Combining two lots gave luxury home builders Anthony and Tia Farhat of PGI Homes nearly 300 linear feet to design across, and they used every inch with intention. Crema Maya stone wraps the façade, its texture balanced by matte-finish stucco and a dark charcoal tile roof. Mature Sylvester palms from R.S. Walsh Landscaping stand like sentinels before the grand porte cochère, where Hubbardton Forge sconces cast a warm glow that frames an entry hinting at the drama within.
WHERE ELEGANCE MEETS ECCENTRICITY, AND NO PART OF THE IMAGINATION IS OFF LIMITS
AAlong a mangrove-lined canal in Cape Coral, where manatees surface and dolphins glide across the glossy water, a 280-foot-wide estate becomes a sanctuary for the unexpected. Brought to life by luxury home builders Anthony and Tia Farhat of PGI Homes, the one-level residence channels the spectacle of a Las Vegas hotel and the serenity of the Gulf.
The Farhats meet homeowners Chris and Cher Perna nearly four years before construction begins, and the connection is immediate. Cher Perna’s sensibility leans toward natural beauty, thoughtful function, and timeless design. Chris Perna, a retired art director for Epic Games, is driven by narrative, atmosphere, and a lifelong passion for horror and cinematic world-building. That creative duality, refined and raw, light and shadow, guides every decision for the home’s design.
It’s exactly the kind of project that excites them most as the Farhats aim to make PGI Homes synonymous with the extraordinary, taking on a select few high-impact projects each year. When Anthony Farhat introduces the Pernas to two coveted waterfront lots in Tarpon Estates, the potential is clear, especially for Cher Perna, whose roots in Cape Coral run deep. u
Parlor: Only in a Vegas-inspired parlor would the chandelier from Preciosa Lighting feature over 250 hand-cut and etched crystals, each individually hung. Suspended like falling light, it crowns a pair of curved sofas from Thayer Coggin, chosen to soften the home’s sharp architectural lines. A glass-top cocktail table with a bleached root base introduces an organic counterpoint, echoed in the sweeping veining of the monolithic fireplace clad in Golden Dragon quartz by Cambria. Flowing drapery frames the sweeping water view through soaring floor-to-ceiling windows.
Front Elevation Rendering: What began as a concept became a blueprint. Using Unreal Engine, Chris Perna modeled the home’s front elevation. “I remember Anthony and Tia saying, ‘The Pernas have a vision, and it never changed from beginning to end,’” recalls Cher Perna. “The end result was exactly what we wanted — and Anthony and Tia Farhat were able to bring our dream to fruition.”
Gathering Room: “Chris didn’t want a traditional tray ceiling,” says Anthony Farhat. “We dropped the center cloud to overall ceiling height, so the volume peeks around the perimeter, and the indirect lighting pulls your eye, especially at night.” Chandeliers from Terzani float like luminous clouds, while sleek, contemporary furnishings from Robb & Stucky shape the room, and a 219-inch Planar screen displays digital art that sparks conversation.
Yet before a single footing is poured, Chris Perna models the front elevation using Unreal Engine, a platform for advanced 3D game design and cinematic visualization. Translating that digital rendering into reality falls to the Farhats. Once imagined in pixels and light, they bring it into form and shadow, creating a work of architecture that invites curiosity and defies both timestamp and trend. “The render is crystal clear,” says Cher Perna. “And what Anthony built looks exactly like it. It’s uncanny.”
After arriving beneath the grand porte cochère, one steps into the parlor, a space steeped in glamour inspired by a Vegas hotel. Soaring ceilings and a custom chandelier set a dramatic tone. “Many hotels use Preciosa Lighting,” says Tia Farhat, Director of Design at PGI Homes. “We loved bringing that level of sophistication into a residence. The chandelier was custom-made for the parlor, designed to command the full 18-foot volume.”
A monolithic fireplace clad in 750 square feet of Cambria’s Golden Dragon quartz becomes a visual fulcrum, dividing the entry parlor from the gathering, dining, and kitchen beyond. Veined with hues of aged brass, inky black, and smoky white, the surface carries a sense of motion, its manmade precision softened by organic veining that captures the balance of spectacle and serenity defining the home’s interior language. u
Kitchen: Named Five Palms in tribute to the family of five, the estate’s meaning isn’t lost on Tia Farhat, who carries that symbolism throughout. Five blown-glass calla lily pendants, five brass chairs, and five organic art pieces line the wall, each gesture linking design to family. Here, contrast meets refinement as sleek espresso cabinetry from Hans Krug Fine European Cabinetry conceals the Miele appliances, its lustrous finish reflecting the light and infusing the space with a hint of Vegas-style drama.
Social Island Detail: The sculptural island serves as a visual continuation of the Golden Dragon quartz fireplace that commands the entry view, bookending the open plan with drama. “Chris was adamant about creating something sculptural,” says Anthony Farhat. “We designed the island with an inverted 45-degree knife edge and angled the faces inward toward the center, so the geometry reveals itself as you move around it. It feels more like a piece of art than a traditional island.”
Powder Room: “There’s a magmatic feeling in this powder bath — the gold rising up the mirror, the jewelry dripping down, even the lava bowl sink. It’s amber, but it glows like molten rock. The whole house was inspired by a Vegas hotel, and this dark, cozy, dramatic bathroom is the epitome,” shares Chris Perna. While the countertop, Golden Dragon, rises from the vanity top to the ceiling, the adjacent wall is clad in a wallcovering with a “dragon skin” like texture.
Primary Bathroom (Right): The wall behind the tub is paint on acrylic, backlit by the Farhats. That’s an oversimplification of this remarkable piece by artist Alex Turco, who evokes the movement of nature with rich tones of copper, stormy white, and charcoal, stirred with metallic flecks that make it shimmer. “The chandelier,” says Tia Farhat, pointing to the Allegri Crystal fixture, “mimics sunlight and a rainstorm,” completing the organic composition and amplifying the natural energy of the space.
Primary Bedroom: A champagne hue forms the foundation of this monochromatic palette, anchored by plush sheepskin rugs that balance texture and tone. Scale is masterfully handled: the height of the upholstered bed reaches toward the ceiling, while a three-centimeter application of Cambria’s Skara Brae on the fireplace — backlit with SlabLite LED discs — illuminates the stone’s undulating veining in a soft amber glow. Two curved sofas from Baker Furniture encircle a cluster of gold bullion and bronze mirror cocktail tables from Caracole.
Her Closet: Evoking the allure of a Chanel boutique the space melds striking black and white contrasts with a rich pop of mulberry on a reupholstered vintage chair. Cher Perna’s chandelier choice goes beyond illumination; crafted from black leather and Swarovski crystal by Schonbek, sourced through Lighting First, it captures her distinctive blend of glamour and quiet grace. “I love to dress up for a night on the town in NYC, but I’m just as comfortable in jeans and flannel at the barn with my horse. I can go from Louboutin heels to cowboy boots.”
His Closet: “I wanted a dark, leathery, cigar-room feel,” shares Chris Perna, who expresses the design of this closet through the senses, infusing the space with reed diffusers that instill a tobacco scent. Rich espresso cabinetry from California Closets and the slate-black wood floor root this space in that cigar-lounge aesthetic. The bank of drawers in the center, with a lighted display, houses Chris Perna’s watches — all under the watchful eye of this fiery ring-inspired chandelier from Hubbardton Forge, sourced through Lighting First.
Guest Bedroom (Above): Defined by shadow and texture, this monochromatic retreat layers gunmetal-gray bedding over a charcoal velvet wingback bed from Century Furniture, establishing a dark, moody allure. Every aspiring author needs a writing desk, and Tia Farhat pairs it with custom artwork by Nicole Mangas Franz, whose collage-style compositions add color and visual texture. Across the gray-painted wall, a piece by Mr. Debonair delivers just the right measure of edge.
Guest Bedroom (Below): In this design, nature takes the lead, framed by windows on three sides and landscaping that wraps around the architecture. The interior follows suit, its serene palette accented with lucite details and high-sheen furnishings. Dimensional wall art from Phillips Collection adds sculptural depth, while the dark wood floor grounds the space. Underfoot, a geometric area rug ripples outward in soft concentric lines as a subtle, tone-on-tone gesture toward nature.
Guest Bedroom: In this more masculine design, richly saturated tones and strong geometric forms set the direction. The king bed from Belle Meade, finished in espresso wood, pairs seamlessly with a leather chaise. Cher Perna notes that each bedroom includes a sculptural feline in honor of the couple’s beloved cats. A chisel-carved panther in this room introduces a metallic accent, its sleek form emphasizing the space’s bold aesthetic.
Cher Perna calls the kitchen her favorite, a space anchored by a luminous working island where the family jokes about serving twenty feet of holiday food. Beside it, the darker island brings the drama. Chris Perna envisioned it as a sculptural statement — knife-edged, faceted, and clad in Golden Dragon quartz. When the team pursued the concept, they discovered it existed only as a rendering on Cambria’s website. The Farhats urged the company to fabricate it, and Cambria did, creating the form for this home and reintroducing Golden Dragon to their line. A rendering made real, much like the house itself.
“In every home we’ve ever owned, Chris has always had a monster room,” Cher Perna says. “His monsters, his creativity — it isn’t just what he does; it’s who he is.” In this home, that truth is manifested in the art studio, opening onto a covered veranda where his monster collectibles live in the light. Though the room itself is cloaked in rich European cabinetry and a custom pepper-hued floor, it’s where Chris Perna’s creativity resides unapologetically.
If the art studio is Chris Perna’s private sanctuary, the theater is where his love of storytelling becomes shared. With the house lights up, Anthony Farht describes the walls as black and glossy, like a grand piano. When they go down, the ceiling transforms into a starry night lit by hundreds of fiber-optic points. The theater also symbolizes Chris Perna’s future as a venue for screening projects from his new horror production company, Black Obelisk. So when the monsters roar on screen and Dolby Atmos shakes the room, Cher Perna simply retreats into the serenity of the primary bedroom, where the creatures fade — evidence of the Farhats’ meticulous approach to acoustics, architecture, and the way this family wants to live in their home. u
Theater: Chris Perna wanted a theater that felt as immersive as the stories it would hold. Anthony Farhat delivers with double-insulated walls, a JBL Synthesis surround system paired with Dolby Atmos technology, and a perforated screen that lets sound move precisely with the image — every rumble and roar is felt. “It’s one of my favorite rooms in the house,” Chris Perna says, and Cher Perna jokes, “It’s also perfect for quiet moments or meditation.”
In this home, that truth is manifested in the art studio, opening onto a covered veranda where his monster collectibles live in the light. Though the room itself is cloaked in rich European cabinetry and a custom pepperhued floor, it’s where Chris Perna’s creativity resides unapologetically.
Club Room: Things worth waiting for often take the longest, and this stunning pepperhued chevron wood floor took three months to install. “Essentially, it was one custom cut at a time,” shares Anthony Farhat. “They’re three-inch planks and 45,000 cuts.” That inky foundation grounds the space in moody sophistication, setting the stage for its palette of charcoal, cognac, and bourbon. Behind the sofa, a concealed bourbon bar unfolds from the built-ins, flanked by shelves lined with first editions.
Art Studio: Saturated and sleek, the high-gloss cabinets, taken to the ceiling for a dramatic presence, house Chris Perna’s monster collectibles and books — figures of Cousin Eerie and Uncle Creepy — nostalgic nods to childhood, while Marcus Fenix marks another chapter in his creative life. The collection includes works by sculptor Tom Kuebler and leading Hollywood effects artists. In the center, a gnarled-root desk sits beneath a smoky top. Its surface, so reflective that Nosferatu’s visage flickers across the glass.
Club Room Bathroom: If the club room is defined by warmth and a library-like ambiance, its en-suite powder room steals the spotlight with pure Vegas glitz. Tia Farhat clad the back wall in mirrored mosaic tile from Cancos Tile and Stone, creating a reflective surface that ripples with light. “I wanted this space to shimmer,” Farhat says. “The tile catches the light like jewelry, and the espresso cork wallcovering adds the depth and contrast it needed.”
“We are truly yin and yang — my wife is the light to my darkness, and that’s why we work,” Chris Perna says. In the primary bedroom, Cher Perna’s influence is unmistakable, softer, quieter, with each designing their own closet. His is dark, moody, and lit by a chandelier that burns like a ring of fire. Hers evokes a Chanel boutique. The Farhats pursue every detail with the homeowners, from fixtures first glimpsed on Instagram to artwork whose brushstrokes echo the veining of stone, to a single material that unifies a home nearly the length of a football field. That same attention extends outdoors, where a covered veranda stretches along the back and fire bowls lend a touch of Vegas showmanship around the pool and spa. u
For all its spectacle — the theater, the chandeliers, the sculptural island — the home finds its stillness as the sun sets behind the mangroves. Cher Perna sits outside and listens. “I can hear the manatees,” she says. It’s the perfect ending, where imagination steps into the real world, built by the Farhats’ fearless devotion to turning vision into form. n
Written by Rachel Seekamp
by Blaine Johnathan Photography
Luxury Home Builder:
PGI Homes
239.540.8400 www.pgihomes.com
Landscape Architect:
R.S. Walsh Landscaping 12651 McGregor Boulevard, Suite 504 Fort Myers, FL 33919
239.768.5655 www.rswalsh.com
Resources:
California Closets
2367 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Suite 810 Naples, FL 34109
239.694.8100 www.californiaclosets.com
Lighting First 28801 South Tamiami Trail Bonita Springs, FL 34134
239.949.2544 www.lightingfirst.us
