Built to sell: Whispering Creek homeowners go modern for the first time

“We build and sell,” Jen Haugen said. “That’s why this is not one of my favorites. We’ll be out of this one by next November. It’ll be time to move.”

Her husband, Nick Haugen, owns a construction company that specializes in custom homes while she works for the Mercy Medical Center Foundation. They’ve been living in their new home for less than a year and went with a more modern look, departing from her personal taste, decorating in Southwestern style, which is known to be cozy and warm with earth tones and rugged appeal.

“It’s beautiful,” she said. “I’m just not a modern girl. We have to build according to what’s in style. I’ve been able to put some of my touches on it to make it funky and fun.”

Even though they don’t plan to stay long, certain features of the home are set up for how they live, focusing more on entertainment than family since the kids are grown.

This was the first time Jen Haugen dipped her toe into modern decorating. She used the color orange to get started. The terra cotta cousin adds the warmth she wanted to the modern design. Completing the look, she got a lot of items from secondhand stores, Goodwill and Gordmans. Many of the orange accent pieces were spray-painted for a cohesive look.

A large, LED lighted window pane doubles as wall art in the hallway, bordering the living room.

An oversized island is designed to comfortably seat eight at barstools around the counter. While there is room for a dining table, too, they’ve turn that space into a conversation area (not pictured) with four low-profile chairs that lend themselves to an unobstructed view of the lush green hills and valleys outside.

Sliding barn doors are a trendy feature that have been showing up in more homes in the past couple years. Some variations look like the doors truly just came out of a barn while others put modern slabs on the sliders, making them a transitional feature, easy to add to any home with enough wall space.

Just because the home was built with resale in mind, didn’t mean Jen Haugen couldn’t put a personal touch on it. She commissioned this painting of Jesus and the Holy Spirit from a high school student, Abby Krei.

“Again, I wanted something different. I didn’t want to go in and see the same picture that everybody has from Gordmans or HOM Furniture or wherever,” she said. “That’s probably my favorite piece in the house.” That’s one that she’ll hang onto through each and every move.

Installing a shallow trench under the sink and filling it with smooth, black stones gives that master bathroom a spa-like feel that makes you want to lie down for a nice hot rock massage at the end of the day.

The artwork in the master suite was one her secondhand finds when she went searching for funky, modern furnishings with a ‘70s feel without paying full price.

Jen Haugen salvaged an old whiskey barrel from the KD Station, which was built in 1915 as a meatpacking plant and later turned into a shopping center. It was ultimately damaged by a fire in 2004 and demolished in 2010. The barrel is one of her favorite pieces that she won’t part with, and that way, she always gets to hang on to her Southwestern flair.

A wide, staggered walkway leads up to the front door, highlighting one of the bolder design decisions that the Haugens made.

A large outdoor seating area not only provides additional space for entertaining during the summer months but also a serene setting for drinking that first cup of coffee in the morning.