Croffice of My Dreams!

Do you know what a croffice is? If so, read on for the most gorgeous croffice you’ve ever seen. If not, well keep reading. We’ll have a vocab lesson in this post

Parade of Homes: Campo de Fiore …

… by Bella Vita Custom Homes came in a close second for me in the 2010 Parade of Homes in Colorado Springs. Read all about the first place house (for me) here.

This house is due east from the Air Force Academy in a new development called Flying Horse ranch. Flying Horse ranch was actually a working ranch until four or five years ago when the old man died and the kids sold everything. Ungrateful brats ….   I did go to the Flying Horse ranch auction back then. Alas everything from the old saddles to the stunning chandeliers went for bigger bucks than I had.

Anyway, now developers are carving up the ranch into estates like Campo de Fiore.

I love houses that have courtyards. It’s sort of like the house is embracing you. Or, maybe I watched to many Dynasty episodes? What struck me as bad approaching Campo is the utility box right out front. Yuck! It must be a new building code, because even tract homes are built this way now in Colorado Springs. I don’t like it.

They got me inside the entry, though, with this light fixture. Yes, I am the crazy light lady as evidenced here and here, and this house satisfied my obsession with stunning light fixtures in every room – most of which I didn’t get pictures.

Red in the dining room? Yes, please! That’s real brick, by the way, framing the arch. Gorgeous! The dining room is at the left of the entry.

Walk straight ahead upon entering to enter the kitchen/family great room. Or go through the dining room and a huge butlers pantry (no photo of that, sorry!) to pop out on the side of the frig there.

I love the kitchen – except I found the butcher block counter (under the copper pot at the corner of the island) very odd. It’s far too tall to use as a chopping block. Where the lady in teal is standing is an area that is lowered and topped with marble for baking.

Notice the mixed cabinetry in the kitchen? Haven had mixed cabinets, too. I like it.  Make a note of the range hood area.

Because it is the same finish and color as the fireplace on the opposite side of this kitchen-family great room. I love that fireplace! Look at the herringbone brick pattern inside. It’s details like that that I LOVE!

The wall you see behind the fireplace is an optical illusion in this photo.

Because it’s actually the hall to the master bedroom. There’s a plug on the back of the fireplace. Mantel Christmas decorating made easy! The master was nice, but nothing out of the ordinary. So, I didn’t take any photos. Sorry!

But the covered patio with fireplace was very special! See the Air Force Academy tucked onto the mountainside in the distance? This house is very close to work for me. Hey, I’m just sayin’!

No mowing or tending grass in this backyard, either. Have Americans finally stopped wasting time, money and resources on an inedible crop? Gawd, I hope so!

Ah, now we’re getting closer to my favorite part of the house. This is just one tiny little corner of a two room connected mud and laundry combination that is directly off the garage.

You know you’re in a fabulous house when the mud room sink, faucet and cabinets are this beautiful.

I saved the best for last. There are stairs that are kind of tucked away secretly off this mud/laundry room. Scroll back up to the first photo for a moment. See that second floor?

The entire, ENTIRE second floor is a croffice. Vocabulary lesson: craft room + office = croffice. Oh. My. Gawd!

White cabinets, Tiffany blue paint, white trim, perched on top of the house with tons of windows letting in tons of light? What’s not to die-for?

Sink for when you get messy.

And directly opposite the sink is a beautiful little terrace, when you’re ready for a break. It overlooks the driveway/courtyard downstairs, but is completely tucked away from the street. With east and south exposures, this terrace will get great light all day.

The wall on the left of the terrace is a massive closet, storage type area. Uh huh! Lot’s of yarn storage   And, there were architectural plans displayed that showed that the owners are carving up a piece of this floor for a small mother-in-law suite. Pffft. I wouldn’t!

So, there you have what photos I took of Campo de Fiore.  The house really is fabulous and it’s half a million cheaper than Haven at Red Rock Canyon. This croffice would probably seal the deal for me, if, you know, I were in the market for a million+ dollar house.

Even if we’re not in this income bracket, we can have beautiful homes and I’ll have proof next time. The designer of Haven also did two townhouses in this year’s Parade of Homes.  I’ll show you the magic she created  in those small spaces.