It doesn’t hurt that the home is also pleasing to the eye. From the driveway, guests are treated to their first view of the main section of the house, just past the bubbling fountain and the green grass that stretches to every corner of the property. Hundreds of varieties of trees, shrubs and flowers accent the architecture that can only be described as impeccable. “We planned to place the home 300 feet away from the street and orient the active rooms of the home to the north so we could avoid the sun,” Paco says of the original plans. “We also wanted each room to be designed toward the function of the room, and then tie the design to a central theme.”
Having been educated in the disciplines of architecture and building construction from the University of Texas and the University of Florida, Paco Jordan knows exactly how to take a house from concept to completion. Knowing the area where their home was built, extensive dirt work was required to counteract clay-expansive soils. Once that was taken care of, it was on to the details.
The Jordans, who share their home with their two small children, wanted to create a warm, inviting environment. “The interior design was an evolution of ideas that formed as the house design took shape,” Kay explains. “As we traveled for business, we’d take notes of what we liked. We poured through Architectural Digest and clipped out what we thought might blend well with our other ideas.”
The house was designed with little hallway space (to better utilize square footage) and fireplaces were included in all of the major living areas. “My personal persuasion was much like the French country,” notes Kay, “while Paco leaned somewhat to the more contemporary feel.” But their differing opinion in style was not a revelation to Kay, who laughingly talks about the early days of their marriage, when they gutted and renovated a number of small homes. “When you share life with a construction professional, you quickly find that tearing out walls, or changing the roof structure of an existing building is nothing to them. They can easily envision the finished product way before it’s scheduled.”
The finished product they now call home starts with a grand front entrance, which opens to the main living area, accented with tasteful furnishings and a baby grand piano. “As large as the house may seem,” says Kay, “as a family, we use every square inch of it.” The private areas are to the left, which include the children’s rooms and a master suite, where Kay says the family likes to “hang out”, getting ready for whatever is on the agenda for the day. A formal dining area, coupled with a buffet and wet bar, are to the right of the main living area, closely situated to the kitchen. The view past the main living area opens up to the backyard and wraparound patio, which serve as perfect areas for entertaining. Strong supporters of their community, Paco and Kay have hosted many events at their home, most recently a fundraiser that featured guest of honor First Lady Laura Bush.
“We love to share our home with family and friends,” says Kay, alluding also to their guesthouse, which is separate from the main residence. “Having the guesthouse has been a great convenience when we have guests who prefer to have their own privacy and space. Being that we often open our home to those in the ministry, we have enjoyed the great pleasure of housing quite a few of them for many months until they no longer need the accommodations. From those bonds, we have made lifelong friends.”
The home’s interior design was also a collaboration that evolved with the project. Kay gives initial credit to Charlotte’s, a cornerstone in fine El Paso interiors for decades. It was there that Paco and Kay had the personal assistance of the owner, Charlotte Korth, as she and Paco began the fun process of selecting antique rugs and several key pieces of furniture. “Paco and I both remember fondly working with Charlotte Korth (the founder of Charlotte’s) and Shelley Saab, who were instrumental in those important first decisions.”
Then the quest to finish off their design came with the help of longtime Las Cruces designer Connie Hines. “It was like a match made in heaven!” Kay says of their first meeting with Connie. “The whole process is so labor intensive to build a home, and then second guessing so many of the decisions you make along the way, you almost want to give up after awhile, but you can’t. When we met Connie, she brought with her fresh ideas that we welcomed openly. After we realized that she truly understood what we were trying to accomplish as a finished product, we would sometimes step back and let her do her magic.” Those “magic” touches included custom wall finishes, custom window treatments, and the planning and design of their game room, which was added after the completion of the main house.
In the end, according to Kay, the efforts put into this home came from knowing how much her husband enjoyed planning and building it, and also working together on achieving the home’s cozy, familiar appeal. “One of the best compliments we receive from visitors is that it’s warm and feels like a home, rather than the large, expansive space on the outside.” Still, the main thread of the house, aside from the most ornate detail, goes back to that basic foundation of Love. “The constant interactions we have as a family from day to day center around that precept; and it is for that reason that we call this place our home.”
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