Property Crush

This Jaw-Dropping Home Is Designed to Look Like a Whale — Belly and All

published Jul 20, 2023
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Entrance into Santa Barbara whale house.
Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

As a wistful Zillow scroller and writer of this Property Crush column, I have set my eyes on quite a lot of homes. Hundreds. Thousands! And I have never seen a home at all like this one. Deep sea lovers, animal aficionados, and unusual home appreciators: Say hello to “The Whale House.” 

Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

The Details

  • Where: Santa Barbara, California
  • Price: $3,250,000
  • Size: 2,606 square feet
  • Bedrooms: 3
  • Bathrooms: 3.5
Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

Designed by Michael Carmichael and completed in 1978, the whale of a home took three years and a crew of 20 workers to complete. It’s hardly surprising when you take in the cedar shingled exterior that’s sloped and curved to look like a whale’s body. This is a home pretty much devoid of straight lines. When you step through the front doorway, for instance, it’s not a precise rectangle but an archway lined with big, round rocks so it resembles the mouth of the whale. 

Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

Head inside and you’ll find that the curved motif continues throughout the home. A countertop snakes around the kitchen; Venetian plaster walls create a cool, cave-like feel everywhere you roam; and giant, rounded wooden columns and beams stretch across the ceiling and down the walls, calling to mind the impressive presence of a whale. 

Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

Interior shingles along some walls bring to mind a whale’s baleen, porthole-like windows look almost like blowholes, while rocks and wood elements all over help this feat of a dwelling feel at home with its natural surroundings. 

Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

And the half-acre it sits on is a sight to behold, too. Just look at the interior courtyard, designed to call to mind the belly of the whale, which features a bamboo outdoor shower and a partially covered 75-foot lap pool. It’s like a private water resort, if Gaudí designed it, and I, personally have never been more keen to walk right into the mouth of a whale.

Credit: Scott Gibson for Sotheby's International Realty

This Property Crush is listed by Daniel Carpenter of Sotheby’s International Realty – Montecito – Coast Village Road Brokerage.

Are you on the house hunt, or just the type of person who loves browsing real estate listings, even when you’re not in the market for a new home? Property Crush is a column where we feature actual real estate listings that get the Apartment Therapy seal of approval in regards to style (we haven’t done home inspections or anything, so don’t sue us). Know of a great house on the market? Email the listing to repitches@apartmenttherapy.com.