Where Friends Are Like Family

Text by Heather Bode • Photography by Jim Wells

Love at first sight. That’s essentially what Kate and Don Bolia experienced upon an inaugural trip to Montana. They fell in love with the land, the sweeping vistas, and the big open sky. After a return trip in the winter to make sure they were equally enthralled, they took the leap and decided to build a second home.

The Bolias connected with James Klippel of James Klippel Design Studio to begin the preliminary sketching. “Kate, being an artist, saw it all in 3-D. Don put his full trust in her and I was simply the ‘pencil in her hand’ as we sketched,” says Klippel. A two year project from land purchase to completion, the  Bolia’s Sky Walker Ranch, with an unparalleled panoramic view, won the Great Falls Parade of Homes People’s Choice Award in 2016.

Upon entering the house through the handmade tessellated front door, you are greeted by the welcome bar in the foyer. Combining good old Southern hospitality and harkening back to the days when guests arrived after many days of dusty travel, this welcome bar is your first glimpse of the charm that is Sky Walker Ranch.

Entering the kitchen, the flooring blends almost seamlessly with the cabinets. Both are constructed out of reclaimed wood from area barns. Kate Bolia says, “We had a wonderful contractor, Leski Whitmore, who helped us find a couple of barns that were over 100 years old and we were able to reuse the wood. It’s really nice for us to have that historic aspect to the house.”  That rustic feature mixes with a fresh subway tile backsplash and open shelving surrounding the gas range to provide smooth clean lines creating a modern feel. 

Opening into the great room, the fire feature is a wood burning stove with shiplap surround. Adding the picturesque Highwood Mountains as a backdrop, this area provides a cozy, comfortable place for guests to gather in casual conversation. 

Another unique aspect of the Bolia home is the two master suites. Yes, two. Not wanting guests to feel slighted in any way, the Bolias asked Klippel to convert theoriginal master suite into the guest suite and transform two bedrooms on the opposite side of the main floor into their personal master. The result, Kate says, “Everyone hangs out in the great room and kitchen, but they still have plenty of their own 

private space.”

Now that the main construction is complete, the Bolias welcome guests from all over. The Sky Walker Ranch can be booked for a stay through contacting the Ranches at Belt Creek or websites like VRBO.com and homeaway.com.

James Klippel concludes, “I’d call it a home for the ages, where the natural world and human art merge into an inspiring composition for all.”

A Home of Solitude & Sanctuary

Text by Heather Bode | Photography by Jim Wells

Do we remodel or build new? It’s a question faced by many families on the journey of home ownership. For Nick and Robin Jankiewicz, the decision was clarified by a piece of paper. “We wanted to remodel our last home, but when the remodeling quote came in, we figured we’d might as well just build,” says Robin.

A Mid-Century Monolith Morphs into Ultra-Modern

Text by Heather Bode | Photography by Jim Wells

What do you get when you cross a house built during Leave it to Beaver’s heyday and a doctor who’s a self-proclaimed HGTV addict? You get four young boys asking their mother, “Mom, what have you DONE? Why would we leave a perfectly functioning house to move HERE?” Then you hear her response: “There was just something about this house that called to me. It was a wreck, but I loved it. It was our house,” says Julie Kuykendall, the homeowner.

Another Wilkinson Construction Home Hits the Mark

Text by Kay Bjork | Photography by Marcus Serrano

Another Tim Wilkinson home perched above the great Missouri and surrounded by the Little Belts and Highwood Mountains has proved itself worthy of its grand location on Spring Tree Ridge.

Last year a Tim Wilkinson Construction home on Spring Tree Ridge swept the Parade of Homes awards in its category and this year’s entry captured awards for Best Kitchen, Best Master Bath and Curb Appeal.

A design/build company started by his father John in 1956, Tim joined the family business in 1993 and took over

An Artisan Builder Creates Old World Opulence

Text by Heather Bode | Photography by James Ridle

Home owner Terry Johnson’s life reads like a Western narrative: log cabins and agriculture. Growing up on two small ranches homesteaded by his grandfathers outside of Deer Lodge, Johnson says, “It’s rough terrain over there. But I had agriculture in my fingers early on.” As a child, he grew vegetables, participated in 4-H, and raised hogs and chickens. Eventually, his family donated one of the family’s original log cabins to the Deer Lodge Historical Museum.

Building a Legacy Home with Heirloom Quality

Text by Heather Bode | Photography by Jim Wells

For centuries, there have been those who have explored the great state of Montana. Traipsing through her majestic beauty and mountainous expanses tends to leave a lasting impression that runs so deep, many return time and time again.