A lifetime of travel and 3 months of “spare time” last year resulted in a home design you might be interested to know more about. A desire to understand what details in the residences of Europe give them that timeless appeal, that character and personality that makes you feel “complete”, has led us on many an adventure. Loads of soul-less square footage doesn’t do it, this study in design is the anti-McMansion. As far as actual application, It’s one thing to like it in a magazine, and another to make it happen in reality. Products must be sourced and used well, details like environment colour and light all make a vast difference, and budgets are a reality once off the magazine page. We’ll post parts of our inspiration scrapbook for this home (clippings and photos from our travels), and each segment will take us through parts of this residence. Originally the layout was designed for lot 5 or 8 Broughdale Gates, but can be redesigned using the same inspiration. There will be no fluff, few superlatives, just our reasoning as to what certain details do to create style that transcends fads and how we can make it happen. We open this series with a look at the façade.