Denise and Russell Bass had been in their home on the High Meadow Ranch golf course in Magnolia for more than a decade and they were ready for a change — something lighter and simpler in style and easier to take care of.
She was ready for something classic and clean that could still accommodate her ever-growing collection of art and antiques.
They’d already lived in a home built by Ted and Yvonne Cummins of Morning Star Builders , and she enjoyed going to their post-construction open houses to see the new things they were incorporating into others’ custom homes. She went to one nearby, and felt inspired to begin plans for a new home and to hire the interior designer — Ayca Stiffel of By Design Interiors — who’d worked on that one.
Their new home in Willow Creek Ranch in Tomball — an equestrian community with a golf course — adjusted to their lifestyle as empty nesters and grandparents who are slowing down a bit and want their home to fit them perfectly. Their prior home also came with some acreage, so their new place is much lower maintenance.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Designed by David W. Patterson of DWP Architects , the brick-and-limestone home lives more like a sprawling ranch, though there’s a bit of space upstairs — just two bedrooms and bathrooms for guests — giving them fewer reasons to navigate stairs daily.
Now in a 5,000-square-foot home, they have five bedrooms and five and a half bathrooms, and their big main living-dining-kitchen area has large windows that take in their beautiful backyard and its covered patios, pool, pergola and fire pit.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
“Our other house was darker and more French country style with ornate stair railings and moulding — things from 14 years ago,” said Denise, 60. “I was ready for brighter and whiter. As I have gotten older, I’m leaning toward cleaner lines and more modern. I really like the contrast between classic contemporary with refined antiques and abstract art.”
They still have plenty of entertaining space, but it’s scaled back and simpler. Russell has a cozy wine bar, and now their cocktail bar is part of the butler’s pantry. In their prior house this pantry had extra appliances to make post-party cleanup easier; now, what they need is in the kitchen. The butler’s pantry is more of a place to store china, crystal and serving pieces. When they’re not hosting guests, beautiful antique doors with a Segreto faux finish close it all off.
Detail in the living room in the home of Russell and Denise Bass photographed on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 in Tomball.
Ted Cummins said that entertaining spaces in homes are as important as ever, whether you’re a young family or grandparents hosting multi-generation events. The open concept living-dining-kitchen area as the Basses have is still in demand, even though some speculated the pandemic might change that.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Backyards and patios have always been important, and Cummins said the Basses’ home lives as an indoor-outdoor space since big, back-of-the-house windows provide a panoramic view to everything. Married 39 years, the couple has two grown children and four grandchildren. Denise and Russell Bass, 62, own a company in the oil field pipe sales industry.
Cummins is proud of the line of sight created from the front to the back of the backyard. From the front entry you see down a hall, into the living room and straight into the backyard, where a pergola and seating area add privacy in a neighborhood that allows only fences with an open view.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Denise’s love of antiques is evident right inside the front door. Many were purchased at Houston shops such as MAI, Joyce Horn Antiques, Back Row Home or at antiques shows in Round Top. She’s also a longtime collector of art, buying through Laura Rathe Fine Art.
The foyer’s front hall is 12 feet or more long, and Denise and Stiffel created a beautiful gallery of antiques and art there.
There’s a French settee covered in white muslin — though it will likely get reupholstered soon — with a French mirror hanging behind it. Across from it is a chest of drawers with an abstract painting overhead, all flanked by a pair of antique chairs. A Starck antelope print rug sits on top of French oak floors, which run through much of the home.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Russell’s study has a back wall with the same overgrouted limestone as the home’s exterior, and the tongue-in-groove barrel-vaulted ceiling is one of several unique ceiling treatments in the home. The interior stone repeats in a vestibule area as well as a wall opposite the study in the cozy family room.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
A pair of custom-made cabinets — furniture that feels more contemporary than armoires and an upgrade from built-ins — flank the fireplace in the living room. On a nearby wall, another antique cabinet and abstract art are flanked by floating shelves of French oak built into a pair of niches, a treatment borrowed from their prior home.
“When we move, I will take those with me,” Denise said of the pair of much-loved cabinets. “When we downsize (later), we could use one in a family room with a TV and another in a master bedroom. I could use them for clothes or in a great room as a bar with liquor.”
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The living room in the home of Russell and Denise Bass photographed on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 in Tomball.
The living room in the home of Russell and Denise Bass photographed on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 in Tomball.
The master bedroom and living room in the home of Russell and Denise Bass photographed on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022 in Tomball.
In this room, Cummins said he was glad the Basses trusted him to try a new ceiling treatment, a four-wall vault that rises to a flat top in the center, all trimmed with rustic salvaged beams.
The double-island kitchen — islands painted Sherwin-Williams Rocky River, a deep but soft green, and topped with slabs of beautiful quartzite — has plenty of work and storage space and a side wall has beautiful Moroccan hand-fired sellige clay tile from Ann Sacks, installed without grout lines for an Old World look.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Denise worried that having two islands meant there’d be more to take care of, but it also gives her two sinks, dishwashers and garbage disposals. She loves the soft brass finish on lighting, hardware and plumbing fixtures.
When she’s not using her butler’s pantry, Denise can close it off by pulling shut the antique French doors hung barn-style. Bass found them at Joyce Horn Antiques and had faux finish experts at Segreto give them a new look.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The spacious primary bathroom has a beautiful freestanding bathtub in front of a trio of windows, and curtains help hide the cubby-storage spaces on each side. A barrel-vaulted ceiling and pretty chandelier add drama above, and Neolith porcelain slabs were used for the vanity counters and for shower walls.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
While Denise and Stiffel led the way on decor, Russell did have something to say about his wine room. It’s where he keeps his favorite reds and whites, including bottles shipped in from wine clubs of which they’re members. Brass-and-glass open shelving installed on top of deep gray-green seagrass wallpaper is a great place to display wine glasses and their favorite bottles.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
There’s an outdoor kitchen, plenty of patio space, a fire pit and a large swimming pool that their grandchildren enjoy. At the back of the lot there’s a pergola with seating and storage for pool toys, and in that area, they installed artificial turf so they wouldn’t have to worry about the difficulty of growing grass in a shady area. Not to mention that turf is virtually maintenance free.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The grandkids, who range in age from 4 to 13, like to play on the turf, tumble and do cartwheels without worrying about ants and other pests.
“The backyard gets a lot of use,” Denise said. “When I watch the grandkids and it’s 100 degrees outside, the only thing to do is get in the pool.”
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The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
The Tomball home of Russell and Denise Bass.
Diane Cowen has worked at the Houston Chronicle since 2000 and currently its architecture and home design writer. Prior to working for the Chronicle, she worked at the South Bend (Ind.) Tribune and at the Shelbyville (Ind.) News. She is a graduate of Purdue University and is the author of a cookbook, "Sunday Dinners: Food, Family and Faith from our Favorite Pastors."