Seamless Modern Sophistication Along the Intracoastal

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A stunningly modern outlier along Boca Raton’s Intracoastal Waterway, a bold post-tension home is what emerged from the tear-down site of a former Mediterranean-style structure. Designed by architects Rex Nichols and Alex Penna of Studio KHORA in collaboration with Lesly Maxwell Interiors, the contemporary turnkey estate is grounded by commercial-grade construction that includes 155 concrete piles. From front to back, the 9,900-square-foot home was constructed with east- and west-facing flow-through terraces offering sunrise and sunset views and expansive water vistas. The exterior boasts a striking blend of steel, glass, stacked porcelain slabs, and Brazilian walnut that grace the front and rear façade. A series of brise soleil spaces covered by concrete beams and lattice slatting feature shallow pools of water. Perforated, fritted aluminum screens provide artful glimpses into the home and serve as a ventilated outer skin that controls glare and the penetration of sunlight into the structure.

“From the outset, it was paramount that the spaces be relevant to the way we live today,” says interior designer Lesly Maxwell. “Despite the home’s clean, modern aesthetic, the spaces needed to be livable, comfortable, inviting, and warm—there was to be a seamless integration between the indoors and outdoors.” 

Long recognized for her ability to integrate architecture with interior design, Maxwell began the initial concept for this project with pen-to-paper doodles and sketches and, from there, moved to a savvy video fly-through she produced with Sanart Design Group during the weeks of quarantine. “This house was my COVID child,” she jokes.

The home boasts six luxurious bedroom suites, eight full baths, a glass-enclosed wine room designed to store 1,000 bottles, and a gourmet Neff Living kitchen. Other notable amenities include a touchless Crestron home automation system, a whole-house generator, a glass-enclosed commercial elevator, and a handsome club room replete with modular seating, a billiard table, a 100-inch flat-screen TV, and an elegant full-service bar. The property’s natural surroundings inspired the color palette, and the décor ranges from bright, white spaces to moody, dimly lit areas. “The furnishings are bathed in grays, silvers, whites, and creams,” notes Maxwell, “with an added splash of earthy forest green that is calm, meditative, and evokes a feeling of abundance.”

Upon opening the front door from an expansive motor court, the home’s initial impact is not easily forgotten. Incredible bespoke features include large-format Neolith porcelain slabs inside and out, a two-story “water wall” by the home’s front door clad in textured basalt-like porcelain, and a titanic first-floor living space encased in 24 feet of towering glass. Airy and uncluttered, the living room is connected by continuous wide-plank European white oak flooring yielding a bleached driftwood tone and an enhanced grain pattern. “Truly, the luxury of this home is space,” comments Maxwell. “It isn’t littered with furniture, and each room evokes a sense of space beyond the space you’re sitting in.” 

Maxwell focused on balance and intuitive spatial relationships paired with beautiful maintenance-free fabrics. The combined living/dining area is “unapologetically lavish and seductive,” she notes, and features textural mixed-media art and a spectacular bas-relief wall. Within this space, she merged Ultrasuede, Crypton, and cotton velvet on a sectional, a chaise, and two polished stainless chairs. “These textures underscore the function, sensuality, and tactility of the room,” she adds. 

Throughout, Maxwell’s interiors tell an evocative story through the intentional use of color, texture, pattern, and form that have been seamlessly blended into a genuine, innovative, and unconventional design scheme. “What we have created in this home is a sublime haven,” says the designer. “Interior design is storytelling at its very best. First, we listen, then we interpret, and finally, we create.” 

Story Credits:

Interior Design by Lesly Maxwell, Lesly Maxwell Interiors, Juno Beach, FL

Architecture by Rex Nichols & Alex Penna, Studio KHORA, Pompano Beach, FL

Builder Anthony Routhier, Cavadium Construction, Palm Springs, FL

Landscape Architecture by Matt Gillen, Gregory Lourbardi Design, Billerica, MA

Text by Jean De Lathouder

Photography by Daniel Newcomb, Jupiter, FL

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