for sale

  • good deals from Craigslist, 08.08

    A few well-priced deals on Craigslist:

    • secretary / desk in Pensacola FL: $275
    • library table with interesting legs in Austin TX: $150
    • qs oak rocker in Seattle WA: $75
    • attractive desk in Boston MA: $200
    • wood & glass panel interior door in Columbus OH: $40
    • set of 6 side chairs in St. Louis MO: $400
    • long bench in Honokaa HI: $500
    • sideboard with mirror in Minneapolis MN: $350
    • attractive desk in Monmouth OR: $500
    • faux-antiqued large china cabinet in St. Paul MN: $700
    • similar to above in Sacramento CA: $400
    • short armoire in Minneapolis MN: $200
    • display / china cabinet in Sunnyvale CA: $159
    • unique oak armchair in Seattle: $220
    • long & tall bench from salvaged oak in Detroit: $659
    • 300 sq ft salvaged top-nail oak flooring in Portland OR: $350

  • Greene & Greene reproduction dining set: $16,700

    Originally designed for Greene & Greene’s Robinson House (original plans, including drawings for this table), the table this particular item was patterned after resides in Pasadena. However, a duplicate – made by master craftsman Jim Ipekjian (who is responsible for much of the recent repair work at the Blacker House) – is for sale (along with 4 leaves; it seats up to 16, altogether; the price also includes 6 high-backed Mission chairs and 2 armchairs).

    Check out the listing on Craigslist, or contact the seller in Altadena, CA.

  • “ultimate Craftsman” in Manhattan Beach CA: $2,425,000

    A nice bit of 1997 conspicuous consumption: 4100 square feet on a 5400 sf lot, 6 bedrooms & 5 1/2 baths (including a detached guest apartment over the three car garage. Designed by Apollo Guizot (whoever that is – I’ve never heard of him) "after Pasadena’s Gamble House." High-end kitchen, cherry built-ins, large wine cooler; Honduran Mahogany & Indonesian Teak accents, stained-glass windows, the required spa tub for two and large master closet. Unfortunately, it looks a bit thrown-together, as if it were designed by several different architects; the master bath, all white-on-white, is straight out of 1979, while some rooms have a generic character broken up only by pretty light fixtures or built-ins.

    It’s at 560 35th (at Blanche) in Manhattan Beach’s Tree Section; next to Sand Dune Park, and unfortunately just a few blocks away from one of the Southern California’s largest oil refineries (and, on a positive note, the beach).

  • Stickley on Craigslist, West Coast

    A few tidbits to crave:

    • L&JG Stickley daybed; Westwood CA: $4950
    • early Stickley rocker, needs work; Cottage Grove OR: $500
    • contemporary Stickley Morris-style recliner by La-Z-Boy; Redmond WA: $150
    • pair of signed L&JG sidechairs; Seattle WA: $775
    • spindle-sided Morris chair; Los Angeles CA: $3200
    • 12-year-old rocker; Monrovia CA: $350
    • Stickley #706 reproduction drop-front desk, mahogany; San Luis Obispo CA: $2250
    • contemporary Stickley TV cabinet; Mission Viejo CA: $900
    • signed Gustav Stickley #626 round table; Burlingame CA: $2600

  • for sale: 1922 bungalow in Fairfax CA, $1,295,000

    Yes, it’s beautiful. In point of fact, it’s absolutely gorgeous. Nice lawns; great brickwork and interior architecture; a nice kitchen and the landscaping is attractive too. 1800 square feet, 3/2.5. And of course, my inner consumer who always wants, wants, wants – he wants this house.

    But … it’s well over a million dollars. Something its builder, who subscribed to the idea of simple, straightforward living for a price that most people could afford, would shudder at. This house has been reinvented as something so grand and rare that it requires a real estate agent with a Harvard JD to sell it.

    I’m not against rewarding people for their work (or, I guess, for holding onto property until it reaches ridiculous heights of "value"). But it is shocking to see something like this – a perfect example of a populist architecture, something built to last but also to be affordable, selling for a price that less than 1/4 of 1% of the population can ever hope to pay. An entire middle-class movement made precious by collectors, to the point that none of the people such homes were imagined to be for could possibly even participate.

  • stuff I like: Stiletto titanium clawbar, $70

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    I’m not so good at building things (at least not if you want them to work or look decent), but I’m your guy for demolition. This might be why my 40-lb tool bag consists of sledges, wedges, hammers and prybars.

    Here’s a new tool I’m going to need: Stiletto’s titanium clawbar is five times stronger than steel, and it’s the young handsome King Arthur to your unpullable nail (not like the jealous old Sean Connery version). There ain’t nothing it can’t pull, pry, or generally smash. It’s also light enough to keep my toolbag liftable – maybe I can replace a few heavier items with it.

  • selected homes for sale

    June brings several new listings to the few dozen I’ve been tracking for the last month or two; now is certainly a good time to buy. Of course, the biggest savings are to be found in the $1 million plus homes, many of whom are priced at half or two-thirds of what they would have been five years ago.

    for the too-rich

    • pristine, well-maintained and absolutely beautiful 4/2 bungalow in Portland OR: $699,950
    • gorgeously landscaped 2/1.5 historic bungalow in San Diego CA: 689,000
    • pretty Craftsman on a 10,000 sq ft lot, especially attractive conservation-landscaped grounds; original built-ins; 3/2 in Pasadena CA: $780,000
    • interesting 1908 fieldstone cottage, 4/2 in 1765 sq ft, in Pasadena CA: $834,450
    • 4 / 3 in a 1915, 3145 sq ft bungalow with some interesting features in Seattle WA: $850,000
    • amazing cabin/superbungalow, new construction, 3/2.5, great light in Seattle WA: $1,049,000
    • some markets refuse to drop, though: witness this 2/1, 1237 sq ft pretty but modest Mission Revival bungalow in Berkeley CA: $725,000
    • and the award for riduclousness goes to Palo Alto, California, where this pretty and relatively simple 3/2, 2130 sqt ft Mission Revival home is going for $2,195,000

    for the comfortable

    • a representative highwater stucco bungalow in Sacramento CA, 3/2, in a terrific neighborhood: $449,000
    • an attractive wide 4/2.5 bungalow with many updates in Hendersonville NC: $429,900
    • gorgeous but small 1200 sq ft, 2/1 1911 brown-shingle bungalow in Portland OR: $374,900
    • 1949 brick Tudor/Edwardian/Craftsman attractive mishmash, 4/2 in 2200 sq ft in Rochester MI: $324,900

    for the rest of us working people

    • beautiful 3/2 1932 Craftsman with some well-maintained original interior features in Ansonia CT: $259,900
    • accurately-restored 1926 bunaglow, 3/2 in Phoenix AZ: $249,000
    • a very attractive and huge 3/2, 6750 sq ft 1920 bungalow in Tampa FL: $239,000
    • modest but well-maintained 1925, 1800 sq ft bungalow in Memphis TN: $190,000
    • pretty 1930 3/1.5 bungalow with attractive yards & new kitchen in Caribou ME: $139900

  • Stickley on Craigslist: June 2, 2008

    As usual, I’ve tried to edit out everything that is not authentic – shame on all the folks who try to hoodwink (or simply get more traffic) by disengenously labeling anything vaguely Mission as "Stickley style" or "Stickley era."

    • single Stickley spindle-backed armchair, $250: Minneapolis MN
    • cherry Stickley etagere / open bookcase, $750: San Diego CA
    • 2002 Stickley slat-sided, shelf-armed cherry & red leather settle, $2500: San Diego CA
    • 2006 Stickley spindle-backed dark wood settee, $700: Manhattan NY
    • "Quaint Furniture" slat-back settle / bench, $9000: Chicago IL
    • Stickley A&C / Deco daybed, $700: Manhattan NY
    • two beautiful Stickley tables – the Commemorative Library Table (#89-0407) and Cocktail Table (#89-0411), $2650 for both (an excellent deal; these retail for a combined $6300): Philadelphia PA
    • Stickley single-door bookcase (#89-633R-32), $1200: Boston MA