
❤️ Would you like to save this?
By saving, we'll email this post to you for later. Unsubscribe anytime.
This luxurious house by James McNeal Architecture, in collaboration with Hendel Homes, was designed to evoke the feeling of Napa Valley and is nestled on a charming lot in Orono, Minnesota. The owners fell in love with the architect’s Modern European home and wanted to emulate that while mixing in a California Ranch look.
Their lot came with some challenges, with views out the front of the home overlooking the road rather than toward the back. At the front of the home, a stone landscaping wall not only grounds the home but also directs views from inside the home out toward the front pond, rather than toward traffic on the streets or parked cars in the driveway. The stone landscaping wall creates a private indoor/outdoor living space surrounded by nature and screens the neighboring homes.
DESIGN DETAILS
ARCHITECTURE James McNeal Architecture
INTERIOR DESIGN James McNeal Architecture
BUILDER Hendel Homes
MASONRY Orijin Stone
Stone Facade and Entryway

The homeowners’ extensive art collection was another design consideration. We designed spaces for the collection in the entryway, the home theater room, a gallery hallway, the great room, and the dining room.

Earth-toned materials were used consistently throughout the home; in contrast, our clients’ love for unique beam work shows up differently across the spaces, from dark-painted coffered ceilings to a vaulted ceiling with exposed wood beams.

ACCOLADES
1st place for Use of Color in Midwest Design Awards
3rd place for Interior Use of Stone in Midwest Design Awards
3rd place for Millwork in Midwest Design Awards

What We Love About This Home
The stone landscaping wall plays double duty, grounding the entrance while gently redirecting sightlines toward the pond rather than the driveway and street. Beam work carries the whole home’s persona, shifting from a dark coffered ceiling in the media room to soaring exposed wood trusses in the great room. Most visually striking is how the kitchen’s low, cozy beam ceiling opens into the vaulted living space beyond, making the entertaining areas feel even grander by contrast.
Tell Us: What details do you find most inspiring in the design of this home? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments below; we love reading your feedback!
Note: Check out a couple of other spectacular home tours that we have highlighted here on One Kindesign in the state of Minnesota: Dream House Tour: A European style home with timeless details in Minnesota and Tour a charming country cottage in Minnesota with the most gorgeous gardens.



The grand entrance of the “Vineyard Estate” transports you to the timeless charm of Europe. Every detail, from the hand-selected stone to the soaring architecture, was thoughtfully designed to create an unforgettable arrival.



Great Room with Vaulted Wood Beams







In the kitchen, a lower, exposed parallel wood-beam ceiling creates a sense of cozy compression, then releases you into the expansive great room living space – the place for entertaining.

Dining Room and Stone Fireplace

A stone-surround, double-sided fireplace separates yet connects the dining area and the living room. The dining and great room look out onto and have access to the front courtyard. Between the dining room and covered porch is a bi-fold door that fully opens, further connecting the indoors to the outdoors.


Kitchen with Marble Island and Wood Beams




Butler’s Pantry and Wet Bar











Staircase and Gallery Hallway




Mudroom with Terracotta Tile











Stone House Exterior at Dusk





















PHOTOGRAPHER Spacecrafting

0 comments