighting –                   Caravaggio, Kelly Wearstler and Serip Lighting

A Colorful Life

Contemporary forms, materials and openings have become a welcomed part of the Old Town fabric, which in this home also reflects the true nature of the Jones’s living patterns.” Read More »