"There was so much beauty, so much more than enough for everyone, that it did appear to be a vain activity to try and make a corner in it." This quote captures the essence of Villa Beatrice, where beauty and luxury converge in a breathtaking setting.
"When I see this, I'm thinking hallelujah. It's the first real indicator that the VA is willing to step up and get that chapel restored, which frankly I think is their responsibility."
The fire burned portions of the Camron-Stanford House, a three-story Victorian on the southern end of the lake. Firefighters were able to save the home, but preservationists have questions about how the fire started.
The walk, and the houses surrounding it reflect a period when Berkeley's hills were becoming a laboratory for new architectural ideas rooted in craftsmanship, landscape and a belief that the built environment could shape daily life for the better.
"It has been estimated that one million five hundred thousand houses each year for a period of 10 years will be needed to relieve the urgent housing problem of this country. The enormity of such a need cannot even be partially satisfied by building techniques as we have known and used them in the past."
Both recently renovated units that make up this Shaw townhome are currently available. The main and top floors make up Unit 2 and include three bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms (including en suite bathrooms for each room), walk-in closets, and one parking space. Unit 1 is an English basement-style unit-with above-grade entry-featuring one bedroom and one bathroom, and a back terrace.
It's not a house of outstanding art, being a self-taught carver whose skills evidently advanced over the years, as you can see the evolution from fairly rough carving on the stairs to the very skilled work in the living room. He also created the paintings on the walls - talented chap - but never finished the carving in the living room, as his time finally ran out.
George Washington Smith, widely regarded as the founder of the Spanish Colonial Revival style, designed scores of houses in and around Santa Barbara during an architectural career that lasted only a dozen years before his death in 1930. Today those houses, with their signature mix of whitewashed walls, red-tiled roofs, balconies, courtyards, fountains, elaborate carved woodwork and wrought iron, are keenly sought after, according to area real estate agents.
Twelve weeks after coming on the market, the Surrey house used to portray the home of actress Maggie Smith's character, Lady Violet Crawley, found a buyer and recently closed along with several adjacent properties for nearly $9 million. Known as Dower House on the TV series, it was built around 1686.
My house is my history book. Like a wise grandfather, this splendid relic of 1903 has been teaching me about the city that adopted me 15 years ago. The old place has watched Los Angeles grow from just over 100,000 to more than 3 million. It was here before the movies, before the aircraft plants, before the car dealers.
I essentially print one copy of the book for the owner. It tells the story of their house and all the owners from the time it was built until today. The books run from 150 to 250 pages, can take more than 200 hours to produce and are filled with boldface celebrity names and archival photos of stars hanging out in the home with famous friends.
Gleaming woodwork, cozy window seats, and shimmering stained glass windows contribute to the lush Gilded Age atmosphere inside this 1890s Queen Anne in Kingston. All those details do come at a price, but the interior looks lovingly cared for with restored original elements and period sympathetic updates. The dwelling on the market at 77 West Chestnut Street is within the Chestnut Street National Register Historic District, which includes substantial dwellings originally constructed for the influential and affluent of Kingston.
As the weights touch, they get a bit musical and there's a kind of harmonic ring in your wall. It's like the house is alive. But with soulful age come other sounds: rattles, wind whistling through gaps and a homeowner's curses because the blasted contraptions won't open and close properly.
Originally known as the Charles Davis House, the colorful Newton Center home was constructed in the Second Empire style in 1860 by Davis, a well-to-do chemical manufacturer in Boston, according to historic documents. It later served as a nursing home before returning to a single-family dwelling. About 20 years ago, an architect purchased the home and transformed it for himself into a six-bedroom, eight-and-a-half-bathroom home that exudes vibrant color and historic features that effortlessly blend with modern amenities.
This Craftsman home, set on a roomy three-quarter-acre lot, has the rolled roof edges, deep overhangs and protruding rafter tails characteristic of the style developed by brothers Charles and Henry Greene. Originally built for Packard dealer Earle C. Anthony, the shingle-clad house was moved from Los Angeles to Beverly Hills in the early 1920s by silent-film star Norman Kerry.
Unrivaled in scale, this nearly 18,000-square-foot manor is a masterclass in architectural precision. The exterior's brick and granite facade is defined by four regal balconies featuring exquisite limestone and granite architectural balusters. Inside, the home is a showcase of custom interior detailing, featuring extensive shadowboxes, art niches, and intricate tray ceilings. Vertical proportions are equally impressive: the main level boasts 20-foot ceilings in the living and family rooms, with 10-foot ceilings throughout the rest of the floor.
Designed by noted residential architect Roland E. Coate, the home was built in 1926 for Annie Wilson, daughter of pioneering Southern California businessman and politician Benjamin Wilson, for whom Mt. Wilson is named. The gently sloping 1-acre-plus property was once part of the vast holdings of George S. Patton, father of the famed U.S. general.
Picture this: you're knee-deep in renovation dust, crowbar in hand, when something unexpected tumbles from behind century-old plaster. A yellowed envelope? A strange metal box? That moment when your heart skips because you realize you might have just found something extraordinary. For some lucky homeowners, these discoveries turn out to be worth thousands of dollars, transforming a simple home improvement project into an unexpected treasure hunt.
Schacht, originally born in Germany and educated in Europe, moved to Portland in 1883 after the German government claimed his Hamburg home via eminent domain, and he decided to move as far away as possible. While his work over his four-decade career spanned a variety of architectural styles, it has been noted that after 1900, he was "among the first Arts and Crafts-influenced architects to practice west of the Rocky Mountains."
Not every home is willing to play a supporting role. Jess Cooney's has always demanded top billing. "It's been a main character in my life-we've had a beautiful journey," says the AD PRO Directory member of her 6,000-square-foot house in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. "And it also drives me insane." More than two decades ago, Cooney returned home from Colorado to the Berkshires with her husband, Joe, and a new daughter in tow.