Designed by Scott - the owner, as well as the architect of Estate Homes - this was a labor of love and detail.  You can visit their website at www.simmonsestatehomes.com.  Immediately, you're impressed with soaring spaces, dramatic lighting and hand-troweled walls.  A domed rotunda with an elegant Christmas tree offers views to many of the family's favorite rooms.  Over the family room are custom-guilt niches with two Gothic window frames from an old English church.

Susie and Scott Simmons (far right)

The formal living area offers more than beautiful woodwork.  It offers intrigue with a swing away bookcase beside the fireplace that reveals a secret passage into a turret office.

The Master Suite, with it coffered ceiling and King Louis XIV replica mantle, has an adjoining bath that features travertine tile with pewter accents.

In the family room, Gothic arches offer sanctuary to lion statues above the massive fireplace mantle.  

Three bedrooms and a game/media room inhabit the top floor.  One guestroom features a lovely antique iron bed.  Another houses an Angel Village.  Between the two is the game/media room, surrounded by autographed memorabilia.  Beyond is Olivia's room - where painted clouds float above her Christmas tree.  At the top of the back stairs is  a portrait of Scott and Olivia, painted by Scott's mother.

Next to the Hearth room, with its custom crest in the mantle, is the kitchen.  Outside, a long arcade waits to walk you to an outdoor living room with a huge stone fireplace and built-in grill area.  A guesthouse sits beside the cabana.  With a large arched door that opens up to a full self-contained suite, guests will no doubt be inviting themselves to come and stay awhile in this Gothic fairy tale home. Click here for additional photos.

The living area features soaring windows that provide a view into the pool area with its rock waterfall.  An opera box balcony overlooks this area and provides an opportunity to see the ornate moldings up close.

In the Master, the fireplace, painted scrollwork and the large curve of room-tall windows create a cozy atmosphere.  In the Master bath, the holiday spirit continues with decorations accenting the Jacuzzi tub and glass-walled shower.

The kitchen cabinetry features carved-grape trim and you'll see the grape theme throughout this room.  Two chairs in the adjoining family room were acquired from the old Fort Worth courthouse.

In the hallway to the guest room, hand-painted murals on both sides and a vine-covered arbor overhead give the feeling of taking a walk in the countryside.  At the end of that stroll, the downstairs guest rooms is decorated for the holidays with carousel horses.  The hallway to the guest bath is a gallery of family portraits, going back several generations.

A varied color palette is used as a backdrop for an

Fascinating details, such as an original Louis XVI chandelier in the dining room, a replica of a Commodore Vanderbilt ceiling fan in Barry's office just like the one at the Biltmore Mansion, and several famous replica fireplace mantels add interest and warmth throughout the home.  Also, don't forget to look up in each room - many contain hand-painted ceiling murals.

The master suite overlooks the pools and offers angels for the holidays.  Here, you'll see an original Mary Cassatt watercolor, and one of the many paintings throughout the home by Santa Fe impressionist Deborah Gold.

Upstairs is Christy's "childhood" bedroom.  All the dolls were made by her mother, June Drew, and close friend, Debra Spisak.  To your left is a game room done in turn of the century holiday decor with a complete Charles Dickens village collection.  Yet another guestroom beckons with hand-painted accents and a unique bed frame made from Civil War era iron fencing.  And don't forget to look in the cinema room that features a 100-inch screen.

The family room, down the back stairs, is home to their Winter Wonderland Christmas tree.  It offers a view into the spacious kitchen, which has an entertaining pot rack and mural dedication to Thomas Jefferson, the father of food.

Perhaps the most interesting of all is a single crystal doorknob.  Look for it on the master suite door.  Following Southern Plantation era tradition, it was put there to symbolize the house is all theirs.  In more ways than one.  Click here for additional photos.

In the Master Suite, comfort rules.  Warm taupe walls, 

As the Starnes' formal dining space, the Angel Room is home to a charming glass-topped dining table with three cherubs forming the pedestal.  Look up at the ceiling and around the room to see more angels and a formal-style Christmas tree.

The upstairs game room is great fun, with its sports-themed Christmas tree, game tables and fascinating sports memorabilia - including classic Dallas Cowboy pieces, autographed seats from Arlington Stadium, and a prized signed Tom Landry fedora.

As you exit the game room, look out over the Great Room and appreciate up close the cloud mural and animated holiday display atop the "great wall."  Down the hall, the Patriotic Bedroom features a tree lit from top to bottom 

with layers of red, white and blue.  This room is home to various bits of Americana, from the characters lining the bed to the wreath on the wall.

At the opposite end of the hall Jessica's room sparkles with its candy-themed Christmas tree and twisted-post bed framing a petite oval window.  In Kristyn's Room, you'll find a charming snowman tree.  The wrought-iron bed has vines "growing" up and around the top for a garden feeling.

Secluded and private, the pool area is an oasis of lush, tropical plants.  Corkscrew columns support a vine-covered trellis over the poolside bar and built-in grill, where the family gathers often.  Click here for additional photos.

• Arts Council of Northeast Tarrant County

• Colleyville Woman's Club Endowments

• Mental Health Association of Tarrant County

• Kathleen C. Blowen Circle of Hope Scholarships

• The Neuro-Fitness Foundation

• Women's Haven of Tarrant County, Inc.

• Metroport Meals On Wheels, Inc.

• The Women's Center of Tarrant County

• Summer Reading Club

• Alliance For Children

• GRACE

• Open Arms Home, Inc.

• Mid-Cities Care Corps

• Summer Santa

• The Women's Shelter

• Cancer Care Services

• Harris Methodist HEB