This Colorado Home Showcases the Vibrant Colors and Textures of the American Southwest

In Chromo, Colorado, just over the New Mexico border, Bill and Deb Joost felt the pull of a scenic 3-acre parcel of land nearly 1,200 miles from their own home in Northern California. They purchased the property in 2020, partially as a pandemic project—ambitiously planning to manage the design and construction remotely from their Nicasio, California, homebase.

The parcel’s spectacular natural scenery was an immediate draw for Bill and Deb. "We wanted to take advantage of the beautiful views of the southern rocky mountains and the southwestern mesas," says Bill. Furthermore, the site was surrounded on all sides by undevelopable common lands, ensuring their future view would be protected.

Beginning to envision a new home on the sprawling parcel, the couple enlisted Michael Echavarria, designer and founder of Sonoma, California-based AVA DUNE Studio, who shared their enthusiasm for the site’s visual richness. "It offers a remarkable convergence of landscapes—sweeping views of the San Juan Mountains alongside the red mesas more commonly associated with northern New Mexico," says Echavarria.

At the start of the process, Bill drafted his own preliminary floor plan, which he then shared with Echavarria. "It quickly became clear that they were seeking a home that felt open, expansive, and grounded in the site," says Echavarria of his clients’ initial concepts. "We approached the design by working with these initial programmatic elements—essentially reconfiguring them in response to the land itself." Nestled into a natural bench in the hillside and surrounded by sagebrush and ponderosa pine, the home reveals itself gradually along the southern approach. "The siting process required a careful balance: preserving privacy, maximizing views, optimizing solar orientation, and minimizing disruption to the existing landscape," says Echavarria.

The home’s form was a conscious departure from prevalent typologies. "We wanted…something different than typical mountain architecture," says Bill. The residence, organized in two intersecting wings, is firmly anchored in the site while opening progressively to mountain and mesa views. The home reinterprets the vernacular of traditional cabins or mountain chalets through a decidedly modern orchestration of exterior materials. "We were intentional about selecting materials that would resonate with the landscape without resorting to literal interpretations more commonly seen in rustic mountain design," says Echavarria.