Imagine the decorative equivalent of a wicker basket filled with pastel-hued duck eggs, and you’re close to envisioning the engaging interior design Caitlin Creer recently created for a Heber Valley home. Muted tones, natural materials and informal furnishings infuse the mountain dwelling with a simple, welcoming style. “We wanted something cozy and charming, so we chose the colors of duck eggs to guide our palette,” Creer says. Inspired creativity delivered delightful design throughout the home. 

Heber Valley home, Window seat
The great room’s built-in window seat offers an irresistible perch from which to overlook the mountain views. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Window seat, Front door, Entry
Small window seats frame the front door on each side, providing convenient seating and charm to the entry. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Caitlin Creer
Interior designer Caitlin Creer

The endearing style of English country farmhouses influenced the home’s décor as Creer and created a similar look and feel for this mountain home, while still respecting its rustic setting. The team also wanted to create spaces large enough to accommodate visiting family and friends, but not so big as to preclude an inviting, comfy ambiance. Working closely with the clients, Creer teamed with architects Highland Group and builder Killowen Homes to deliver all of this and more.

Heber Valley home, White wall, European staircase, Art gallery, Stairwell, Landing
Plain white walls and a European-styled staircase provide the ideal backdrop for a future art gallery in the stairwell and landing spaces. Photo by Rebekah Westover
DIning room, Farm table, Anthony's Fine Art and Antiques, Chandeliers
Simplicity reigns in the dining room. “We wanted the kitchen to be the showpiece, so we didn’t want the adjacent dining space to compete,” Creer explains. The farm table is from Anthony’s Fine Art and Antiques. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Heber Valley home, Kitchen, Duck egg blue, Duck egg green, Taupe, Brass-trimmed range hood, Quartzite island, Tiled backwall, Cabinetry, Pendant lights, Christopher Scott Cabinetry & Design, Anthony's Fine Art and Antiques
Duck egg shades of blue, green and taupe link the island’s quartzite top to its painted base. A brass-trimmed range hood and tiled backwall provide a neutral backdrop for the blue island. The cabinets are by Christopher Scott Cabinetry & Design and the pendant lights are from Anthony’s Fine Art and Antiques. Photo by Rebekah Westover

From the outside, the home reads as “very mountainy,” Creer says. Inside, she and the team tempered the rustic character with a decidedly more refined, relaxed style. There, muted hues, select European antiques and a palette of relaxed natural materials fill the spaces, lending a comforting, timeless ambiance to the light-filled rooms throughout. In the great room, a built-in window seat offers front-row tickets to the home’s broad views of Heber Valley. It also counters the unease that large, lofty rooms often instill. “The window seat’s quaintness offsets the grandeur of the room and its vaulted ceilings,” Creer explains. A simple iron chandelier, wood-planked ceiling and floors, relaxed fabrics and a softly patterned rug do the same. To further the room’s cozy factor, Creer rejected heavy stone for the fireplace. Instead, she surprisingly dressed it in an intricately patterned William Morris wallpaper imported from England. “Like the duck eggs, the paper inspired the colors for the rest of the home,” she explains. 

Beadboard, Plate rack, Liberty London, Farmhouse sinks, Wood drip edges, Cabinets, Christopher Scott Cabinetry & Design
Beadboard backs a historically-inspired plate rack that displays a collection of Liberty London dishes. The farmhouse sinks are set on wood drip edges to prevent water from hitting the floor. Cabinets are crafted by Christopher Scott Cabinetry & Design. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Heber Valley home, Brass accent, Blue Lacanche range
Accented with shimmering brass, the Lacanche range features a surprising light blue finish. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Tableware, Kitchen accents, Foundation goods, Hand-glazed tile
Simplicity defines the kitchen’s tableware and accents from Creer’s Foundation Goods shop. Hand-glazed tile dresses the range wall. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Heber Valley home, Kitchen, Service wall, Built-in hutch, Backsplash, Hand-glazed tile, Pratt & Lambert
The kitchen’s service wall boasts a built-in hutch and a backsplash clad in hand-glazed tile from Pratt & Lambert. Photo by Rebekah Westover

Creer tweaked the palette in the nearby kitchen to fortify its position as a livable showpiece. “It’s a little lighter and brighter—not as muted and earthy as the rest of the home,” she explains. Custom white cabinets by Christopher Scott meld elegantly with hand-glazed wall tile and an understated range hood trimmed in brass. Antique pendant lights illuminate a quartzite-topped island painted duck egg blue. A large plate rack filled with Liberty London dishes provides delightful detail to the space, as does a gleaming, light blue Lacanche range. “It adds a playful note,” says Creer, who rejected anything fussy or formal. “We wanted to create an inviting, pulled-together kitchen that’s not buttoned up or fancy.” 

Powder room, Morris & Co. wallpaper, Floral wallpaper, Vanity
“The wallpaper was the jumping off point,” says Creer, referencing the powder room’s décor. The designer tempered the patterned Morris & Co. wallpaper with wainscot and designed the vanity to resemble a piece of furniture. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Heber Valley home, Hybrid laundry room, Desk, Folding area, Coat locker, Brick floor, Green cabinets
The “hybrid” laundry room houses not only a washer and dryer, but also a desk, folding area and a locker for coats. Creer painted the room’s cabinets to match the powder room vanity. Brick floors ground both spaces. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Painted beadboard, Built-in shelves, Artisan dishware, Copper mug, Pastoral painting
Painted beadboard backs built-in shelves filled with artisan dishware, copper mugs and small paintings. Photo by Rebekah Westover

Equally fetching details dress a powder room swathed in another William Morris wallpaper along with green-painted wainscot and cabinetry created to resemble furniture. The team searched “long and hard” to find the perfect brick that flows from the powder room to the nearby mudroom and laundry space. “It’s worn and patinated like an old cobblestone street,” Creer says. A herringbone pattern accentuates the bricks’ varied tones. 

Heber Valley home, Bunkroom, Playroom, Plaid carpeting
The team designed the bunkroom to double as a playroom for visiting family. Creer chose plaid carpeting for a playful vibe and to help disguise wear and stains. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Bench, Mud room, Rest area, Anthony's Fine Art and Antiques, Herringbone brick floor, Turkish rug, Foundation Goods
A bench from Anthony’s Fine Art and Antiques offers a stylish resting spot in the mud room area. Creer topped the herringbone-patterned brick floor with a vintage Turkish rug from Foundation Goods.

The staircase is noticeably sparer than most of the home’s spaces, but it is equally lovely. “Like the great room, it is a grand architectural statement,” Creer explains. And like the great room, it is filled with light and views. Metal balusters add European detailing to the stairway simply defined by classic oak treads and rails, along with understated white walls. “This is a perfect spot to build a gallery of collected art pieces,” Creer says. Now, she explains, it looks edited but with plenty of room to grow. 

Heber Valley home, Four-poster bed, Wainscot, Master bedroom, Vaulted ceiling
A four-poster bed and high wainscot help balance the volume of the master bedroom, defined by bright light and a soaring vaulted ceiling. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Guest bedroom, Under-seat drawers, Storage, Window seat
In a guest bedroom, under-seat drawers add convenient storage to the charming built-in window seat. Photo by Rebekah Westover
Heber Valley home, Baskets, Rolled towel, Guest bathroom, Kids' stool
Baskets and rolled towels fill open shelves in a handsomely detailed guest bathroom. A small stool makes it easy for younger visitors to wash up. Photo by Rebekah Westover

Start to finish, the designer enjoyed working with the team and collaborating with her clients to bring this home to life. “I love this part of my job,” Creer says. “It’s so fulfilling to create spaces where families will make memories.”  

Tour more of Utah’s most magnificent homes here.

Architect: Tim Wyatt & Tim Furner, The Highland Group, SLC
Contractor: Tyler Farrell, Killowen Construction, Midway
Interior Design:  Caitlin Creer & Kelsey Freestone, Caitlin Creer Interiors, SLC
Cabinets: Christopher Scott Cabinetry & Design, Orem
Vintage and Antique Furnishings: Anthony’s Antiques & Fine Art, SLC
Appliances & Plumbing Fixtures: Mountainland Design, SLC
Lighting and Wallcoverings: Foundation Goods, @foundationgoods, SLC
Brick Floor: Old World Stone

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Brad Mee
Brad Mee is the Editor-in-Chief of Utah Style & Design Magazine.