A break in the hot weather made for a much more pleasant adventure out and about. I had 8 properties on my list and only made it to 6 because I got stuck at 2 places. One was due to an awesome star sighting that left me totally star struck and the other was because the property was so damn beautiful I didnt want to leave. Theme of the day? I’d have to say wonder-full.

The first two places I hit had the most god awful wallpaper that really had me scratching my head. What was amazing about it was how they had just about the exact same cheesy floral 80’s wallpaper. Nothing remotely kitchy or cool about it. Just down right bad in its pink and purple glory. One place was super run down, while the other was all tricked out with a white leathery daybed with black and white herringbone details and purple bedspread. If the room had had a Go-Gos poster, it totally would have worked. It was like a set, and this I know because I was a set decorator. The houses themselves were nothing notable. Priced on the higher side for what they were, I thought.

I went to a place that was really well located with such high hopes thinking this could be THE place for a client I have been struggling to locate a place for. (It happens)  I have the ability to see the possibilities in places but this one had me thinking “Damn, just tear that thing down” I am always perplexed by really bad additions that have no rhyme or reason. I am even more perplexed by multiple additions on the same place that really have no relationship with the rest of the house. Who designs these things? When adding on to a place, one should always consider flow and its relation to the adjacent spaces. Also, consider the backyard and access to the backyard. Why would you have no access? Living in California is all about that indoor outdoor experience. Put in windows, sliders, anything to let in natural light. It was so bizarre. It always makes me feel slightly depressed. I know there are people who like to live in caves but really…Priced at $995K, this was possibly a decent deal but you’d really have to commit to a do over.

And then...and then...There was that place on Palms Blvd, just off Abbot Kinney. When I say just off Abbot Kinney, I mean really just off Abbot Kinney, like a block away from the Brig, 2 blocks from Gjelina. In the middle of “it all”. Like you could spit on the food trucks that congregate at the parking lot over there. An incredible location and an incredible property on 2 lots. Upon entering the property, I was suddenly transported to a retreat in Bali or Thailand or maybe India, surrounded by lush gardens and statues of hindu deities. Split between 2 highly upgraded vintage homes, this 5 bedroom, 3.5 bath compound is an irreplaceable, well-known and coveted gem in Venice Beach. The larger of the two properties has a orange and white stripped dome adorning its roof and balinese details all over the facade (an inside). The property has various places to sit and enjoy the gardens, places to do such things as yoga, meditate, take a nap, read a book, contemplate why you aren’t at work and are somehow stuck in the beautiful garden. Every room looked out onto something beautiful. The style of it all wasn’t “my” style but I could be very happy there. It really was an escape. Priced at $6.1million, it isn’t a terrible deal for around here. I sold a property not too far away for $6.25m earlier this year. Totally different but also a double lot. The values around here seem to continue to ascend.   

And that star sighting? On the westside, I have seen many stars but this one really had me giggling and gleeful. I was checking out a property on Grandview Ave just across the street from that empty lot that Frank Gehry owns and has owned for at least 15 years and there he was. A single cloud in the sky above him perfected the image. All the way from Radiator Springs, trusted and true, in all his wonderful and delapitated glory, Mater the Towtruck. I was more excited than I probably should have been. I have a “thing” for vintage trucks and this one was fantastic. I was wondering how my kids would feel about being dropped off at school in a 1955ish Chevy Towtruck with a Holmes Wrecker tow package on it. When I told them about my sighting they looked at me cockeyed and said “Mommy, that’s not a star, it’s a truck” Whatever. I was excited, nonetheless.

Wonder full.