Nestled on a hillside overlooking Birmingham’s Little San Francisco, a resplendent home belies its suburban address — which is part of its unique beauty.
A collaborative creation of Brian Neeper of Birmingham’s Brian Neeper Architecture, Justin Friedman, builder and founder of HM Homes in Royal Oak and investor Chase Rogers, a realtor with Max Broock in Birmingham, it was built to display the best of what each can offer.
“It’s a very unique site, perched on a hillside. It has a New York City brownstone feel to it because it hovers over the street, then looks down over the Rouge River,” Neeper says. “That’s what made it a challenge — but often, these challenging projects produce the most dynamic designs.”
Before beginning, the trio tapped interior designer Ian Hartwell, owner of Oliver Max in Royal Oak, allowing for collaboration from the ground up and a unified vision. “This way, we are involved in every aspect of the home — right down to the toilets and faucets, trim molding, color of doors — we’re all on the same page,” Hartwell says. “We wanted this home to be modern, but livable, so it has details that are a bit softer and more organic.” To achieve this, he brought in different textures with drapery, rugs, throws, pottery — even, on an expansive wall in the living room, utilizing a rich wallcovering mural as artwork.
“Our goal is to really make sure that we do classic work, but at the same time, it needs to be our clients’ vision,” Hartwell says. “I never want to lock myself into a look or follow a path — that makes me learn, makes me try new things, and it’s more interesting for me. I don’t want to say, “this is what I do and I'm fabulous.’ I want to do fabulous things and have each project be unique and individual.
“I wanted this house to be softer, elegant, different,” he says. “There are patterns here and there in the drapery, the rugs, the throws, interesting objects, pottery. Wanted it a bit more organic and collected-to.”
That starts with a vision inspired by the space itself, and its surroundings. “When I’m in this house, I really feel so comfortable,” Neeper says. “There’s something about it — the scale of the spaces, the views. There’s a ton of natural light filtering through the house, coming from a lot of different directions because it’s perched up so high.
“I love how the light filters through the house,” he says. “The way the spaces interact with the light.”
THE DETAILS
THE EXTERIOR
On the outside, on certain days, the trim color has a green cast to it, which echoes the green walls in the library. “We didn’t want it to be so literally a black-and-white house,” Ian Hartwell says. “We wanted the trim to still have an element of impact, but to be a little softer. I also love the fact that the front entrance [on the cover] is more of a courtyard. People might see it as not having a lawn or garden, but it’s got a European openness that lets you get a sense of the space and makes the home more approachable. You want to see what’s inside.”
FIREPLACE
The double-sided fireplace has a troweled-on limestone finish, giving a looser, more organic impression. It also serves to divide the open spaces into the living room on one side and the dining room on the other. “We tried to introduce more details that were softer and more curvy rather than square furniture,” Hartwell says. “So that it’s modern, but not in a linear way.” White oak flooring throughout the home is by Everlast Floors in Troy.
DINING ROOM
“Clients are moving away from a formal dining room with heavy mahogany tables and sideboards,” Hartwell says. “Our dining table and light fixture sets some formality but better fits today’s lifestyle.” Rounded table ends with round fluted bases are further softened by white boucle chairs. To the right (not pictured), a tall narrow bookcase takes the place of a sideboard. “People aren’t doing china cabinets as much, but they still have books and photos and china to display,” Hartwell says. “This is a great spot for these family-friendly pieces. And then there’s the amazing view.”
THE KITCHEN
“The kitchen is the heart of the home,” Neeper says. “The whole house is very kitchen-centric. It’s such a nice bright open area, it opens to all of the living spaces — the staircase and that great big view to the right, the dining room is behind it.” Double islands provide plenty of prep space plus extra seating. A softer approach to the all-white kitchen, the counters, backsplash and range wall are all crafted of off-white honed Antolini Apollo quartzite with “warm hints of green-bluey and browny veins, which relates to the softer tones of house,” Hartwell says. “Green is the dominant color in the house, but in this application, it’s more earthy.” The ends of the islands are curved into half-rounds, reeded and painted white. A butler’s pantry to the left of the stove hides appliances. To the right, the arched doorway leading to the library is mimicked throughout the house, including the steel door frame by Weldworks.
THE LIBRARY
Rather than heavy paneling, Hartwell enveloped the library with a deep, dark leafy green, giving it a grasscloth texture; the trim is painted the same color with semi-gloss. “It still has a masculine sensibility to it, it’s a soothing, softer, less-formal approach. It has a similar effect to a paneled library, but the color, the curved sofas, boucle chairs and fur rug — and sunlight — bring a little levity to the space,” he says. “It can be a library or a retreat for the whole family.” A white oak desk is built into one wall, in case there’s work to be done.
THE MASTER BATH
The master bath is an oasis. Durable, slick porcelain in the shower looks like marble; the floor is grainy, textural limestone, then layered with a fuzzy, romantic rug. “The lighting fixture is an opportunity to bring in softness,” Hartwell says. “Orbs and spheres are very current right now. They’re modern without being linear.”
THE STAIRCASE
In the foyer, white oak stairs by Northern Staircase in Pontiac are framed by custom steel railing by Weldworks in Royal Oak.
THE LIVING ROOM
To the left of the double-sided fireplace, the living room is designed around the stunning wall of windows. “Instead of doing gray and white, which has been popular recently, we wanted to tone it down and warm it up,” Hartwell says. “The sofas are a mink-colored velvet, we brought brown into the flat-weave rug with a shaggy criss-cross design, there are spots of brass. It’s about being a bit more artful and interesting.” Echoing the expanse of windows, a focal point of the room is a wallcovering mural by Arte, which Hartwell appropriated into artwork, a “more updated, aesthetic application. It actually makes it more cozy,” he says. The gabardine draperies, patterned with caramel, brown mink and green tones and lightly lined, are intended to frame the view, rather than provide privacy. “Look into those windows,” Hartwell says. “It’s such an eclectic little spot — you can see different styles of architecture, almost like Paris or New York, where you see so many different views out your window. I love this little area.”
THE MASTER BEDROOM
“We wanted this room to be luxurious but comfortable and approachable,” Hartwell says. Crisp white bedding, angora coverlets layered on top, a hide on the floor soften the modern metal of the canopy bed, which accentuates the height of the ceiling. “The bed feels even cozier when you’re in it,” he adds. “It’s like being inside of the square.” The nightstands are a combination of leather and hide, and the poufs at the end of the bed are knotted wool. “Things don’t have to be overdone."
