CasaSugar

Su Casa: Four Rooms With a View

CasaSugar — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:00:05 -0800

Sometimes, moving into a smaller space can make your style shine more. When Sugar staffer Nancita and her boyfriend moved from an enormous rent-controlled San Francisco apartment into a more reasonable one-bedroom unit, they were pleasantly surprised at how their downsized digs made every item pop. So let's take a tour, shall we?

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On the Market: Sleep in Edward Cullen's Bedroom

CasaSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:37:06 -0800

All right, Twilight fans, here's your chance to get a little closer to Edward Cullen. The Vancouver residence that the Cullens inhabit in the New Moon film is for sale for $3.3 million through Soprovich Realty.

The five-bedroom, four-bath home is a modernist's dream, with extensive use of glass and post and beam style throughout the soaring, open spaces. The fantastic views of the surrounding Pacific Northwest landscape only add to this home's considerable charm. According to the realtor's listing,

"The Cullen House" as seen in the recent world-wide hit saga - "Twilight: New moon"!! Arthur Erickson's finest and totally renovated in 2001, this award-winning residence is situated on a private 1/2 acre creekside property nestled amongst a gorgeous greenbelt and towering trees. Tastefully remodeled by Brian Hemingway, this home has been transformed into a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, with the finest detail and quality available.

The home features a private studio with koi pond, concrete, slate, wool carpet, and cherry floors, a chef's kitchen, cherry cabinets, granite countertops, 20-foot-high ceilings, an outdoor pool, and a huge media room overlooking a nearby creek. Absolutely gorgeous, for vampires and humans alike.

Take the complete tour when you read more.

This is not the same house used in Twilight. That house was designed by architect Jeff Kovel of Skylab Architecture. For New Moon, the filming was moved to Vancouver, BC, and the Erickson-designed house, which was also featured in the John Cusack film Martian Child, became the Cullen home for the second film in the Twilight saga.

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On the Market: Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates's Restored Revolutionary War Georgian Colonial

CasaSugar — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 09:00:53 -0700

It's always interesting to see how the other side lives but, in many cases, the celebrity homes you see are underwhelming, cookie-cutter LA mansions. As for this restored Revolutionary War Georgian colonial recently listed by Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates, I'd consider it a coveted crib even if one half of history's most successful music duos didn't sleep in it. Beyond its good looks, there's much more of a story behind these digs than the "unparalleled views" and "updated appliances" of those California cribs.The Dutchess County, NY, property, known as Flint Hill, is actually two museum-quality homes that once belonged to Revolutionary War captains, and have since been joined through a beamed living area with a fireplace. The 6,363-square-foot home, four-bedroom, five-and-two-half-bath home has 24 rooms, nine fireplaces, four guesthouses, an indoor pool, and a pergola.

Hall himself took on the project of having these homes painstakingly restored. One was built in 1771, the other in 1780, and they initially sat on different properties. After moving them together, he discovered that by coincidence they were connected to the same family. Now, this architectural tour de force sits on a 245-plus acre estate with 100-mile views of the Catskills, ponds, old apple orchards, stone walls, farm roads, gardens, and a Neolithic firepit. To hear more and see photos, read more.

In fact, Hall has made a habit of restoring and preserving homes, including the John Bray House in Kittery, ME, which is over 345 years old, and a historic house from 1740 on the Thames River in London. Interested in this historic home? It's available through Weichert Realtors for $16 million.
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Coveted Crib: Firehouse No. 44

CasaSugar — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 09:00:24 -0700

Here's something to ignite your envy. San Francisco firehouse Chemical Engine House 44, which was originally built in 1909 (when horses led fire "carriages") and served as a firehouse until 1959, has recently undergone an extensive renovation, transforming the historic structure into a modern masterpiece. The four-bedroom, four-and-two-half-bath home in SF's Noe Valley neighborhood is on the market for $5,175,000. The house includes four floors of living space, an observatory tower, a wine cellar, and a tasting room, all centered around a remarkable industrial spiral staircase and elevator atrium.

Want to hear about the firehouse's décor and designers, and see photos? Prepare to swoon, my friends.

On the Market: San Francisco Multi-Story Mansion

CasaSugar — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Need some space to spread out in San Francisco? Then check out this four-level home in the Pacific Heights neighborhood. The home has already dropped a few million dollars over a few weeks, and is currently offered for $9,995,000. While this is likely way out of most of our buying ranges, it's still fun to window shop.

The Georgian home's exterior features neo-classical ornamentation and a red brick façade. Over the home's four levels you'll find formal living and dining rooms, breakfast and family rooms, five to seven bedrooms, five baths and two half baths, fireplaces, a study, a wine cellar, and in true SF style, a "meditation room" (formally an au pair's quarters). Outside, you can drool over the gorgeous views from the garden roof deck, or dine al fresco on the terrace or near the rose garden. If you're tired of taking the stairs, you can also take the elevator.

This home was designed and built 99 years ago by architect Nathaniel Blaisdell, who designed numerous homes in this neighborhood. It was selected for the 2009 Decorator Showcase, a fundraising event for San Francisco High School, and the photos reflect the different styles of the designers chosen to decorate each room. Tell me which room is your favorite when you read more.

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DIY: Simple Panel Curtains (in Four Hours or Less)

CasaSugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:00:00 -0700

Our living room features large deck doors that look out over the San Francisco Bay - a beautiful view, no doubt, but one that was previously obscured by some boring, less-than-aesthetically-pleasing vertical shades. Intent on making a Spring change, I decided to whip up some simple panel curtains to improve the view both inside and out. I chose a pretty, patterned Amy Butler fabric, which added a textile highlight to the room, and with a few simple but smart techniques, I managed to get these off my ironing board and onto curtain rods in about three hours.

Want to learn how to make these curtains? Then read more.
What You'll Need

2 to 4 panels of fabric (cotton is easy to work with, and seasonally appropriate), cut to the correct window length, plus about 1/3 of a yard extra to allow for shrinkage and seams

Sewing machine

Matching thread

Iron and ironing board

Pins

Scissors

Curtain rods

How to Do It

The first time-saving technique begins before you even step into the fabric store. Measure the length of the window/wall you want your panel to cover. Add 1/3 of a yard to this number. (For instance, if your window/wall is six feet, you want seven feet of fabric cut, and would ask for 2 and 1/3 yards cut.) Now, decide how many panels you need. Two? Four?

At the fabric store, ask (nicely!) the fabric store employee to cut your fabric out in panels, instead of in one long piece. This will save you a lot of time measuring and cutting at home. Just remember to measure very carefully before jotting down your needed lengths.

At home, toss the fabric in the laundry, as it will definitely shrink.

Iron your fabric panels. Look at the long sides of the fabric. The edges are already semi-finished (no raw edges), but the name of the fabric designer, as well as the color stamp, are visible. Iron this edge over, and then sew the sides first with a straight stitch. You won't have to double the edges over, since the edge is semi-finished to start with.

Next, fold over about half an inch of fabric for the bottom hem. Iron this hem over, onto the wrong side (the side with the lighter fabric pattern). Now, fold that hem over and iron it again. This will hide the raw edges. Sew this bottom hem with a straight stitch.

Now, start on the top of the curtain. Fold over about half an inch of fabric onto the wrong side. Iron, then sew. Then, fold the top of the curtain over so there is enough room to slide the curtain rod through. Iron, then sew with a straight stitch.

Your first panel is done! Now, repeat these techniques with the remaining panels. If you're using a pattern like I did, you may want to check to make sure your patterns match on each panel. You can easily do this by pinning the unfinished panel next to the finished (hung) panel, and then adjusting to line up the patterns.

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On the Market: Matthew Perry's Former Pad

CasaSugar — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 11:00:06 -0700

Are you a Friends fan with an eye for modern real estate? Then you're in luck because, according to Big Time, the 8,000-square-foot, four-bedroom, five-bath Beverly Hills former home of Matthew Perry is on the market for $12.5 million.The listing for the property reads:

"Lautner-esque" Modern estate at the end of quiet cul-de-sac in Trousdale. Poliform kitchen opens to family room, which spills out to sizable back yard with large lawn, outdoor cooking & dining, and infinity pool & spa. Sensational city-to-ocean views can also be enjoyed from lavish master suite with Poliform closet and 2-story high living room. State-of-the-art Crestron system controls luxurious, advanced 14-person, tiered screening room, as well as most other automated features of the house.

To hear about Perry's real estate portfolio and see many more photos, read more.

Perry purchased the property in 1999 for $2.9 million, and sold it in 2005 for $6.1 million. This Spring, he purchased a modern three-bedroom in LA for $4.5 million. And this Summer he paid $883,000 for a modest fixer-upper in LA's Studio City. It's clear that Perry is a modern man who loves to shop the market. While this industrial modern estate isn't quite my taste, it's certainly quite dramatic and architecturally stunning. I'd love to spend a weekend there, or even a few months . . . and pretend to be Marcia Brady with a trust fund.

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Justin Timberlake Takes Tribeca

CasaSugar — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:00:58 -0800

Justin Timberlake wasn't kidding around when he said Manhattan is the greatest city in the world. He's such a great admirer of the city that he decided to buy his own little slice of the Big Apple. According to Real Estalker, Timberlake recently purchased a 3,000-square-foot, three-bedroom, three-bath loft home in Tribeca for $4.774 million. The listing for the property reads:

This 3 bedroom, 3 bath room loft home offers gracious entertaining space in the extravagantly oversized living area as well as four exposures, 14 floor-to-ceiling arched windows, fabulous river views and completed with a brand new lighting package and built in Sonos sound system featuring inclusive Lutron technology controlling temperature, lights, sound, shades and more. This Tribeca Condo is adorned with the highest quality finishes and appliances including Wolf cooktop w/ grill and Wolf double wall oven, 48" Sub-Zero fridge and wine cooler, Miele DW, Miele W/D. Truly a unique TriBeCa residence.

JT's new pad sits a block from the Hudson River Park which will soon boast a mini golf course, so you can bet he'll be brushing up on his golf skills - even though he finds the game easy. To see more photos of the digs, read more.

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Five Tips For Increasing the Property Value of Your Home

CasaSugar — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:15:09 -0700

In anticipation of the new TLC series Hope For Your Home, which premieres this Saturday, I thought I'd share with you host Kirsten Kemp Becker's five tips for increasing the value of your property. A veteran Realtor, author and real estate company, and owner of a successful design company, Becker knows a thing or two about acclimating your home to the current economic climate. Here's a few ways she says you can do so yourself:

Plants on the outside. "The most economic way to achieve curb appeal is by refining your landscaping at the front of your house and by making sure the front door is the focal point. Guests, buyers, and appraisers will take notice of the entry experience and homeowners/sellers need to establish that emotional connection from the moment they pull up to your home. Remember the details: trim weeds, fix broken screens, hide the trash cans from view, and plant some fresh flowers in prominent planters."

There's four more where this came from, so read more.

Paint on the inside. "The biggest transformation in the shortest period of time results from paint. It can lighten a room, create an accent wall, and provide flow from one space to another."

"If you can't afford new lighting or higher ceilings try painting a neutral color on the walls and a shade lighter on the ceiling."

"To give a room a focal point or create more drama around one wall, try your hand at some color by painting it a shade of chocolate or charcoal to achieve a designer's touch."

"If you can't afford to remodel the entire house and change your floor plan to make each room transition smoothly, try using the same shade of paint in all the public areas and down hallways - consistency of tone adds a feeling of congruency and openness."

Kitchens and baths. "Invest time and money into updating kitchens and bathrooms, but it doesn't mean ripping it all out and starting over - you can enhance what is already there. Learn to distract buyers' eyes from that which is not perfect by directing them towards areas that have been completely updated. A coat of paint and new hardware on existing cabinets and bathroom vanities can instantly update dated countertops tiles and fixtures. Take it one step further by using epoxy over existing tile or regrout to avoid demolishing and installing new tile, which saves time and money."

Declutter. "Stick with the timeless tried and true paint colors, accessories, and furniture in order to maximize the length of time and enjoyment out of your investment. Paramount to this is how you maintain your home. There is nothing like clutter to bury a home's value. If a professional can't see the space, appreciate the finishes or easily navigate around personal belongings and oversized furniture, they can't appraise it or sell it for top dollar."

Clean, clean, then clean again. "Even if a house has a poor floor plan, limited landscaping, or outdated bathrooms and kitchens, everything looks more valuable when it is well maintained and dust free. Pride of ownership shines through in a house that is clean and well cared for, which translates into higher profits in a sale and more attractive loan options for a refinance."

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This Just In: Richard Gere Puts an Asset on Market

CasaSugar — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 05:30:43 -0700

According to Real Estalker, Richard Gere has put his four-bedroom, four-bath property in the Palazzo Chupi building in New York's West Village on the market for nearly $18 million. You may remember the building, which was designed by Julian Schnabel of directorial fame, from my recent Coveted Crib. Schnabel is said to have "created the apartment to feel like Venice in Manhattan." The listing reads:

Room proportions are grand, ceilings are 12'6"+/- high, light streams in from all directions and there are huge French doors in every room leading to terraces with Hudson River views. A large wood-burning fireplace exists in the living room and there is a covered 66'+/- colonnade running along the entire north side of the apartment. Drama abounds. Amenities include parking, elevator, air conditioning, pool, and 24-hour doorman.

Well, it turns out that Gere isn't much for old Venezia; he purchased the property in September 2007 for only $12 million, and never moved in. He's made few improvements aside from aesthetic changes like changing the color of the kitchen cabinets, so the $6-million markup seems a little absurd. But, it may actually be a steal — Schnabel himself is selling the two other units in the building (there are only five) for $32 million each.

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