Story at a glance:
- American Lighting helps create an exquisite living space inside an incredible lakefront home.
- Artistic use of dramatic lighting defines the special architectural elements in this 7,500-square-foot house.
- Walker Custom Homes chose American Lighting products to create a memorable, inspired environment.
With a median listing home price of just under $1 million, Lake Winnebago in Missouri is no stranger to luxury homes. This top-tier lake community has benefitted from a recent expansion of the lake that made it 50% larger with a new dam and spillway. The area boasts a combination of rural and upscale living.
It makes sense why Walker Custom Homes chose this location for one of their crown jewels. Affectionately referred to as “The Retreat,” this newly built 7,500-square-foot lakefront masterpiece is the epitome of contemporary charm and dramatic architectural styling.
Walking through the front door, you are immediately greeted with a 26-foot ceiling in the main living room, along with an 11-foot metal linear fireplace. When you look to the floor you’ll see the first of many striking lighting features throughout the home.
Inside the Lake Winnebago house, with luxury lighting from American Lighting. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
Artistic pathway lighting on the foyer floor comes in the form of 3000K Trulux Canvas LED sheets, backlighting quartz from American Lighting. Developed for backlighting semi-transparent architectural features on floors, walls, and even countertops, Trulux Canvas LED Sheets are available in 12-by-24-inch sheets that can be cut to size at the jobsite for a perfect fit. The product includes built-in spacers to help lift the material a half-inch off the light sheet for a leveled and diffused effect.
Trulux Canvas LED Sheets can also be ordered in Tunable White, which provides CCT from 2700K to 6000K to match the builder’s vision. The product provides a 50,000-hour performance and a five-year limited warranty. Each tunable light sheet can deliver up to 900 lumens per square foot.
“We used artistic lighting in very creative ways throughout the home to accent many of our unique architectural features to both amaze and welcome guests,” says Jason Walker, founder and principal of Walker Custom Homes. Walker founded his company in 2008 as a full-service home builder that offers a wide range of customizable services. He wanted to use an array of American Lighting products to create a memorable environment unlike anything else seen in the area.
Warm lights bring attention to each step you take inside the Lake Winnebago house. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
Under the stairway step planks you’ll find 3000K COB Tape Lighting Economy Extrusions. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
Among the home’s many unique architectural features is a second-floor floating metal staircase with wood treads. Each 4-inch oak wood tread is routed out for added visual effect and track lighting runs 40+ feet up through metal tubing.
Although the staircase by itself is striking, Walker chose to accentuate it with under-stairway step plank lighting in the form of 3000K COB tape lighting that is also from American Lighting. The COB tape light features uniform illumination without the need for additional diffused covers or accessories. Its seamless COB design that eliminates virtually all LED dotting makes it an ideal solution for areas with low clearance or reflective surfaces, as it virtually eliminates all spot-glare effects. The tape light’s output ranges from 349 lumens to 460 lumens per foot and is cuttable every 1.97” with 16.4-foot maximum run for custom applications. In addition, the tape lights have the flexibility to adjust color temps from 2700K to 6000K, creating millions of color possibilities with greater brightness and overall color saturation to create elegant lighting that caters to different times of the day or various applications.
There is no shortage of natural light in The Retreat with 130 windows installed throughout. Yet, Walker felt strongly that additional illumination was necessary to spotlight various features throughout the home and create a true modern lakefront retreat with a cozy, welcoming atmosphere.
Highlights of other areas of the home where lighting was used creatively to create an idyllic setting include:
- Wine room, where warm dim downlit technology provides the glow and ambience of traditional incandescent lighting while highlighting the 12-foot-tall custom-built metal wine racks.
- Canvas lighting was used under quartzite countertops and underneath vanities in all six bathrooms. In the master bath tape lights were used above the backsplash and in recessed areas within the shower stall.
- Tape lights were used over the kitchen stove and cabinets, beneath the fireplace pedestal and throughout the master bedroom (specifically around the bed pedestal and on the ceiling above the bed) to provide added brilliance and drama.
- Voice-controlled Spektrum+ smart lighting products were used throughout the major entertainment areas, including the state-of-the-art theater room and wine room. Spektrum+ offers Bluetooth mesh technology to help further streamline lighting applications throughout the home, making smart lighting control easier than ever.
- Channel lighting with unique buildouts was used in the home theater. For added special effect, custom black glass was cut and illuminated to create lighted space in the walls. The lighting includes Spektrum RGB + with tunable CCT tape light to provide the ultimate option in color changing RGB linear LED technology. With RGBTW, consumers virtually have an unlimited RGB palette of color combinations along with the ability to adjust true white light ranging from 2700K up 6000K. The intense color saturation, transition effects, and fade to white lighting effects delivers limitless color combinations with a 50,000 hours performance life.
- Backlit walls behind the custom bar are also highlighted with tape lighting.
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- On the ceiling above the bed is 3000 Standard Grade HD Universal Extrusions. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
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- The bathroom sink is illuminated by 3000K Canvas Sheets Backlighting Quartz. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
The attention to detail was not just reserved for the inside of the home. Just outside the home is an outdoor oasis with a sprawling patio, infinity-edge swimming pool, a custom concrete poolside table, two outdoor fireplaces, a custom hot tub, small basketball court and an outdoor kitchen.
To help illuminate the area, draw attention to all these extraordinary features and guide people down the path to a 20X30-foot covered dock, Walker’s team again turned to American Lighting which supplied LED strip lighting along walkway paths.
“There are many beautiful homes around Lake Winnebago, but I would venture to say that none of them are quite like this one,” said Walker. “A lot of effort and imagination went into making this a distinctive home with features that you just don’t see every day. From the moment you walk through the door, you know this home is different. I credit American Lighting with helping our team to carefully orchestrate illumination to bring out the very best of the home’s many special features and bring this Artisan space together. I am excited that we were able to do so many unique things just with lighting.”
The kitchen and bar cabinets are modified with 3000K COB Tape Light Universal Extrusions. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
3000K COB Tape Light is seen here over the range. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
Lighting brings elegance to the master bath shower. Photo courtesy of American Lighting
