Modeling the house on turn-of-the-twentieth-century estates of Newport, Rhode Island resulted in a double-gabled scheme clad in stone and shingles with stepped-back one-story-tall wings to de-emphasize the size. Keeping the building’s proportions internally consistent also helped the scale seem subtler. Substantial exterior details include a monumental twelve-foot-high Romanesque archway front entrance and highly detailed trim and moldings.