This Prairie Modern Home Features Custom Stained Glass and Incredible Millwork Details

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There is a lovely warmth to this updated, “prairie modern” style Calgary home by designers Erika Keskitalo and Aly Velji of Alykhan Velji Designs. Previously dark and stuck in the early ’90s, the interior was opened up and modernized to be brighter and airier—and incredibly inviting.

To maintain warmth in the space, Keskitalo and Velji used contrasting dark walnut and white oak wood tones throughout the home. Reeded and arched details in the millwork are repeated throughout the home. Combined with striking stained-glass and a mid-century railing, the home has an inviting, prairie-modern, Frank Lloyd Wright style.

Upon entering the home, there’s a striking feature: a gorgeous, custom stained-glass feature next to the stairs. It serves as a unique focal point with its burnt-orange and green colour palette and arched design (those arches mimicking the detail in much of the millwork perfectly).

The open-riser staircase was reclad to match the white oak flooring in the rest of the home, with contrasting black caps and a black railing. A cool modern black light fixture from Robinson Lighting and Bath hangs above the stairs, and a complementary black bench on the upper landing adds an elegant final touch.

In the kitchen, upper cabinetry was removed to open up the room, allowing the window above the sink to be enlarged into a beautiful picture window. Velji notes that you don’t necessarily need a lot of upper and lower cabinets to make room for storage. “That kind of takes away from a beautiful kitchen,” he says. Creative storage solutions, like the addition of a coffee bar that provides a place for cups and other items, help to make good use of the space instead. A charming banquette provides casual seating in the kitchen in lieu of counter stools, allowing for a large storage area underneath the island.

Black hardware, crisp white Caesarstone countertops, and variated white porcelain tile add brightness and contrast in the kitchen. The 3” x 3” tiles on the backsplash and hood fan create a more natural, handmade look, and add subtle texture.

In the primary ensuite, the team brought in a deep freestanding white bath, with the same reeded detail in the rest of the home repeated on the ledge above it. Faux-marble subway tile  in a herringbone pattern lines the large walk-in shower. LED lights illuminate the shelf inside, turning the shower into a beautiful focal point in the bathroom.

Originally published August 2022