apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

That bottom photo is really badly lit. Fire that photographer!

Where can I find that hassock/ottoman/pouffe in the last picture?

Great lamp up above! If the owners see this, can I ask who the designer/manufacturer is and where you got it?

i think the source for the lamp and ottoman is mentioned in the LA Times photo captions - Urban Outfitters.

I can see what they wanted to do on LA Times, more of a poetic approach. Still, the photos on AT are so warm, inviting and comprehensive!

This house is perfect. I have a question - are those concrete floors and if so, it looks like a skim coat has been put over ceramic tile. I have been dying to try this. Owners, please, is this what you did?

while the owners will hopefully chime in, the floors are concrete -- the original slab stripped and polished. the lines you see are the residual pattern left by the original VAT tiles and mastic (and seepage of water, cleaners, schmutz, etc over the years through the cracks in the tile... which stains the concrete). it's worse in some areas than other, of course. ironically, the floor is not "perfect" and as a slab (as opposed to a finished floor) as has lots of cracks and chips that give it a bit of a rough character. many eichler owners have chosen this route after removing the original tiles. it works best, obviously if the slab is in decent shape (no later repairs to radiant heat, no major cracks or crumbling). save risks of the slab cracking more later, it's not a bad finished floor if done correctly. the biggest risks come with sealing and using an appropriate sealer and waiting for the slab to dry thoroughly after prep. my neighbor had troubles with the latter and had to re-strip their newly stripped and sealed floor and start over.

here's a bit from the original article: The second big project was tearing up the original 10" linoleum squares that all the homes were outfitted with, and uncovered concrete slab underneath.This was a big undertaking but the benefits outweighed the cost and labor involved. The concrete was sanded down, and a coating of sheen was applied and it now looks like glass (on a good day without feet and paw prints).

Nice - yes. Orignal - No. A lot of changes have been made to call this an "original Eichler". Floors, awning, windows to name a few.

Where did the lit wall chandelier come from? I looked on urban outfitters web site and didn't see it.

I would say it's not totally original, but probably was when initially bought, however, I do think the updates are well in line with the house's original design and most, if not all details have been retained, something not always true in many of them.

That said, I love how she retained the original kitchen casegoods and just cleaned and repainted them and updated the appliances. If the windows had been replaced (most likely) they don't look too much like newer insulated glass windows since the frames don't looks too bulky like so many of them do.

Otherwise, love how she did the space

michael: here's a link to a more original specemin... cindy and harvey's house is indeed nice, but you're correct, the word "original" is often overused.

Thanks redneckmodern for all the great info on the concrete floors.

thanks for all the kind words. we have worked very hard to bring this house back to it's former glory. i'm not clear what the comments about our house not being in near original condition are based on. we were fortunate to buy from the estate of an original owner who loved and cherished her home and while the upkeep slipped as she grew older, she never did a remodel aside from replacing a few lighting fixtures(which she saved so we could reinstall). the kitchen is original, aside from the color we added to the cabinet sliders. the mahogany wood paneling is original. the ceilings have their original stain. our bathrooms still have original tile and cabinets. although retiling the shower and bath is high on our to-do list. we rebuilt the fireplace which had collapsed in the '71 earthquake and had never been rebuilt. we based the new fireplace on original blueprints, photos, and our neighbors original fireplace. while not exact, it maintains the form and spirit of the original, while producing more efficient heating than the original. one thing that is not original, but will be returned to original is the glass in the partition between the atrium and the carport. at some point it was replaced with a plastic substitute which has the same frosted effect but is not the original mistlite glass.

we have been in many of our neighbors homes and i have to say that i have not seen a single one that has more original elements than ours. i don't know what windows michael thinks were replaced or why. he may have been looking at a section of one of the sliding doors and presumed the windows had been replaced. our large windows have the water stains to prove their pedigree. one day we will replace the glass with new tempered glass, but as of now they are the originals. and i don't know what awning he is speaking of. we don't have an awning anywhere on our house. and if removing vct tiles and refinishing the floor makes a home less original, so be it. i suppose a purist could come in later and just lay down tiles if they wanted.

the cement floors were ground down to remove the mastic and sealed with a clear glossy finish. there is a grid pattern that comes up through the cement from moisture over the years. so it actually comes from below rather than from above as redneck stated. we like the look of the shadow grid it makes. without furniture, it was a bit overwhelming, but with furniture and rugs it becomes much more subtle. luckily we were able to do the floors before we moved in.

i think it is important to keep in mind that there are many small variations between these homes as to when they were built. even in the same developments. i was in another very original double gable design in our neighborhood, and i was surprised by the many small differences that evolved over the couple of years between when hers was built and when ours was built. some people think that these homes were all built exactly the same, using the same materials. i have found that to not be true.

i would love to correct any other misconceptions about what may or may not be original in our home. we are not purists so much as appreciators. why fix what isn't broken. although, many modern changes can be made and still retain the integrity of a home, we chose to keep the original elements and live in the house for a few years before doing anything drastic. kitchens and baths are important, but to try to force change for the sake of updating is a mistake, especially if the original is completely functional. once it gone, it is difficult to impossible to go back.

the chandelier lightbox is from onestopmodern.com

We just last weekend removed carpet, vct tiles & mastic from our concrete floors to reveal this same grid pattern. I am so happy to find your place and see my vision made real . . . thanks for the inspiration!