Style inspired by the rural Midwest characterizes our contemporary 20th anniversary Idea Home in suburban Indianapolis.

Stonelake Farm Idea Home 2007

(Originally Published: September/October 2007)

PROJECT TEAM
Builder Mark Gradison, Gradison Building Corp., Indianapolis (317/594-7575; www.gradisonbuilding.com). Architectural Designer Gary Nance, Nance Designs, Indianapolis (317/558-8757). Development Viking Meadows, Westfield. Precedent Development (317/805-1100; www.theprecedent.com). Interior Designer Carol Schalla, senior home and projects editor, Midwest Living® . Interior Design Assistance Holly Craiger, Home Dressings, Des Moines (515/633-0405). Project Manager Brett Wilson, Meredith Corp. Project Assistance Sara Reimer, assistant home editor, Midwest Living, and Wade Scherrer.

We filled our 2007 Indianapolis-area Idea Home with beautiful, innovative and smart products. All of us at Midwest Living would like to thank our sponsors, listed here, and the many talented and hardworking people who made designing and building this special home a pleasure and a success.

Cambria
We love the new rich brown Oakhampton finish we previewed on our kitchen island countertop. Other choices, all from Cambria's natural quartz surface collection, add interest throughout our kitchen and baths. Quartz is not only stronger than granite, but less porous, more sanitary, easier to maintain and just as beautiful (866/226-2742; www.cambriausa.com).

Clopay
A three-car garage makes up a big part of our home's facade, so the garage doors' design is important to the overall aesthetic. That's why we chose Clopay's Reserve Collection. We created a custom carriage house garage door to fit the home's design using Clopay's many window and panel configurations (800/225-6729; www.clopaydoor.com).

Delta
The oil-rubbed Venetian Bronze finish, available in several classic style collections from Delta, was an obvious choice to enhance the kitchen and baths in our home's main living areas. The finish complements our warm palette of browns. Plus, Delta's new high-rise faucets work well with the vessel sinks we chose (800/345-3358; www.deltafaucet.com).

Harden
Creating a relaxed, eclectic mix of contemporary and country furniture in our Idea Home was easy with Harden's numerous style collections, diverse upholstery choices and wide array of custom finishes. The company's quality, handcrafted, built-in-the-U.S.A. furniture was the logical choice for our Heartland anniversary home (315/245-1000; www.harden.com).).

Hunter Douglas
In many rooms, tall windows needed privacy and/or sun control. We used soft blinds, natural Romans, wood blinds and the new sliding, flat vertical panel Skyline system. The innovative designs and various light-control features of these Hunter Douglas window fashions let us diffuse, direct and filter light exactly the way we needed to (800/274-2985; www.hunterdouglas.com).

James Hardie
An important element in our farmhouse-inspired exterior design is James Hardie fiber cement wood-look shingle siding. Hardie's ColorPlus technology offers a 15-year finish warranty for its baked-on paint finish. The product resists rotting or cracking and damage from rain, hail and flying debris, making it perfect for the Midwest (888/542-7343; www.jameshardie.com).

Jeld-Wen
We mixed several uniquely configured windows with a more traditional style. Interior and exterior doors from Jeld-Wen also enhance our home's farmhouse style. A looks-like-wood composite Dutch door, an oversize custom wood entry door and Custom Carved kids' bedroom doors all add personality to the house (800/535-3936; www.jeld-wen.com).

KraftMaid
Making space for storage and organization can be a challenge in any home. We tackled this problem with a mix of KraftMaid's traditional maple and cherry cabinetry in our rooms. We designed bookcases, a built-in desk, a mud hall storage station, a window seat and other attractive, functional configurations (800/571-1990; www.kraftmaid.com).

Laura Ashley
In the nursery, we chose the soft colors and playful patterns of classic Laura Ashley baby collections. Our inspiration came from a modern-style crib set. Coordinating aqua wall paint, pink- and-glass table lamps and a silver metal floral chandelier, all from Laura Ashley, made it simple to design this pretty room (803/396-7744; www.lauraashley-usa.com).

Lennox
As indoor air quality becomes a key issue to homeowners, we put a priority on the right heating and cooling systems. Lennox (awarded the EPA Energy Star) provided the most efficient option. The system we selected offers consistent temperature control, quiet operation, balanced humidity and improved air quality (800/953-6669; www.lennox.com).

Proven Winners
This leading brand of high-quality flowering plants and shrubs in North America was our first choice for the home's gardens. The company's knowledge of what grows best in the Midwest made them the logical choice for our showhome. An example is the pretty Vista Fuchsia Supertunia (877/865-5818; www.provenwinners.com).

Rust-Oleum
Many Midwest homeowners want to make garages more liveable, organized and even attractive. Rust-Oleum's EpoxyShield Garage Floor Coating provides a showroom-quality surface to protect against gasoline, antifreeze, motor oil, salt and more. Mix-in Flakes camouflage loose dirt, and an Anti-Slip additive enhances your safety (800/323-3584; www.rustoleum.com).

Schlage
A home's hardware is a small but important finishing detail. It can add distinctive flair, but should always complement the home's style. Schlage handlesets, levers, knobs, deadbolts and a new keypad entry lock, all in a bronze finish, provide convenience, security and sophisticated accents in styles that fit our farmhouse decor (800/847-1864; www.schlage.com).

Sears
This family home demands appliances that can hold up to heavy daily use and lots of entertaining. The Kenmore Pro line from Sears has the size, strength and features to go the distance. We consider it a smart choice because it's inspired by home chefs, and it has European design, top-grade stainless steel, and ergonomic gauges and handles (800/349-4358; www.sears.com).

Serta
Nighttime comfort and daytime vitality come from the Perfect Day mattresses we selected from Serta. This top-of-the-line collection includes a KoolComfort memory foam pillow top for cool cradling and FreeFlex innerspring coils that mirror the shape of your body for proper spinal alignment. In Firm, Plush, Super Pillowtop or Mega Eurotop (888/557-3782; www.serta.com).

TimberTech
For the home's outdoor living spaces, where relaxation is key, we chose TimberTech composite decking. It's skid- and splinter-free and never needs painting or staining. Our main-floor terrace has a stylish TimberTech railing. A backyard deck with pergola, made with two-tone, no-maintenance planking, stands by a pond (800/307-7780; www.timbertech.com

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