When people walk through a finished home, they notice the furniture, the lighting, the cabinetry, and all the little details that make the space feel complete.
What they don't see are the months of planning, collaboration, and countless decisions that happened long before a single piece of décor was brought in.
For Behind the Build, we're taking you behind the scenes of The Breckenridge Lodge to show how our design team transformed a vision into a home that feels like a luxury mountain retreat right here in Fort Wayne.
It Started With a Feeling
Every home has a style, but The Breckenridge Lodge started with something bigger than that.
"We wanted to bring a modern rustic lodge style to Fort Wayne," says Kayla. "We wanted to show that cozy, comfortable homes can still be modern and beautiful and that your home can feel like a retreat without having to go on vacation."
Instead of recreating a mountain cabin exactly, the team focused on capturing the feeling. Warm woods, natural stone, earthy textures, and layered materials all work together to create a home that's inviting without feeling dated or overly themed.
The goal wasn't to design a house that only a handful of people would love. It was to make a bold style feel approachable.
"Maybe only a small percentage of people would say they're drawn to a rustic lodge style," Kayla says. "We're hoping people walk through this home and realize it's something they could actually see themselves living in."
Finding the Right Balance
Creating a home with a strong personality doesn't mean every detail has to fit one theme.
Throughout the Breckenridge Lodge, the team intentionally blended modern and rustic elements.
Contemporary cabinetry is paired with natural stone. Rustic wood furniture is balanced by clean-lined seating. Statement pieces bring character while leaving room for homeowners to make the space their own. Even some of the home's most unique features were designed with flexibility in mind.
The result is a home that feels memorable without feeling overwhelming a space that's distinctive while still appealing to a wide range of homeowners.
Every Design Decision Has a Ripple Effect
Decorating isn't just picking finishes and furniture. Behind every design choice is a chain reaction of decisions that affect the rest of the home. As Chelsea explains, making those choices early makes all the difference.
"Every decision can affect other things in ways that you may not think about. Making those decisions up front helps everything go much more smoothly. Waiting too long can create major rework and additional costs."
Even during the design phase, the team worked closely with project managers to make sure their vision could become reality. Sometimes that meant adjusting structural elements. Other times it simply meant slowing down and thinking through how one small change might impact dozens of others. It's a process built on collaboration and plenty of problem-solving.
Cabinetry Sets the Tone
Cabinetry is often one of the first design features installed in a home, making it one of the biggest influences on the overall look and feel.
"Cabinetry really sets the tone," says our in-house cabinet designer Zach. "The color, construction style, and door style can completely change the look of a space."
Unlike working with a homeowner who already has a clear vision, designing The Breckenridge Lodge meant creating that vision from scratch. For Zach, that meant focusing on one room at a time before stepping back to make sure every space connected seamlessly.
"It almost became like putting together a puzzle," he says. "I'd finish one area, move to another, then come back and make adjustments so everything tied together."
One of the biggest challenges? Making every room feel unique while still feeling like it belonged in the same home. With soaring ceilings and oversized spaces, especially in the lodge room, the cabinetry needed to make a statement without overwhelming the architecture.
Lighting Makes the Difference
If cabinetry establishes the style, lighting creates the mood.
"Lighting is probably one of the most important elements in a home," Jenny.
Planning starts much earlier than most people realize. Before decorative fixtures are even selected, the team studies how natural light will move through the home based on its placement on the lot. Then they layer ambient, task, and accent lighting to make every room feel comfortable while also functioning the way it should.
It's an approach that's often overlooked but one that completely changes how a home feels. Jenny says one of the biggest mistakes people make is choosing fixtures that are too small or focusing only on the decorative fixture itself instead of how the entire lighting plan works together.
As for her favorite part of The Breckenridge Lodge? Let's just say she's especially excited about the accent lighting.
Watching it Come Together
When we asked the team what has been the most rewarding part of the project so far, the answers all shared a common theme. Watching months of planning become reality. Seeing ideas move from sketches and mood boards into real spaces is rewarding enough but doing it alongside a team that collaborates so closely makes it even better.
Everyone involved has brought their own expertise to the project, constantly bouncing ideas off one another, refining details, and making sure every decision supports the overall vision.
A Home Worth Exploring
The Breckenridge Lodge was designed to surprise people. Not with one standout room or one dramatic feature but with the way every space unfolds into the next. Kayla hopes visitors leave feeling like they've stepped into a luxury vacation home. Jenny is excited for the moment people walk through the front door and immediately say, "Wow."
And we can't wait for that moment either.
