Arizona Home And Design Magazine - September/October 2006

Home and Design Magazine September

When Claire Ownby, Allied Member of ASID, of Scottsdale-based Ownby Design set out to design a home in Scottsdale’s Desert Mountain master-planned community for her and her husband, David, 10 years ago, her design dilemma was to merge both of their different design styles.

“I’m more contemporary and he’s more Santa Fe,” she says. “So we mixed mission-style and contemporary furniture to achieve the perfect combination.” She calls the result “desert modern.”

Hoping to establish an indoor-outdoor, “at-one-with-nature” feeling that’s open yet intimate. Ownby utilizes a wall of windows visible from the front door and low retaining walls to allow for unobstructed views of the desert.

The single-story home features two master suites and four fireplaces, including a double-sided fireplace in one master suite that opens to the bedroom and tub. Flagstone and oak flooring throughout and a color palette of off-whites, dark browns and sage greens give the residence a calm climate.

“Clean and minimal” is how Ownby describes the look of her home. “We don’t have a lot of moldings or trim, and we have no baseboards,” she says. “We have no window jams or door jams. The edges of the doors and windows are rolled right into the drywall.”

One of the couple’s prized possessions is a collection of Curtis prints, late 19th century black and white photographs depicting scenes from Native American culture. “The prints really complement the Santa Fe influences in the home,” says Ownby. James A. Roberts, a retired architect, created the plans for the home. The builder was Mesa-based Price Woods Inc.