With a median listing home price of just under $1 million dollars ($925,000 to be exact), Lake Winnebago in Missouri is no stranger to luxury homes, boasting a combination of rural and upscale living. The community has benefitted from the recent expansion of the lake, which made it 50% larger with a state-of-the-art new dam and spillway. One of those new luxury residences is a crown jewel from Walker Custom Homes.

Referred to as “The Retreat,” this newly built (May 2022) 7,500-square-foot lakefront masterpiece blends contemporary charm and dramatic architectural styling. Walking through the front door, you are immediately greeted with a 26-foot ceiling in the main living room, along with a soaring 11-foot metal linear fireplace. But it is only when you look down to the floor that you see the first of many striking lighting features that define the home’s unique architectural elements.

On the floor in the foyer is artistic pathway lighting in the form of 3000K Trulux Canvas LED sheets backlighting quartz from American Lighting. Developed for backlighting semi-transparent architectural features on floors, walls and even countertops, Trulux Canvas LED Sheets are available in 12-inch by 24-inch sheets that can be cut to size at the job site to achieve a perfect fit. The product includes built-in spacers to help lift the material a half-inch off the light sheet for a leveled and diffused effect.

Of note is that Trulux Canvas LED Sheets can be ordered in Tunable White, which provides CCT from 2700K to 6000K to exactly match the builder’s vision. The product offers a 50,000-hour performance and a five-year limited warranty. Each American Lighting tunable light sheet can deliver up to 900 lumens per square foot.

American Lighting Impacts Every Area of ‘Retreat’ Residence, Inside & Out

Walker Custom Homes employed an array of products from American Lighting to create a memorable, inspired environment unlike anything else seen in the area, according to Jason Walker, founder and principal.

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“We used artistic lighting in very creative ways throughout the home to accent many of our unique architectural features in order to both amaze and welcome guests,” says Walker, who in 2008 founded Walker Custom Homes, a full-service homebuilder based in Lee’s Summit, Mo.

One of those unique architectural features is a second-floor floating metal staircase with wood treads. Each 4-inch oak wood tread is routed out for added visual effect and track lighting runs 40+ feet up through metal tubing. Although the staircase by itself is striking, Walker accentuated it with under-stairway step plank lighting, 3000K COB tape lighting from American Lighting.

The COB tape light features uniform illumination without the need for additional diffused covers or accessories. Its seamless COB design eliminates virtually all LED dotting makes it an ideal solution for areas with low clearance or reflective surfaces, as it virtually eliminates all spot-glare effects.

The tape light’s output ranges from 349 to 460 lumens per foot and is cuttable every 1.97 inches with 16.4-foot maximum run for custom applications. In addition, the tape lights have the flexibility to adjust color temps from 2700K to 6000K, creating millions of color possibilities with greater brightness and overall color saturation to create elegant lighting that caters to different times of the day or various applications.

There is no shortage of natural light in The Retreat with 132 windows installed throughout. Yet, Walker felt strongly that additional illumination was necessary to spotlight various features and create a true modern lakefront retreat with a cozy, welcoming atmosphere.

A Brief Look at Where Walker Custom Homes Used Loads of Lighting

Highlights of other areas of the home where lighting was used creatively include:

• Wine room, where warm dim downlit technology provides the glow and ambience of traditional incandescent lighting while highlighting the 12-foot-tall custom-built metal wine racks.
• Canvas lighting was used under quartzite countertops and underneath vanities in all six bathrooms. In the master bath, tape lights were used above the backsplash and in recessed areas within the shower stall.
• Tape lights were used over the kitchen stove and cabinets, beneath the fireplace pedestal and throughout the master bedroom (specifically around the bed pedestal and on the ceiling above the bed) to provide added brilliance and drama.
• Voice-controlled Spektrum+ smart lighting products were used throughout the major entertainment areas, including the theater room and wine room. Spektrum+ offers Bluetooth mesh technology to help further streamline lighting applications throughout the home, making smart lighting control simple.
• Channel lighting with unique build outs was used in the home theater. For added special effects, custom black glass was cut and illuminated to create lighted space in the walls. The lighting includes Spektrum RGB + with tunable CCT tape light to provide the ultimate option in color changing RGB linear LED technology. With RGBTW, consumers virtually have an unlimited RGB palette of color combinations along with the ability to adjust true white light ranging from 2700K up 6000K. The intense color saturation, transition effects, and fade-to-white lighting deliver limitless color combinations with a 50,000-hour performance life.
• Backlit walls behind the custom bar are also highlighted with tape lighting.

The attention to detail was not just reserved for inside. The home features an outdoor oasis with a sprawling patio, infinity-edge swimming pool, a custom concrete poolside table, two outdoor fireplaces, a custom hot tub, small basketball court and an outdoor kitchen.

To help illuminate the area, draw attention to all these elements and guide people down the path to a 20X30-foot covered dock, Walker’s team again turned to American Lighting, which supplied LED strip lighting along walkway paths.     

“There are many beautiful homes around Lake Winnebago, but I would venture to say that none of them are quite like this one,” says Walker. “A lot of effort and imagination went into making this a distinctive home with features that you just don’t see every day. From the moment you walk through the door, you know this home is different.

“I credit American Lighting with helping our team to carefully orchestrate illumination to bring out the very best of the home’s many special features and bring this artisan space together. I’m excited that we were able to do so many unique things just with lighting.”

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