Inside the Enchanted Snow-White Cottage of Cook Design House

From historic home to fairy-tale office.

1 hour ago

Alicita Rodriguez,

Exterior The only surviving French Eclectic house in the historic Wellshire neighborhood is now headquarters for Cook Design House. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

When she was searching for a new home for Cook Design House, owner Jodi Cook found the last French Eclectic house in the historic Wellshire neighborhood in Denver, a post-WWI development influenced by French Norman farmhouses and English garden cottages. “It’s supposed to evoke these rural homes in Europe,” Cook explains. “I think it was described as a rambling masonry plan with whimsical stonework.”

Living Room The room that welcomes clients displays the team’s eclectic favorites, including an antique monk’s cabinet and an abstract painting by Ursula Brenner. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

With more than 5,000 square feet of space, front and back staircases, multiple levels and what Cook calls “a sampler platter of rooflines,” the home works perfectly for her team. “One of the things I love about this house is that it gave us a chance to have our own spaces,” Cook says. Her office is a room of her own: “I’m down a half-flight of stairs, removed from everyone else; It feels very much like my own little retreat.”

Office Jodi Cook created her own sanctuary with French doors and a cozy fireplace. Above the mantel, what looks like a photograph is a pencil drawing by artist Silvie Mahdal. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

Before Cook purchased the property and renovated the house, it was her own coworker, lead designer Ashley Jacobs, who noticed the place. “Ashley came into the office and asked if I’d seen the house for sale on University Boulevard,” Cook recounts. “I told her ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about,’ and then I drove past it that night and wondered how on earth I missed it!” Sitting back from the street, ensconced in its own little world, the charming home feels disconnected from everything that surrounds it. This might be why one of Cook’s neighbors calls it the Snow White House.

Design Library Cook got help from Closet Factory to design a closet for fabric and material samples. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

But the house was not going to magically renovate itself, and Cook had less than two months to transform the place. There was no time to move walls or renovate the kitchen, so she and her team would have to accept some disappointments—at least, for the time being. “Rome wasn’t built in a day,” Cook admits. “It’s a process … Some of my clients had a good laugh with me because now I knew how they felt!”

Conference Room The team transformed the former dining room with a sleek table, leather chairs and a glamorous chandelier. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

The room that became the firm’s design library had been the home’s primary bedroom, and everyone agreed this would be the best place to keep samples. “It has windows on three sides,” Cook notes, “and any designer who’s picking finishes knows the value of getting accurate color representation—we love our sun-filled design library.”

Entry An asymmetrical front door leans into the whimsical style of the house. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

For the rest of the rooms, Cook chose a curated collection of new and antique furniture, along with original artwork. “I am all for blending styles and even showing clients that if you have a more traditional home, there’s no reason you can’t mix in transitional furniture or contemporary artwork,” she says. In fact, the home’s design gave her team even more creative license. “We leaned into the eclectic nature of the architecture; the furniture feels very collected,” she adds.

Break Room The design team eats lunch in a colorful little room with a vintage Turkish rug and original painting by Katharine McGuinness. | Photo: Emily Minton Redfield

Everything was not finished before Cook Design House opened for business, and the design team is still dreaming of building a guesthouse to share their space with more
people. “We’ve been given the gift of being the home’s caretakers,” Cook explains. “This house has its own personality, its own soul.”