So many nice pictures posted have been lost in cyberspace. This thread is only for posting pictures of homes that have enduring appeal and stood the test of time.

I started admiring homes when I was a kid riding on a bus. I have also seen and learned that money does not always buy good taste. Good aesthetic does not mean a high price tag and unfortunately this is how the laymen learned their “good” architectural styles.

Good architecture is for people to admire but not to envy. Homes should have distinct identity but also harmonize and form a village and not fight for individual attention and glory.

Neighborhoods should motivate visitors to park their car and walk around to totally experience the ambiance. Only by walking one fully registers the qualities that tickle all our senses.

As we take trips to by gone era neighborhoods such as OC’s Floral Park, LA’s San Marino or even a case study house hanging off the cliff of Hollywood, St Francis Wood in the Bay Area, Capitol Hills in Seattle, and Litchfield, Connecticut we stop to take pictures of homes and neighborhoods that inspired us.

This is the place where we should post our photos for future references.

This is only a suggested list and we should expand them to include other counties and states.

Architecture of San Marino

Architecture of Floral Park

Architecture of Capitol Hills, Seattle

Here is a gauge for what is good enough to post here. Houses featured in TV shows or movies (not horror, parody, and reality TV) are often selected for their aesthetic merits.

The Father of the Brides house and Mad Men’s Draper house are two examples of the Colonial Revival.

Stickied!

Let’s keep things On Topic per bk’s request.  bkshopr’s first post in this thread can serve as a summary post with links to classic neighborhoods and homes which will grow over time.

Capitol Hill, Seattle
photo Credit: Caycifish. Transportation Credit: Graphrix.

San Marino and Pasadena

Photo Credit: Caycifish

This has to be the nicest garage I’ve ever seen? Where is the house that goes with it?

The upper level of the garage would be at ground level on the other side.  The house (you can see some of it in the upper right) is up the steepish hill behind it.  I don’t remember if the house itself was on another street or not, but I do think the property spanned the whole block.

Edit to add:

Here is the house, or what we could see of it.

Edit again:

I found the house: 942 Harvard Ave, Seattle, Wa.  The garage can be seen near the intersection of Bolyston and Bellevue, and yes the property spans the expanse between the streets.

Attempt to link Google street view: Street view

http://www.redfin.com/CA/Pasadena/888-S-Arroyo-Blvd-91105/home/7187327

888 S Arroyo Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91105
Price: $2,395,000
Beds:  4
Baths:  2.5
Sq. Ft.:  3,500
$/Sq. Ft.: $684
Lot Size:  0.33 Acres
Lot: 10,000-19,999 Sq. Ft., Level/Flat Lot
Property Type: Single Family Residential Detached
Style: Colonial
View: Yes, Canyon, Hills, Trees/Woods
Year Built: 1923
Community: Southwest Pasadena

Worthy of consideration ?  I know you guys said Pasadena already, but South Pasadena is known for Craftsman.  Old Pasadena is known for the WASP mansions

South Pasadena => movie = Halloween
Hollywood Riviera

These “older” homes often look great and don’t look “cheap”. Why are these newer homes always look so “cheap”?

There are a few beautiful neighborhoods in San Diego as well. Mission Hills, Talmage, Coronado are some examples.

aeneid - 07 October 2009 04:44 AM

These “older” homes often look great and don’t look “cheap”. Why are these newer homes always look so “cheap”?

Architectural details, elevation composition, ample setbacks, simplicity, and hidden garages are what make old home look great. Good observations.

Old homes look great when the home is wider than their depth. New homes are narrow at the front but deep.

Old homes were conceived by old school (hand drawn) while new homes are conceived by computers.

Old homes are in mature tree neighborhoods while new homes lack large trees in the communities.

Old homes were set in curvilinear streets with changing views and vista while new homes are set in straight street with one focal point at the end of the street or dead end into an exactly 65’ diameter culdesac.

Old homes have real clay roof tiles or wood shingle while new homes have painted concrete tiles and fake Hardi shingles.

Old homes have real plaster applied by hand while new homes have stucco sprayed by a hose.

Old homes have stained or painted wood or steel windows while new homes have white vinyl windows.

Old homes have a wide and short front door and new homes have narrow and tall door.

Old homes have the garage at the back or off to the side either attached or detached while new homes have it at the front.

Old homes have steps up to the front door due to the raised foundation while new home is leveled with the street with one or two steps. The elevated floor is better for privacy and people from outside can’t look in easily.

Old homes have a variety of architectural styles in plaster and wood while new homes have just one or 2 in stucco predominantly.

Old homes have a variety of roof pitches while new homes have just one.

Old homes were built one at a time where no 2 homes are alike new homes are built 100 clones at a time.

Old homes has no vent pipes sticking out from the roof while new homes has all kind of vent pipes penetrating everywhere through the roof.

Old homes have soft exterior plaster corners and new homes have razor sharp exterior stucco corners.

Old homes have subtle rounded corner walls inside while new homes have over-scaled rounded corners.

Old homes have the plaster wall that disappeared into the ground or paving while new homes the stucco is held above the ground with an ugly metal screed and exposing the edge of the concrete slab.

Old homes have mostly front door to the center with a very balanced symmetry while new homes have the front door shoved to the side.

Old homes have a much taller ground floor than the second floor so the upper windows are not visually top heavy. New homes the ground floor and upper floor are the same therefore the windows are visually top heavy.

Old homes have a variety of lot width and setbacks from the street while new homes have the exact lot width and setbacks.

Old homes have a variety of good distance from the next door neighbors while new homes are exactly 10’ apart

Old homes have real plaster trims and new homes always have foam trims.

Old homes have a simple roof and new homes have complex roofs.

Old homes have one color over different materials to create different tonal value results and new homes lack materials and compensate by having many colors.

Old homes have real brick chimney with no fancy bird house at the cap while new homes have no brick chimney but overly ornate bird house shroud.

Old homes has real muntins outside the glass while new homes has the snap in grid between the glass.

Old homes have windows fit perfectly into the exterior recessed openings while new houses have a unsightly 3 inch gaps all the way around.

Old homes have round gutters and downspouts and new homes have ogee gutters and downspouts.

Old home communities have no exterior community walls and new home communities are always walled in.

Old homes have narrow driveway and wide front yard while new homes have driveway wider than front yard.

Old homes have subtle entrance and a distinct path leading to it while new homes have ostentatious entry to compensate the lack of a clear path.

Old homes have width 3x the height at a minimum while new homes are taller than their width.

Old homes have architecture on all 4 sides while new homes have just a front facade. One could never find a side elevation on the street for an old home.

Old homes are in neighborhoods where front doors occupy all 4 sides of a block while new homes occupy only 2.

Old homes have a pair of light sconces at the door or a single lantern hung above the center. New homes always have just one off the side and usually where the address number is.

Thanks BK. That is alots to digest. I would love to live in one of these “older” homes. They are expensive,  of course. Seems like these “newer” houses violate lots of asthetic principles.

In the entire US only about a small handful of architects who truly understand the language of vintage homes.

BK, I just noticed that you want photos of homes in other countries. I have quite a few to contribute. How do I put them up as a link?

aeneid - 08 October 2009 08:29 AM

BK, I just noticed that you want photos of homes in other countries. I have quite a few to contribute. How do I put them up as a link?

Start here. If you need help after that, let me know. I will help you post the pics because I really want to see them.

aeneid - 08 October 2009 08:29 AM

BK, I just noticed that you want photos of homes in other countries. I have quite a few to contribute. How do I put them up as a link?

Counties and States not countries. There are plenty vintage domestic homes here to admire. I would prefer to keep this thread limited to US homes.

Even the 3 Car Wide Garage looks awesome for a vintage home. I actually like it.

I just ran across a section of Newport Heights that has homes that face the street with garages in the back that are accessed by an alley.  I ran across this on Redfin but I look forward to driving through the area this weekend to see them in person.  BK - are you familiar with this area?  A few of the homes for sale in this area include the following:

Because of the coastal proximity Newport Heights over the years has been McMansionized and only a small handful of homes retain the original 1920’s charm. A very nice neighborhood and unfortunately fell into the prey of turn key builders. There are still a few noteworthy homes in the neighborhood like the top one and bottom one posted by Chuck. The middle one IMO does not fit this category.

Mediterranean architecture does not have white windows and especially vinyl.

Vinyl window is considered very “WalMart” in the field of architectural specification. It is the cheapest window in the market. It is shameful to see them being used in million $$ homes. Vinyl windows are the top choice replacement windows for my SA homeboys after the bullet hole damage.

bkshopr - 08 October 2009 06:19 PM

Because of the coastal proximity Newport Heights over the years has been McMansionized and only a small handful of homes retain the original 1920’s charm. A very nice neighborhood and unfortunately fell into the prey of turn key builders. There are still a few noteworthy homes in the neighborhood like the top one and bottom one posted by Chuck. The middle one IMO does not fit this category.

Mediterranean architecture does not have white windows and especially vinyl.

Yes, I see what you mean about the middle picture.

The bottom, Tudor style home is a very good picture in my opinion, and I can’t wait to drive by this property (509 San Bernadino Ave.).  In the description on the MLS it says that the house includes “5 masonary fireplaces” as well as this for our 3 car garage fans….. “The garage is spacious and has a Hobby Room that could be converted to accomodate a third car.”

The middle house is riddle with wrong proportions. The entrance wall is recessed and narrow. The designer could have planed out all 3 frontal elements and thus getting rid of the 2 overscaled projections.

The precast entrance surround would then be much more gracious by having adequate wall mass framing it. The front door itself could still be in the recessed position for weather protection and also pick up some 2nd floor footage above the entry.

I really hate the fake juliette balcony treatment over a blank wall just below a window.

Too many design elements forced into too small of a facade space. This is the #1 error of architects lacking design restraint.

Sorry I posted such an ugly/inappropriate home in this forum for classic neighborhoods and homes…I mainly was impressed with the back alley access so I grabbed a few examples.

What do you think of this, for sale on the same street (ok, it is probably a McMansion with vinyl windows, so take it easy on me).  In the description they call this a “classic example of Eastern Seaborard Archtiecture” which sounds like a made up term to me…..

Beautiful home!

This is actually a Southern Colonial originated in the Confederate states. The veranda porch was a key element for the southern heat and high humidity. White windows are very appropriate for the East Coast styles. The windows in this house may not be vinyl due to the compound radii at the door transom. It is really hard to tell from the picture but the clean reflection from the glass is suggesting the muntins are behind the glass.

Thank you for posting pictures of classic homes. I hope with my comments you now can spot the real and the fake.

The house really has good form regardless of the windows being updated. The white window is appropriate for this style.

bkshopr - 07 October 2009 08:03 PM

Old homes have steps up to the front door due to the raised foundation while new home is leveled with the street with one or two steps. The elevated floor is better for privacy and people from outside can’t look in easily.

There are significant disadvantages to a raised foundation.  Mainly, access for the elderly or handicapped (and everybody else for that matter).  A house with no steps whatsoever is worth a premium.  Of course, this means the house has to be single story as well.

Classic home in South Pasadena:

I think this type of house will be looked upon as a “classic”

Also in Glendale:

I think Glendale has tons of beautiful, tasteful mediterraneans.  I also like the hideaways in Topanga Canyon.  Upper Monrovia has some great stuff, as does areas of Los Feliz.