If building a home is an art form, then Andrew Klose specializes in masterpieces. And when you’re working with an artist of his caliber, some will tell you, the wisest choice is to simply—stay out of the way.

Thus began the tale of the spacious and elegant Tuscany estate in the woods by a wildlife preserve Galloway, New Jersey. Owner Michael Cammarasana had seen the custom homes built by Andrew Klose, owner of Casa Eleganze and Luxuria LLC. He liked them very much, as a rule. But every so often, he’d come across a design that didn’t make sense to him. “That was when the owners got too involved,” said Cammarasana. “They insisted on doing it their way. And the vision was lost.”Cammarasana trusted Klose to be able to build him some-thing extraordinary. They discussed the basic design, and then Klose was free to build. “Don’t get me wrong,”said Cammarasana.“I made selections. I was here on a daily basis. But Andrew is an artist, and in my opinion, the best thing I could do was stay out of his way.”

The result is an impeccable 5,000 square foot mansion (a.k.a. bachelor pad) for Cammarasana. Having toured Andrew Klose’s homes before, I knew before I stepped one foot through the double glass-and-wood door that it was going to be something special.

Two lion statues—symbols of strength and power—flanked the front steps at the entrance. Just inside, I found myself on tumbled Italian marble in off-white and tan. In fact, the entire palette of the home was in shades of off-white, with the exception of one room. But more on that later.  

The entryway sported four white columns, which had the dual effect of defining the space and separating it from the adjacent rooms. To the left was the parlor, or formal sitting room. To the right was the dining room. Ahead was the living room, stretching two stories with a massive fireplace and plasma TV.

First things first, I stepped into the parlor. The rich hardwood flooring formed a stark contrast to the paler shade of marble nearby. A pair of chairs, in gray and black stripes, mirrored the pattern on the white striped sofa. Two square tables sported mirrored tops. Another magnificent fireplace was at the far wall, with a mantle in the same colors as the wall—a textured stone-and-ceramic version. The bay windows in this room faced the front of the house and ran nearly floor to ceiling.

On the opposite side, the dining room had those same beautiful bays. Again, the rich hardwood offset the adjoining marble. An ample Grecian-inspired chandelier hung from the ceiling.

Remember that two-story living room? It was the ideal spot for entertaining. So much so that Cammarasana hosted family and friends for Christmas Eve the very night he moved into the house three years ago. A Christmas tree was delivered along with the furnishings.

“There was no way Andrew should have been able to make that deadline,” remembers Cammarasana. “All of our bathroom vanities had to hand-built from antique furniture, and he was still searching for the right ones and putting in sinks. But he did it. And it was a spectacular holiday.”

In fact, the home is made for entertaining—holiday or otherwise. The kitchen, which adjoins both dining and living rooms, is large and welcoming. Maybe that’s because of the red walls, the red cabinets and even the red knobs on the Wolfstove.

Did I mention that it’s the only room in this very large house that’s not in the off-white palette? Cammarasana explained.

“It was a pretty bold statement,” he acknowledged,“My girlfriend at the time actually suggested it. I worked with Tim at Design Studio Interiors on the cabinetry. But neither of us was ‘brave enough’ to approach Andrew with the idea. So she did it.”

After some initial resistance, Andrew—the builder a.k.a. artist—was surprisingly agreeable to the change. The custom-designed deep cherry wood cabinetry set the tone for the space. Lisa Benninger of DesignWorks Interiors, LLC helped select the tumbled marble for the walls. An oversized island, in black with subtle reddish tones, had the effect of softening the palette and creating a sleek, modern look.

Cammarasana loves to spend time cooking in the kitchen when he’s not traveling for business. On a Sunday, he might put up a pot of sauce, and invite some company.

But when he isn’t entertaining, one of his favorite places in the house is the master suite, which is in itself a spacious “apartment.” That brings me to upstairs, up the hardwood steps, past the iron rails and onto the off-white carpet of the second story.

The plush “captain’s bridge” hallway overlooks both the living room and the front entry. Along the living room side, the iron rails curved outward. Three guest bedrooms offer ample accommodations and spacious bathrooms with those custom furniture vanities.

The master suite is a destination in and of itself at the end of the hall. Done in shades of cream, it featured a king-size canopy style bed. The room-sized closet sported well-organized racks for suits and shoes, and chests for clothes. It was immaculate.

“Have you ever seen the movie, The Family Man, with Nicholas Cage?” asked Cammarasana. “That was the inspiration for this closet. I told Andrew about it, and then he added hidden storage space on either side, which is really helpful—a much better alternative to an attic. You can get to it easily but it’s also out of sight.”

The master suite also opened up to a room that housed a home gym, complete with bench press, Stairmaster, bike and free weights. The room itself was not separated by a door, but by those same white columns from the entryway. (There were 22 columns in all, throughout the house, noted Cammarasana.)  

French doors from the main bedroom led to the master bath, resplendent in dark gray stone highlighted by white diamond tiles. The same stone ran up the walls, with a glass shower stall that simply added a different, silky texture. A large Jacuzzi bath in white stretched from wall to wall. A TV mounted on one side was there incase the immense picture window overlooking the woods did not entertain enough.

Outside, just beyond the kitchen, was a huge veranda—as it turns out, another inspiration from the movies. Cammarasana recalled the scene in Indecent Proposal, where Robert Redford danced with Demi Moore.

“That was the inspiration for the veranda,”he said. This space was flanked by columns, bringing a bit of the inside outdoors. “You can sit here at dusk and the deer come right up,” he added. “I like the quiet. I like the fact that we’re right by the nature preserve, and so nothing will ever be built here.”The property stretches about 2.5 acres, with a full acre in front. Morissey & Sons Landscaping handles the grounds but Cammarasana left the back of the house “rustic.” He prefers the natural landscape.

Looking around a this beautiful estate, he smiles. “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but so rewarding.” And he adds, almost unnecessarily, “Andrew Klose is going to build my next house.”