Bridget and Kory Mitchell typically celebrate their wedding anniversaries with dinner and drinks at Fruition, one of their favorite Denver restaurants. But for their sixth anniversary, in May 2020, COVID-19 shutdowns forced them to rethink their plans. “All we could do was take a walk together with a cup of coffee in hand,” Bridget says.

That impromptu Saturday morning stroll through the Hilltop neighborhood resulted in another reason to celebrate. “We saw a ‘Coming Soon’ sign on a raggedy, lonely little home on a massive corner lot,” Bridget says, noting that the couple had outgrown its Georgian-style house in Park Hill and was in search of a new property with more outdoor space. Though the yard was overgrown and the house hadn’t been maintained, the Mitchells saw the lot’s potential and immediately fell in love with the idea of raising their then two-year-old son, Maclain, there. “We were so pumped. We submitted our best offer that weekend, and by Monday or Tuesday, we were under contract,” Bridget says.

5280 August 2024
5280 August 2024
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There was just one problem: The existing house was unsalvageable. “We couldn’t even go inside; it was in total disrepair,” Bridget says. “It looked like it had the original carpet from 1953.” The home’s interiors didn’t offer much inspiration, but the Mitchells loved its sprawling, single-level layout. “We knew we wanted to keep the integrity of the ranch style,” Bridget says. The couple worked with Larsen, a Denver design-build firm, to demolish the original structure and, in its place, construct a four-bedroom home with a modern-farmhouse-meets-New-England-coastal aesthetic on the exterior, a California casual interior, and a strong connection to the plot of land they’d fallen in love with.

The team at Denver design-build firm Larsen mixed cedar shake siding, white-painted tumbled brick, and metal roof accents for an exterior materials palette that balanced the Mitchells’ desire for both farmhouse and coastal styles.
Arched alcoves add a softness to the living room, which is anchored by a large gas fireplace Bridget says she flips on nearly every day.
Bridget originally envisioned the kitchen with putty-hued upper and lower cabinets, but when she saw this variegated walnut option for the upper cabinets from the Kitchen Showcase—a Centennial-based kitchen design studio—she knew she had to have it. “I love how the walnut ages and has a natural patina over time,” she says.
In Kory’s office, the built-in shelving was custom-designed to fit his entire book collection, which Bridget organized by color. “Everyone on his Zoom calls is like, ‘Is that a fake background?’ ” she says. Denver furniture maker Kevin Anderson handcrafted the walnut desk

To achieve that final wish, the design team created an open-concept layout that spills onto a covered back patio via a 23-foot-wide accordion door. “We wanted to be able to walk through the front door and see all the way through the house to the backyard,” Bridget says. By framing views of the home’s freshly manicured landscape—a project primarily done by Bridget, who completed Colorado State University’s Colorado Certified Gardener program this spring—the window wall acts as a giant piece of art that shifts with the seasons. In the summertime, colorful beds of blooming annuals and textural native plants fill the canvas.

The bedroom’s oak canopy bed, custom window coverings from Cherry Creek Shade & Drapery, and woven pendant lights create a layered look.
“I wanted this room to endure and last,” Bridget says of the minimalistic bedroom she created for Maclain, who is now six years old. The custom, built-in bunk bed was created without a single screw and features open shelving for displaying his favorite books and toys.

Bridget—a former home-goods boutique owner who now runs an interior design styling company—kept the focus on that view by outfitting the home with a timeless palette of neutral hues, warm woods, and midcentury-modern-inspired furnishings. She worked with the Larsen team to design and source several custom touches, from a built-in oak bunk bed in Maclain’s room to a five-foot-wide fireplace in the great room and a set of two-seater kitchen counter stools crafted by Denver furniture designer Kevin Anderson. A sprinkling of vintage objects and landscape art pulls it all together and gives the property a cozy, lived-in vibe. “I didn’t want anything to feel brand-new,” Bridget says. “I wanted it to feel like these were things that we had collected over time.”

In the primary bathroom, dual vanities by Denver-based Kitchen Showcase flank a freestanding tub.
The nook adjacent from Maclain’s bunk bed provides quiet space for future homework sessions.
Variegated walnut cabinets from the Kitchen Showcase placed in the kitchen.

That assembled-over-the-years aesthetic extends to the covered patio, where woven light fixtures hang above a repurposed dining set the Mitchells used in their old home. Strategically placed uplighting adds an intimate ambience to alfresco dinners that linger into the evening, while a modern gas firepit and heaters installed in the ceiling make the space usable year-round. “It really is an extension of our living room, and we treat it that way,” Bridget says. “Unless it’s absolutely blizzarding, we’re out there every day.” The indoor-outdoor space is the Mitchells’ go-to spot for hosting gatherings and events, playing fetch with their two dogs, and sipping coffee while watching Maclain play in the yard. It is, she says, a lonely little home no more.

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This article was originally published in 5280 August 2024.
Michelle Shortall
Michelle Shortall
Michelle Shortall is a senior editor at 5280, where she manages Compass and writes and edits home stories for 5280.com.