Chateau Murray

After turning the brass handle of the wrought-iron gate in front of Gary and Macanna Murray's Old World-inspired home, you are greeted by two red doors to your right and left before stepping into the courtyard encircled by windows, lush plants and the warm color of stucco walls. Step through the double wooden doors, which are brightened by panes of glass and you arrive on a pseudo-welcome mat built into the granite. Macanna (named for her father, Mac) smiles and begins to explain how her husband, Gary, has been instrumental in every decision about the design of their home. A retired general contractor himself, he orchestrated the construction and did quite a bit of the work as well. When asked about his inspiration for the design, Gary insists the house is a "collection of ideas taken out of Southern Living." After years of clipping articles and pictures, he's collected quite a scrapbook. Although his creative ability to envision the end result deserves some of the credit. "Gary can just visualize things," she explains.

After all those years compiling ideas, Gary knew exactly what they wanted, but teamed with Ron Hill of EuroWorld Design to make it all happen. Because the Spain-inspired courtyard was an important element for the Murrays, configuring a way to roof it was difficult. "It's like roofing a donut," Gary says. But Ron devised a way to make it work using turrets and a rounded floor plan. The result: a castle-like dwelling that still feels like home.

Entry through the foyer delivers guests to the game room. The far wall is rounded with windows that peer out onto the No. 4 green of the Fremont Hills golf course. Above, the ceiling arches like a cathedral, and the structure is supported by thick wooden beams. Occupying the back of the room is an enormous pool table. Macanna explains that they've had it for 15 or 20 years, and Gary bought the billiard set in pieces from the want ads and refinished it with deep leather pockets and a fresh coat of stain. The focal point of the room, however, is the massive fireplace made of ornately sculpted cultured stone. Because this room and the adjoining library-esque room room are mostly used for entertaining, they are set in their own zone of heating and cooling.

A door from the master bedroom to the laundry room interrupts the small corridor that leads to the master bathroom. The conveniently placed washer and dryer are accompanied by plenty of cabinet space, an ironing board in a drawer, and a quick exit (via one of those red doors) to the courtyard. The wide-open bathroom invites plenty of light from the windows, especially over the jetted tub in the corner. In addition to a built-in vanity with an upholstered stool, the two sink areas are customized, with Gary's just a bit taller than Macanna's. Stemming from the bathroom is a large closet area Macanna insists needs a door, and a beautifully tiled floor-to-ceiling area for the toilet and the bidet. The floor-level shower fixture is conveniently placed outside the step-in, no-curtain-needed circular enclosure to avoid the awkward "reach while avoiding a splash." But, it's still placed close enough outside the entry for a mid-shower temperature adjustment.

Back through the other door and out of the master bedroom, you arrive back in the foyer. There's a spiral staircase and domed ceiling that compose one of the trademark turrets. The walls of the foyer are a complex shade of brown that Macanna explains to be the result of Teresa Maples' glazing technique. Maples, owner of Brushstrokes, coats the walls in layers of paint to create the metallic, yet muted effect. In the dome ceiling above the staircase, Maples took a world map and pieced it together to look like the walls are breaking apart to expose it.

Throughout the house, Macanna continually points out objects she and Gary have picked up on their travels around the world. In the master bedroom sits a picture of Macanna with a Kenyan man of the Masai tribe. In another, a llama's head interrupts a beautiful view of a mountain in Machu Picchu, Peru. Countless pieces of pottery originating from Mexico, Greece, Spain and Honduras, just to name a few are neatly displayed around the house.

Upstairs are two guest bedrooms and a bathroom. You can also catch a great view of the fountains from the golf course as well as those springing from the blue-tiled swimming pool below. Macanna knew there would be a great view from the back room. So she had the plan expanded to accommodate a window seat.
Back down the stairs to the foyer, a hallway jets to an eclectic bathroom Macanna refers to as the "fish bathroom." With a hand-painted sink from Mexico that was once an in-flight carry-on, as well as a custom-tiled vanity, the bathroom is truly one of a kind. A door leads directly to the back terrace, so anyone coming in from the pool doesn't have to traipse through the house with wet feet.

Cream-colored, distressed cabinets created and installed by Fritz Designs and Concepts line the wall in the wing of the house that the Murrays insist they really "live in." The large built-in unit of cabinets is finished off with a dramatic black granite countertop. The dining room, hearth room and kitchen are set up in a large L-shape that allows for both openness and separation. Pillars and the eclectic rugs the Murrays have collected from their world travels set off the dining room table. The corner of the L-shaped room is the perfect spot for the wet bar, which is adorned with another hand-painted sink from Mexico.

A large red sectional couch in the hearth room sits opposite the third and final fireplace in the home.  Adjacent to the sitting area of the hearth room is the kitchen. A vast granite countertop completes the giant island accompanied by bar chairs on one side and a microwave stow area and a warming drawer on the other. A copy of Mexico: The Beautiful Cookbook sits upright on its stand perched on the counter. Maples also hand painted grapevines along the trim of the archways. Macanna points upward as she describes her technique to raise the shape of the grapes and make them slightly three-dimensional. The kitchen has a tiled backsplash behind the sink and the gas stove and some other thoughtful additions, such as the pot-filler and cabinets with windows. To the left, a door with opaque glass opens up to the large pantry. Gary found the door at a flea market on Glenstone Avenue and refinished it himself. (No surprise here.)

Another small dining set is placed near the window in the kitchen, and one last set of French doors leads out to the courtyard. As we travel through the house, Macanna will zip us through one of these five courtyard-bound doors, and it feels like that outside plot of land is just as much a part of the house as the inside. And Gary has treated it so. He built the fountain with a face whose mouth is spouting water, and he landscaped the entire grounds.

Resources:

Spiral staircase: Legacy Stairs, 334 Midway Circle, Nixa, 417-725-9288

Home design: Ron Hill, EuroWorld Design, 5349 N. 22nd St., Ozark, 417-581-6057, euroworlddesign.com

Cabinetry and mantels: Fritz Designs and Concepts, 1205 Eaglecrest St., Nixa, 417-724-0824

Custom painting: Theresa Maples, Brushtrokes, yourbrushstrokes@sbcglobal.net, brushstrokesportfolio.com

Lighting: Lloyd's Electric, 209 S. Ingram Mill Rd, Springfield, 417-865-2266 and Creative Associates, 1730 E. Atlantic St., Springfield, 417-862-1794

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