MEET REBECCA AND KEITH, new owners of a 1961 tri-level home in Ann Arbor, Mich.  Rebecca has been totally sucked into the mid-mod vortex… and has a great eye. It is just so fun for me to see all the young couples feathering their nests. That was me, too . Rebecca has a few questions… and shares photos of the fabulous features of this gem of a home — including an asymmetric fireplace with a “Feastmaster.” Heck yeah there is more →

THE ESTATE SALE ON FRIDAY was a jackpot — the 1964, single-owner split level house was in gorgeous condition. What I really liked about it was that it was a very middle class, unpretentious house – but it had features that were clearly chosen for their high quality and craftsmanship. It was timeless in the true sense that everything about the house can endure. Oh lordy, I hope that the new owners understand what they have in hand! Today, two slide shows: The first of an awesome midcentury mailbox, recessed into the roman marble brick of the exterior. I know lots of readers will be so envious of this feature, I’ve never seen anything like it yet. And second, a fabulous time capsule kitchen — it includes two-tone cabinetry, a great little breakfast counter with original stools, and yellow GE appliances with gorgeous design features. One of my new favorites ever — like this house. 27 photos in all. Heck yeah there is more →

It seems like there are a lot of new readers lately, including those with their own blogs. I hope this means that (1) the real estate market is picking up, (2) midcentury homes – “modern” and “modest” alike – continue to gain appeal and there are people who want to preserve their charms, and (3) you all are having so much fun reading this blog that you want to start your own. Hey: That’s the way it should be! A recent addition to our retro renovation community:  Susie, who writes, ” …We recently bought our first home, built in 1957, and we”re having a ball getting settled in and putting our personal touches on everything.  I’ve really enjoyed looking at your site, especially the flooring section (getting ready to redo our kitchen, probably with classic black Armstrong).”

Read more about Suzie’s new-old house which includes the fabulous “Exclusive Style Crest Custom Quality by Bass Bros.” sofa pictured above, at her blog, The Gonce House. Welcome, Suzie!

Last week, reader Magnarama clued us all in about Pecky Cypress when we looked at a 1959 Drexel living room and bedroom.

Pecky cypress…I cannot tell you HOW MUCH I love to say that, write that, think that, add that as a Tag, tell my husband about it! And now, dream it: Look at the living room in Lawrence Bill’s 1955 split-levell! Here’s his wonderful story to go with it:

Hi Pam,

Yes, the pecky cypress looks fantastic in contrast to the huge fireplace here in the living room. I just love the look and texture. It’s feels natural, organic, of a place, yet utterly modern. Though it’s hard to tell from the pics, the wood was lightly stained a light blue color. The effect is quite striking; it cools the eyes yet remains warm and inviting. It’s magical, really.

The architect, who is still alive in L.A., told me the story about how the house was built. I’ll tell you just a bit of what I know. He said the owners wanted the pecky cypress look in their living room/dining area. Evidently it was becoming popular at that time. They sourced the best pieces they could find from a supplier that got it from Louisiana. The rest of the house has a lovely mix of hardwoods and softwoods. You could not duplicate this quality today unless you had hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend. And even then it wouldn’t be the same–the untold story about midcentury homes is the quality of woods sourced from forests that no longer exist or can’t be logged for environmental reasons, etc. I don’t need to tell you about that.

The house was completed for exactly $18,000 in October, 1955. I still have the original receipt. It was built by two brothers (+ a helper), one of whom was a demolition expert during WWII. One day, while trying to lay the sewage line from the house to the (then new) dirt road, then ran into a huge underground rock. The demolition expert went out and found some dynamite somewhere, came back, and after a few unsuccessful attempts to dislodge the rock, finally blew it up, sending a huge chunk of clear over a neighbor’s roof into their back yard. Luckily no one was hurt. From what I heard, the brothers went over to the house, apologized, and the police were not called in. How’s that for a 50s moment for you? Could you imagine that happening today?

I could go on with stories I’ve heard about how they built this place but I’d probably bore you. But then again, one of the funnest parts about your blog is reading about other people’s houses and their stories. So in that context maybe not so boring. Which reminds me: one of these days you should consider doing a post about architectural drawings. We have the original drawings to this house and they’re really cool. I don’t know, it just amazes me that all this derived from a hand-drawn plan. I get the same feeling looking at the drawings of famous golf course architects. For some reason, there seemed to be a correlation between the quality of the drawing and the quality of the end result. I don’t know how you’d make a post about architectural drawings interesting, but it might be worth considering. Could be a good idea over the winter when not much is going on.

Regards,
Bill

KABOOM! Get your architectural drawings ready, readers. We will indeed take up Bill’s idea come fall and winter…Thanks, Bill!