With its rustic exterior — which features faux wood hardie board cladding that’s complemented beautifully by timber beams, acrylic stucco and stone detailing — the 2,374-square-foot bungalow at 352 Willow Creek Rd. stands out from all the other lakefront homes surrounding it.

That was the intent behind the home’s design, says Phil Amero of Royal LePage Alliance, Artista Homes sales representative for the Bridgwater Trails show home.

"Artista’s design team wanted to do something different, so they came up with a design that featured a modern mountain theme," he says. "They wanted the home to feel like you were walking into a chalet at Lake Louise."

Right from the get-go, the home draws you inside.

A generous foyer with eight-foot door and an oversized sidelight, 10-foot ceiling and 71/2-inch engineered oak flooring provides an immediate sense of space, light and warmth. In particular, there’s a strong overall sense of space.

There’s a reason why the home feels so accessible, Amero says.

"This is actually a visitable home. There are no front steps, which makes it easy to enter the home at grade. The hallways are also wider than normal, and all the bathrooms are accessible. Ceiling heights also vary from 10 feet to 12 feet to 16 feet, depending on where you are in the home. The home offers a perfect combination of style and function."

That style and function comes to the forefront in the home’s great room, a voluminous space that evokes a genuine mountain lodge feel.

Its 16-foot vaulted ceiling is lined with warm pine panelling, which blends seamlessly with the Mt. Shasta-stained oak engineered hardwoods, castle stone detailing around and above the fireplace in the family room, splash of rift oak cabinetry above the kitchen’s Wolf gas range and Thunder-stained baseboards, window trim and doors.

Meanwhile, a tasteful collection of modern finishes were cleverly woven into the great room’s design.

"Finishes such as off-white/grey-matte quartz countertops and glossy white cabinets were put in the kitchen along with stainless Wolf appliances to lend a modern feel to the area. The two design themes combine really well."

Add a rear wall of huge, black-trimmed windows that provide near-panoramic views of the wetlands behind the home and you have a great room that’s bright, warm and exceptionally functional.

"All three spaces are generous," Amero says. "Even though the family room is huge, there’s still a five-foot aisle between it and the kitchen’s 10-foot island. There’s room for a table for six to 12 in the dining area to the rear of the kitchen. It also has a wetland view and patio door that leads out to a huge composite deck that looks out over the water."

While much attention was paid to creating a breathtaking interior, Artista’s design team didn’t neglect to infuse it with plenty of function.

"A lot of thought went into the design of every square foot of the home," he says. "A hallway to the right of the foyer holds a gorgeous powder room and laundry room. The bedroom wing — which can be closed off by a solid core birch pocket door — holds two big secondary bedrooms with walk-in closets that were placed on either side of a four-piece main bath."

The master suite was then tucked away behind the family room, set four steps up from the main floor to give it an ultra-secluded feel.

"I think raising it up made a truly special, beautifully isolated space," Amero says. "It features a vaulted ceiling, huge picture window that perfectly frames the wetlands, a castle stone feature wall behind the bed — and his/her closets on the side wall with sliding doors with smoked glass panels provide all kinds of storage space."

The ensuite is also a truly special space.

"It’s defined by tempered glass walls with timber beam accents," Amero says. "Inside, there’s a heated tile floor, stand-alone soaker tub, five-foot custom tile/glass shower with rainshower head and beautiful matte-quartz vanity with his/her sinks and makeup area."

Finally, there’s the 1,839-sq.-ft. walk-out lower level.

"With its rear wall of windows — they let in tons of natural light and showcase the gorgeous wetland view — it doesn’t feel like a basement," he says. "To the left, there’s a bar area, games area and exercise area with a 14-foot ceiling. There’s a games area, four-panel patio doors and a wet bar in the centre and a media area with a spectacular ribbon fireplace to the right."

A wing off the media area adds a three-piece bath, massive storage/mechanical room and two huge bedrooms, taking the home’s total livable space to 4,213 sq. ft.

"The home has been very well-received," Amero says. "We listened to our customers. Doing that resulted in a stunning yet functional home that people can see themselves living in."