How do you get exactly what you want in a home? Build a custom home from scratch, of course! That’s just what the Hogan family did on 15 acres of woodland in northwestern Georgia. Tour this custom modern farmhouse and find out about it!
“From the rear of the house, you can see that it is actually 3 levels,” Mandy says. “The vaulted ceiling and arched window on the main deck is our favorite feature from the rear.”
American Farmhouse Style: Tell us a little bit about the house.
Mandy: Our custom modern farmhouse sits on 15 acres of wooded land with a small creek. The main house is approximately 4,000 square feet with a finished basement. It has 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, a music room, a media room, and 2 laundry rooms. We incorporated lots of brick and wood accents throughout the custom modern farmhouse.
“We cleared approximately 2 acres of the 15-acre wooded lot for our home,” Mandy says. “We wanted a large, three-bay detached garage/workshop to match the house. We worked closely with our builder to get the perfect layout for these two structures to sit perfectly on the contour of this location.” “We could not find any patio furniture that gave us the look we were going for, so we had the cedar couches and table custom-made,” Mandy says. “We wanted the furniture to match our outside cedar accents.”
We also built a 1,500-square-foot detached garage that is connected to the main house with a beautiful breezeway. The detached garage has three separate bays with 12-foot ceilings. The back deck on the house extends almost the entire length with the entrance section covered with a vaulted, wood ceiling. The deck is trimmed with cedar railings and posts with matching cedar furniture.
The dining area is a stunning space to see once you walk into the home. “We wanted this to feel inviting and enjoy having family gatherings here,” Mandy says. “All of the quilts in the curio cabinet were made by our family and are special to us,” Mandy says. “The church pew is a family heirloom that came from a church our family member attended many generations ago.”
AFS: When was the custom modern farmhouse finished? How long did the build process take?
Mandy: Our home was finished in April 2020, and it took approximately 8 months from start to finish.
“We wanted a soft, muted feel in the master bedroom,” Mandy says. “The vaulted ceiling has the same wood accents as the dining room and the furniture is a distressed white with wood tops.” “In order to add some farmhouse features to the living area, we decided on shiplap behind the rough-cut pine shelves,” Mandy says. “We also added a very large, solid piece of rough-cut pine as the fireplace mantel for a more rustic feel around the fireplace.”
AFS: What was your vision for the home when you started?
Mandy: We worked closely with our builder Woodall Construction and built our version of a modern farmhouse. We wanted a custom modern farmhouse, but not too modern or not too rustic. We wanted a timeless, warm and inviting home.
“For this home, we decided on a more open concept where you can see the main three areas of the house as you walk in the front door. The entire house has hardwood floors and no carpet,” Mandy says. “So deciding on the stairs was easy and the handrails were stained to match the floors.”Bathroom design doesn’t have to be complicated in order to give a beautiful farmhouse effect, as the master bathroom here proves. “We added shiplap behind the two sinks and large mirrors trimmed in wood,” Mandy says. “Our favorite feature of the master bath is probably the countertops. These master bath and the powder room are the only areas with these hammered and honed quartzite.”
AFS: What was the hardest part of the build process?
Mandy: Picking out all of the fixtures, colors, tiles, brick and countertops…and making sure they all complemented each other!
“One of our favorite things to do is have friends over and play music,” Mandy says. “The original design of this home included three bedrooms upstairs and two bedrooms in the basement. We only needed a master plus 4 bedrooms, so we transformed one of the rooms upstairs into a music room.”
AFS: How would you describe your home’s style?
Mandy: We would describe our home as a present-day farmhouse. We didn’t really want this home to look modern, but just new and fresh, more like how a farmhouse would be built today. We tried to accomplish this by including several brick and wood accents throughout the house, inside and outside. For instance, the bright-white house with black window trim alone would have been too modern, so we added natural cedar shutters, a wooden front door, and barn-style “Xs” on the garage door, along with some metal roofing. We used a lot of stained wood accents throughout the inside of the home as well.
The brick accents from the living room continue in the kitchen backsplash, along with white cabinets and a stained island countertop. “The island is two inches thick, had steel bracing, and is guaranteed not to separate or warp,” Mandy says. “We felt like this wood top along with the stained wood vent hood gave us enough wood accents in the kitchen.”
AFS: What’s your favorite room in the house and why?
Mandy: The kitchen is our favorite room because it incorporates an old fashioned style of brick, shiplap, wood countertop, farmhouse sink and other warm features.
The beautiful back deck area provides both form and function for the Hogan family to enjoy. “The original design included a screened-in porch area,” Mandy says. “However, with the large, arched window and beautiful view, we didn’t want any obstructions. So we didn’t include any screens on the rear deck and made this area a nice place to relax outside.”
Victoria is a brand advisor, marketing strategist, writer and editor. She was the editorial director of American Farmhouse Style for almost 10 years, and now enjoys writing occasional articles for the magazine and receiving the beautiful copies in the mail.
Victoria is also a wife and mom to three little ones: two on earth and one in heaven. With any (not so spare) time, she devours books, dabbles in fiction writing and works on her house. As a home décor enthusiast and DIYer herself, she knows what a little paint and patience can do for a room!
