[dropcap]Melanie[/dropcap] Eisen loves to entertain her large extended family on the holidays. It’s not unusual for 20 to 30 guests to gather around the Eisen table for Rosh Hashanah or Passover. In her new house, they can do so in comfort with elbow room and everyone at the same table.
That was a driving force in the design of the main floor of Melanie and Craig Eisen’s new home. They wanted a dining room that felt intimate in its own space defined by a drop ceiling with recessed ambient lighting and a dramatic rectangular chandelier, but large and open enough to be able to re-orient the direction of the dining table to accommodate all her guests at the same table.
That is how the Eisens approach custom home design and construction with their company Concord Homes. What is important to the client? How do they want to use their home?
Craig has been in homebuilding (his only career) for 26 years. He says he was always interested in homebuilding. “I was always handy.” Craig started with a summer job at Richmond American Homes in 1991 and stayed until 2001, when he opened Concord Homes.
Craig points out that he opened his business in the same year that 9/11 occurred. The insecurity and uncertainty that followed that watershed event could have derailed Craig’s startup, but he persevered.
He married Melanie Ogin in 2003.
Melanie started out in marketing and event planning, going back to her days at CU Hillel where she organized a successful meals-on-wheels program for senior citizens. An article on Melanie’s program in the Intermountain Jewish News caught the attention of the folks at Shalom Park, who offered Melanie her first job after graduation. Subsequently, she held marketing and event planning positions at the Denver Campus for Jewish Education (now DJDS), Hillel of Colorado and The Jewish Experience.
On the side, Melanie utilized her planning, organizing skills and attention to detail to help Craig’s business with design so that he could focus on his expertise as a general contractor. Melanie has a keen eye for color and design finishes.
“A house is like a little black dress,” Melanie says. “Things like cabinet pulls, faucets and light fixtures are the jewelry.”
In 2013, Melanie joined Craig full time. Together they’ve created a design-build company that has remodeled and built homes around the metro area, including many scrapes in Hilltop and Crestmoor, and new builds in Greenwood Village, where they built their own custom home, completing it in 2016.
[dropcap]The[/dropcap] Eisens’ home, while spacious, light-filled and luxurious, is not ostentatious. It is not a clone of homes you see in magazines.
Whimsical touches throughout, such as framed artwork by none other than their kids, street signs and an over-the-pool table chandelier made of Coors bottles make the house truly a reflection of their personalities and interests. Framed photographs of the family, including three generations of wedding photos in the dining room, are a testament to the centrality of family in Melanie and Craig’s lives.
Again, this is reflective of the Eisens’ approach to every home they build: The design is driven by the homeowners’ lifestyles and values.
In their own home, and those they custom design and build for others, they try to include a unique design detail in every room to reflect the people or person living in it
For example, their kitchen features a set of staggered floating open shelves in the corners between banks of cabinets. [Pictured on page 1.]Here Melanie displays colorful decorative accessories.
The unique design feature in their daughter Avery’s room is a hot pink chandelier, and son Evan’s room has a soothing gray ceiling, contrasting with the lighter colored walls.
The “pop” in the master bath is a sleek, contemporary, freestanding bathtub that looks more like a piece of sculpture than a bathroom fixture.
The Eisen’s 6,800-square-foot, two-story home has seven bedrooms and seven baths. Two of the bedrooms are used as offices.
The upper level includes the master suite and bedrooms for the Eisens’ children, Evan, 11, and Avery, 9.
A striking feature of the upper level is the wide hallway — probably twice the width of a typical hallway — with a lot of natural light that leads from the master suite to the kids’ rooms. Craig is a fan of wide hallways. “You feel good when you’re walking down a wide hallway,” he says.
On the main floor, the great room is adjacent to a spacious open kitchen which features a huge island with a single slab of granite for the countertop. Cabinets at the bottom of both sides of the island provide storage in addition to the wall mounted cabinets.
The pantry is accessed through sliding barn doors, another whimsical design touch by Melanie.
The basement level is finished with a large family room, kitchenette and pool table, all designed as a hangout for Evan and Avery and their friends. Two guest bedrooms and full bath are also on that level.
The wide front door of the Eisens’ home does not hang on hinges; it pivots open and shut.
[dropcap]Craig[/dropcap] and Melanie work with an architect with whom they’ve developed a good rapport, or with an architect chosen by the client. Either way, Melanie says it’s important that the architect “can accommodate everything they want.”
It is also important to choose a builder that the homeowner can relate to and trust. A builder should bring a blend of professional expertise and personal interest and understanding of the clients’ priorities and personalities.
Through his 26 years in the industry, Craig has developed strong relationships with suppliers and sub-contractors which, in the end, benefit the homeowner through savings and obtaining exactly what the client wants.
Melanie’s work experience also comes into play. She helps people design homes in which they can “age in place.” She was sensitized to this growing need through her work at Shalom Park. She recently designed a home for baby boomers with wider doorways for wheelchair clearance in case that would be needed in the future.
The Eisens can be reached at 303-819-6689 or via www.concordcustomhomes.com.