Designer Uses Custom Stone Materials to Clad a Modern Ranch in Texas

By Annie Cebulski

Sustainable stone materials add charm but posed challenges to builders

On an old pecan farm in Texas, Designer David Wersebe used sustainable stone materials and a client-centered approach to build a customizable modern ranch.

Though Wersebe, the designer and developer for the project, had a specific vision for the modern exterior of the home, he wanted to keep the interior open for interpretation so they could work with the eventual homebuyer to create their dream home.

“The downside is that a lot of people when they’re buying a house need the vision finished, they need to see what they’re getting,” Wersebe says. “We decided that we were going to go ahead and hope someone would come by and see this as a blank canvas and it’s ready for them to help finish the art of this house.”

According to the project manager, Santiago Macedo, part of what makes the house stand out is the quality of the materials used, including the stone used for the exterior of the home and a retaining wall. The custom-sized stone did pose some challenges for the builders as it was difficult to transport and cut, but once in place, they transformed the look of the home.

See how they addressed these challenges and made a one-of-a-kind home by watching the video.

Transcript: “Design vs. Build: The Fulshear House”

A modern ranch on a pecan farm in Texas

We're kind of at a crossroads. The trees don't produce nuts, and Houston is developing this way. What are we gonna do? The land has no other house and within 50 miles of here has a steel truss bridge that connects two parts of the house. I promise you on papers one thing then on the site. It’s a lot more complicated.

“We’re kind of at a crossroads”

Unless you're a pecan farmer or an equestrian enthusiast, you've probably never heard of the town of Fulshear, Texas. This was a family ranch since the 1920s my grandfather was driving out here. I guess in 1920, he blew a tire, looked over, and saw this land, and decided that's where he wanted to build his ranch. He planted about 7,000 pecan trees out here. Those trees are past their useful life now, and they don't produce nuts. Lying just outside of the Houston metropolitan area, this rich and thriving community is in one of the fastest growing counties in the U.S. We're kind of at a crossroads. The trees don't produce nuts. Houston is developing this way from that. We've kind of decided what are we gonna do with the land.What are we gonna do to it? The area and beautiful development is kind of where I saw it going.

Enforcer lies in orchards epic on acres, a brand new development that focuses on the landscape and ties the house into nature itself. So I sat down with the designer, the structural engineer, and the project manager to figure out how this went from backyard barbecue idea to the reality that it is today.

Neighbors and beer

Let's take a look. David and I are neighbors. We would get together and have beers on the back back patio, and then one time, he said, ‘Hey, I've got some land, and I've got an idea. I wanted to go ahead and start a spec house without having the infrastructure complete for a bigger development, but I need somebody that can help with some technical stuff. So this is kind of the test piece. This is the first of many. You asked me to design something. I can do it for you, but you're gonna have to tell me exactly, one, exact specifics. Well, there's just one problem. I am NOT an architect. I’m in the oil and gas royalty business. Excuse me, we knew that David had vision. I mean it, that is one thing that you definitely, that's something I personally don't have. Thank gosh for the internet because an IOU is easy, and all this you can just yeah. Now sorry, obviously, David didn’t listen to the incredible architecture that drew up the specifications, but David's vision for this house. It didn't come solely from the internet, traveled enough, and seen some pretty neat houses in my life. A lot of what I saw in Europe and Norway impressed me and that there was a natural feel when he walked into the house. I saw one in particular that I was fortunate enough to spend enough time in it that I looked at every detail of the house. It was an incredible eye opening experience for me and to a point where I said you know what I want to build, something like that.

Read the full transcript here.