It’s big (24,000 square feet, on 20 acres), expensive (currently listed by Sotheby’s for $24 million) and packed with decadent features. But the striking thing about this estate in a rural area of Richmond, B.C., is that it’s homey. And indeed, the couple who built it intended it to be a compound where they would entertain their extended family. It’s easy to imagine spending time here; there is a tennis court, a swimming pool, indoor and outdoor hot tubs, a fitness room, a billiards and media room, a horse barn and trails winding through lushly landscaped grounds. And lest you find some downtime: above the six-car garage, a bowling alley.

Completed in 1992, the home and surrounding landscaping, park and barn took three years to build. According to Grace Gordon-Collins, who designed the home along with her husband, architect Ernest Collins, the property reflected her clients. "They weren’t looking for a big signature pompous thing, they wanted something that suited their personalities," she says. "They’re laid-back, ordinary people, and they wanted a homey quality so their guests wouldn’t feel intimidated."

Reminiscent of an English country estate, the gate opens to a driveway that winds between duck ponds up to the red brick and granite house, its front door defined with a porte cochère.

Martina Wilson of Martina Interiors executed the interior design, travelling around the world with her clients to choose finishings, materials, furniture and lighting. Inside, to the left of the dramatic entry, is a formal living room, where the carpeting is custom-designed textured wool and the fireplace has an Italian marble surround. A long hallway stretches from the living room, and facing west along this wing is the dining room with a 14-seat table and a floral garland hand-painted on the ceiling. Nearby, an English country-style kitchen features reclaimed pine cabinets and Mexican terracotta tile countertops. Back down the hallway are the adjoining entertainment and games rooms, and a wine cellar whose door is surrounded with wrought-iron vines and leaves.

Here is where East Coast tradition gives way to West Coast lifestyle; all of these rooms open up to the expansive patio. An outdoor kitchen with a barbecue and fireplace further promotes indoor-outdoor entertaining. The pool has a dark bottom, allowing it to blend into the ornamental pond with a waterfall feature behind. The second-floor master bedroom also opens up to a wide balcony above the veranda.

This bedroom was renovated five years ago, with the addition of columns on both sides of the bed to add privacy, and the cherubs (painted on canvas) on the ceiling. This is the only major change to the home, and yet it doesn’t feel dated. "It’s classic, timeless, something you can admire many years from now," says Martina Wilson. "The best compliment I had was when someone asked if it was a renovation of an old house. That’s what I wanted it to look like: something that had always been there."