IF YOU'D just been graduated from college, and he'd coaxed you into saying "Yes," but there wasn't a house, an apartment, or anything that resembled living quarters available, what would you do? On second consideration, what if there were an old garage in the rear of your parents- in-law's bungalow? Would you tackle the job of dreaming up a home out of a twenty-year-old automobile boudoir, and go at it, tooth and nail?

Connie Benkasser, art major and assistant instructor at U.C.L.A., Los Angeles, looked such a situation over and decided to accept its challenge in spite of the war and rapidly diminishing building materials. She's the enthusiastic, energetic kind of art major who believes in making practical use of her art. Aided by her husband, Stuart Stengel, she planned and created the sparkling indoor and outdoor home illustrated here. It took four years to attain the color and comfort of this attractive home, for in that time the Stengels also added two children to their family.

The Stengels' outlay in cash was $666.66, but the cost in planning, scheming, evolving and searching for outbuilding materials and furnishings could not be measured by a cold, prosaic yardstick like money, any more than one could measure the thrill of making something out of nothing. The supreme satisfaction of having your own furniture and belongings around you are as invaluable as the fun of inviting in your friends to enjoy with you your steadily expanding enterprise as it takes shape.

When Mrs. Stengel took over, the old garage had already acquired an adjoining bath and large clothes closet, and had been used as a maid's room by some former tenant. Mrs. Stengel made the old garage into a living room, the closet into a kitchen, left the bath "as was," and conjured up a bedroom out of one-half of Father Stengel's new double garage. Before the bedroom was well underway, it was necessary to push out the front wall to make room for the nursery, and later it became necessary to push the side wall into the garage to make the nursery still larger.

Living-room walls were panelled in plywood. The old beams were left in place. Roof sheathing was covered with heavy insulation board. At one end of the room, a triangular glass sky window was installed in the roof gable. Beneath this runs a bright red shelf on which red, blue, and yellow Mexican glass pieces echo the dominant colors of the room. Entrance to the living room is through a screened Dutch door, which is an appreciable aid to fresh air and light.

The fireplace is strictly modern. All mortar joints are horizontal and vertical in-a-line, with not a broken joint across the entire face.

"I thought the man who laid the bricks appeared a bit nonplussed when he looked at the fireplace as I wanted it," Mr. Stengel said, "but he was game to the last joint. I've since learned that bricks are usually laid with broken joints for strength in holding themselves together."

Transforming a clothes closet into a kitchen couldn't be anything but a lark. It was doubly so in this instance because the kitchen door is used more often for entrance and exit than the living-room door, so the less the room looked like a kitchen the better.

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source: The American Home Book, 1950

There's something youthful and spring-like in its very simplicity and, as an added feature, its compact plan packs a pleasant surprise. For this is not a one-story house in the true sense but, rather, a split-level design with all the advantages of a two- story house without any long flight of stairs. Since this particular style is indigenous to the Midwest, it seems only natural to discover that our house is located in Northbrook, Illinois, the home of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew H. Dussel. C. E. Blomgren, Jr., both designed and built it.

We're sure you'll share our amazement upon discovering three bedrooms in its compact setup. Monotony of plan has been avoided by placing one of these rooms a short flight of steps above the main floor. This allows a heater room below without resorting to extensive excavation. Naturally in order to contain three bedrooms in such a small house, it was necessary to cut down on other features. You'll no- tice that there's no dining room. However, since the living room is both ample and has plenty of usable wall space, any number of eating areas might well be utilized there. In orienting the house on its narrow lot, the picture window and bedroom. window face the street, allowing plenty of room for the driveway to the garage at the rear of the property.

The exterior is of gray siding with white trim and dark-blue shutters. Perhaps due to its exposed roof framing at the eaves and the wide over- hang of the rust-colored asphalt- shingled roof, the house is most homelike and informal in feeling. Natu- rally the main feature of the living- room is the large view window with its oversized square panes. Walls are painted elephant gray which matches a gray-and-white asphalt tile floor; in fact, soft grays, rose and forest greens have been used throughout this room. At a side window is a dropleaf dining table with Duncan Phyfe side chairs. On the long wall oppo- site the entrance, a love seat upholstered in gay rose-and-gray chintz acts as focal point with hanging plates for wall pattern above. The combination of tradition against a modern background has proved a most happy one and should reassure any doubting Thomases.

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source: The American Home Book

This little house has one priceless ingredient-the priceless know-how of the skilled professional designer. 

We show you the inside first, because that's how all good house plans start-from the inside out. The secret of the feeling of such spaciousness in only about 1100 sq. ft. lies in the open planning of that big area that encompasses living room, dining area, and kitchen. The large fireplace wall suggests the division of these areas-but actually the eye moves freely from end to end of this whopping big 28 1⁄2 ft. spread. There are many plusses in this plan you don't ordinarily find in a house this small. For example, the handsome fireplace, plus the wonderful barbecue grill in the dining area; the ample space for table dining plus the breakfast bar. Note that there's a traditional big bay window at the front-plus a modern glass wall opening onto the terrace at the rear.

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source: The American Home Book

WE DOFF our hat twice to this modern house! First, because we like bright, original ideas and we find here a design that is definitely news. A deep feeling of respect, respect for the large measure of good common sense under its flat tar and gravel roof, moves us to take our hat off once again. For few houses are beset with as many restrictions and regulations at their beginning. Just look at this lot! It's long and narrow, and what's more, is on a corner! Then, again, consider the parade of stately elms diagonally across its middle. Add to these obstacles, the regular property setback laws affecting all suburban property and you see what we mean. Let's now study the solution. A long, narrow house fits the long, narrow lot to a T. The elms continue their march uninterrupted because the floor plan staggered a bit to let them pass. This resulted in two protected outdoor terraces or just two more than the average house can boast. In spite of the lot's exposures, there is privacy in all important rooms. In- door and outdoor living are happily combined by means of floor-to-ceiling steel sash. Redwood and native stone form most of the outside walls, while duali plywood and plaster have been used indoors. 

Because of heavy rain- falls and spongy soil, a basement was omitted and the heater room placed between sleeping quarters and living room. Thus centrally located, few long ducts. are necessary despite the rambling plan to which this house is built. Such traditional materials as novelty siding and native stone have been successfully blended into this particularly pleasing modern exterior.

Let's now enter the house itself and study the well thought-out plan. The small entry is provided with a coat closet and is strategically placed to divide living quarters and sleeping rooms. This is a convenience and guarantees privacy to both portions of the house. While the dining room is a separate unit, there's a feeling of oneness with the ample, well-lighted living room. Note also the ideal location for the fireplace away from traffic to and from the dining room and kitchen, thereby making possible good furniture arrangement possibilities. The Pullman-type kitchen is amply provided with cabinets and working areas. Service between kitchen and dining room is through a breakfast alcove that well might double as a service pantry. Maid's room and bath complete this part of the plan. A series of three bedrooms with two connecting baths are in the other direction from the entry. An attractive, well-lighted corridor connects the three bedrooms.

THE past year has certainly been a red letter one for Millard Sheets, one of America's top ranking water-color artists. First of all, his latest painting received a gold medal at the Pennsylvania Academy show. Then he was selected to make an official water-color account of the activities on the Far Eastern theatre of war. But of greatest interest to us at the present time, his new California home was finally furnished and ready to make its editorial debut. When a first rank artist also happens to include architecture among his abilities-well, then it's time to sit up and take notice. His own house certainly deserves attention. All those familiar with the Sheets palette, will not be surprised at the use of subtle colors both on the exteriors and inside the house. Simplicity is the keynote, emphasizing form and design throughout. Literally mixed from the very earth itself, the pink tones of the outside walls blend gracefully into the surrounding landscape. 

The house, built on a cliff at the edge of a grove of gray olive trees, overlooks on one side the orange groves of Pomona Valley while in the other direction the eye follows the Sierra Madre range as far as Old Baldy.

This feeling of spaciousness starts at the wide gravelled entrance court and into the house between diamond-shaped uprights supporting wide, natural overhangs. Rammed earth covered with a waterproof material forms the basis for most of the house walls. The service yard is surrounded by a wall of rough clay bricks. Garage doors, unnecessary in this climate, have been sensibly left off. From the entry hall, a sunken living room is entered through dramatic oak doors. In fact this wood, rubbed with steel wool and waxed for a warm natural finish, has been utilized most freely throughout the interiors. In looking across the living room, one immediately becomes impressed with the fine line dividing the interior from its sur- rounding landscape. Large areas of glass are the secret and they have been used unsparingly. The polished brick floor continuing onto the terrace further emphasized this effect. Of course, in rambling through a house, one is always on the alert for the unusual. Certainly the ingenuity of the Sheets' planning doesn't let you down here. What could be more satisfactory in the creation of an outdoor atmosphere, than the double glass inset between living and dining areas with it gigantic tropical foliage? The plainness of the fire- place treatment is equally effective. Furnishings were chosen for color comfort as well as physical comfort - natural tones for the most part plus striking colors used occasionally for contrast. Mr. Sheets has a fascination for both "live and fantasy" horses. Everywhere we see evidence of this-Chinese and modern ceramic horses may be found in every room.

The dining room is given an Oriental context by the pattern of a bending pine across the sliding glass panels. This pine was planted when foundations were laid and is further evidence of the artist's far- sightedness. The amber blown glass fish-used as a centerpiece on the table-was made for Mr. Sheets by a Mexico City craftsman.

In the kitchen are examples of Mrs. Sheets' managerial talents. Natural wood cabinets throughout give a clean and functional beauty. Since dad is away a great deal of the time, a dining alcove has been made an integral part of the kitchen setup. A bulletin board over the desk follows his rovings in pictorial and latest news fash- ion. Mrs. Sheets has many kind words to say about the asphalt tile floors which were used in the kitchen, hall and bedrooms. Laid in waterproof cement, they are not only comfortable to walk on, but have proved extremely easy to keep clean.

Built-ins abound in the various bedrooms. Straight sur- faces are a boon to easy housekeeping. A particular feature, dear to the hearts of the owners, is a combination. bookcase and dressing table. It is not only smart looking but extremely practical as well. In fact, the entire house gives the impression of intelligent forethought on the part of the designer and a cooperative reception on the part of the mother and four offspring. The artist's eye has been combined with the architect's ability to grasp the third dimension. Every vista presents a pleasing picture, yet a thoroughly functional one Understatement in the use of detail, makes small amount used much more dramatic.

MANY who yearn for a one-story house, a house that will nestle comfortably into the natural grading of its lot, should gain a good deal of hope and inspiration from this concrete block home. For, while it gives the first impression of being on one level, in reality it is a two-story house which includes in its make-up that requisite of most average-sized families-four bedrooms. Much credit for this optical illusion and compact design goes to the architect, Charles Altfillisch. The floor plans are definitely not stereotyped; a great deal of interest has been added by varying floor levels. An amazing feature of the entire design is that the feeling of a rambling plan has been obtained on a lot of average width. Its exterior is a combination of concrete block and coursed ashlar. Simplified ornament, used as a frieze, does much to "dress up" the front elevation. Through a small entrance hall one enters directly into the well-proportioned living room and workable kitchen. Down a short flight of stairs we find the recreation room. Even larger than the living room, it has a fireplace of its own. A surprising feature of the lower plan is its bedroom-bath suite with three separate means of entrance. The other three bedrooms are reached by means of a short flight of stairs at one end of the living room. A garage and an interestingly-shaped terrace have also been included. There are two terraces, one in front and one in back, the latter with an outdoor fireplace for outdoor eating. All floors are of concrete-the living room carpet-covered, the remaining rooms finished with asphalt tile flooring.

Built on a lot of average width, the Deborah, Iowa home of Mr. and Mrs. Roy E. Carlson has many features only found in houses of much larger size. There's plenty of charm in its white, painted concrete exterior, and ideas aplenty for home planners faced with getting the seemingly impossible under one roof.

WE PRESENT this group of today's American homes-homes our fighting men and women so valiantly defended-with feelings of anticipation and pride. Anticipation -because we feel that somehow these homes represent the end of another epoch in our country's history. Another war is over. Wars always bring changes. What direction these changes will take is anyone's guess-yours or mine. Perhaps the houses reproduced here will offer a key to the enigma.

Our armed forces fought over the face of the globe they strove to preserve a special way of life precious to them and to us. This way of life, of individual freedom, is nowhere better symbolized than in our homes.

America is not a static nation. We cannot stand still. Often, though our progress has been swift, it has not always been wise. Many's the time we've forgotten many of the fundamental truths that were a vital part of our heritage. A nation's home should be a true reflection of its civilization. Our early settlers, hacking their way through the wilderness, building their houses from the green timber about them, realized this. Crudely built though they were, these houses were true expressions of their builders. They were logically planned for protection, their windows small in order to keep the chill wintry winds from penetrating, their chimneys large and centrally located in order that all rooms might receive their share of heat. In all ways, they were the true embodiment of those hardy, pioneering days of our forefathers.

However, as our nation grew and prospered, we became a bit uncertain. The simplicity of the pioneer seemed a bit incongruous to a newly rich country. We hesitated and looked to other lands for the answer. So began the process of gilding the lily. We traveled, searching through countries from which our founders had fled, hoping to acquire "culture" by contact. Our home became bigger and bigger. Ornament, borrowed from other worlds, was hung on every available exposed area. We just couldn't get enough of it. The logical planning of a house meant very little in this scheme of things. We must look genteel at whatever cost. Sad copies of chateaux and castles, manor houses and hunting boxes sprouted up all over the land. We became sorry reflections of the very life our forefathers had suffered to escape.

Fortunately for us, powers were at work which finally brought us out of this false existence and into our proper senses. The de- pression of the nineteen thirties was instrumental to a large degree. It awakened us once more to the value of money. Every dollar must now count. Inefficiency in business is fatal. We began to realize that this can be equally true in the home. We once more turned to our early buildings for guidance. At the same time science was entering the home field, teaching us that no home should become a scene of drudgery. In fact, homes could be made to work for us. Out of this rebirth of native spirit came a new form of house. Fitting as truly into our background as its earlier ancestors, it combined the comforts and pleasure which scientists were able to bring to it. This is the home we bring to you on these pages, a home truly unlike any other to be found on the face of the earth -the modern American home! Because of the vast area covered by this nation, it's always a challenge to answer the question, "What should a real American home look like?" In most cases, the first thing that pops into mind is the early architecture of New England, called either Colonial or Cape Cod. This is logical when one considers that this granddaddy of American houses has spread its progeny o'er the length and breadth of the land. It would be most unfair to assume that this is the only truly American house. Study the ranch houses of Wyoming and our great West, the comfortable brick homes of Virginia, the stone buildings of our Pennsylvania Dutch or even the adobe dwellings of New Mexico. Are they not truly native to this soil? Surely they've played their parts in making up the vast panorama called America. Variety is part of our charm. To be truly American a house should have logic-it should fit into the environment as naturally as the trees and stones about it; its use of native materials should bring out all of their intrinsic beauty -it should not be guilty of borrowed finery.. Plan and appearance of exterior should be in harmony, its mechanics should make household drudgery a forgotten thing. In other words, it must make sense.

Informality is part of our present make-up. Parents are no longer held in awe by growing off- spring. Family responsibilities are now shared by all, giving a greater sense of belonging. Because a nation is the banding together of thousands of homes, ours with its great sense of family unity, is well on its way to greater strength and happiness.

This is the famous Country Clubber the house designed by Levitt & Sons, Inc., as the star of the enormous new Levittown growing up in Bucks County, Pa. We liked it so much that we grabbed off a bunch of blueprints. and we're offering them to you so that you can have a Country Clubber even if you don't live in Bucks County. It's a mighty desirable house and why shouldn't it be, with the wealth of experience behind it? Since 1945, the Levitts have built some $200,000,000 worth of houses for more than 20.000 families, and the Country Clubber embodies everything they have learned about what people want in a home. In Levittown. Pa., ( where they are putting up 16,000 more houses (smaller models as well as this one), the Country Clubber is priced at a bargain $16,990. As a custom-built deal, it would, of course, cost more but it's planned for economy as well as for very good living. It is compact and medium-large (about 1,60o sq. ft. on the ground floor), but a big family could live here in comfort, for in addition to three bedrooms and two baths downstairs, there is space for two more bedrooms and a bath above. The first floor centers on a room called a foyer, but it was made large enough to be a playroom, too, and with its book-shelves and view of the two-way fireplace, it's a pretty fine playroom for adults as well as for youngsters. The living room seems even more spacious than its 29 x 12 ft. because its long wall is all window, and because it forms an L with the foyer and embraces that space as well. This room would be a cinch to furnish, for notice that it's isolated from the rest of the house so you don't have to leave lanes for traffic. A door to the terrace divides it logically into living and dining areas, but you needn't serve all meals here there is plenty of space to dine well in the kitchen, right by the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows which is something. very new in modern kitchens. 

Houses are our business, but it isn't too often that we find so much to talk about all wrapped up in one house. This one really seems to have everything Even the barest outline of its features strikes straight at the heart of what the majority of AMERICAN HOME families tell us they want in a house : first of all, three bedrooms and two bathrooms to take care of a growing family. Everything on one floor, with no tiresome steps to climb. And a dining room is a must but it's nip and tuck with those who want it closely related to the living room. It must be conservative in appearance to fit well in its neighborhood, but it must have many modern features that mark it of today. This house has all that and more. That's why we have made it AMERICAN HOME BLUE-PRINT HOUSE No. 12. Its handsome brick exterior, the big bay window on the front, the wide recessed entrance with double doors and big brass knobs give it a gracious well-to-do look. There's another big bay window on the side that floods the dining room with light, and even a third one in the breakfast area of the kitchen. The breezeway connecting the house with the garage was just made for lazy summer lounging, and there's a well lighted workbench or potting bench inside the two-car garage. A study of the plan reveals even more. The house is keyed to center hall planning. As you step into the entry hall from the front door the house divides itself for study into three areas. To the left, one step down, is the living room and dining room, an unbroken sweep of space almost 40 feet long, from the front to the back of the house. A wonderful area for entertaining or easy family living, with plenty of room for big sofas and chairs. There's a corner built in with cabinets and shelves. Straight ahead, as you enter the house, is a door leading to kitchen-breakfast room, and on through to the breezeway, garage, and terrace at the rear. To your right is a hallway (the second bath opens off it) leading to the three bedrooms. Two of these bedrooms have big corner windows, the third has a large triple-window. There is a partial basement for laundry and heating equipment plenty of room for washing machine, dryer, sinks, and there's a clothes chute to the basement. The house is heated with forced air from a gas-fired furnace. The owners, Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert Meites, have tastefully furnished the house largely with 18th-Century English reproductions against softly colored backgrounds of paint and wallpapers. The architect was Walter H. Sobel of the firm Walter H. Sobel and J. Stewart Stein; the decorator was Charles E. Day of Trend Interiors. 

Living room is sunken one step down from rest of house, measures 17 x 27 feet. Wall-to-wall carpet continues into bay window adding almost 4 feet to length of room. Bay window is almost floor-to-ceiling, is curtained like rest of windows in a twill fabric printed in red and green on white background. Simple fireplace is faced with black marble, has polished brass accessories of contemporary design. Dining room beyond, like living room, is furnished with 18th Century reproductions. 

Here's a good one-story ranch house built by a young contractor, Bruce Tebbe, as his own home. It is a straightforward approach to small-scale living, but what puts this house in a class of its own is the planning and replanning that kept the cost down without sacrificing good taste or comfortable living. It's a pliant plan and the patio has a future that will fit your own, as we'll tell you later on. As it stands, you get two bedrooms and bath, a living room and separate dining room, a kitchen with a breakfast nook, a full-length front porch, and an attractive patio with a fireplace that can be used as an outdoor living room. The house contains 12,500 cubic feet, a lot of space for $10,500. This is the amount the house would have cost a client and is figured without the discounts that are often the good fortune of a man in the building business, such as owner-contractor Tebbe. The extra-curricular features in the house are numerous, but roughly, they are a wood-paneled living-room fireplace wall, solid brass hardware, good wallpapers of documentary design, a bay window 2 1/2 ft. deep that was planned to enlarge a small dining room, cross-ventilation in all rooms, floor furnace with thermostat control, bedroom wardrobes with built-in drawer space, a pullman bathroom lavatory with drawer and cupboard space below, a man-sized, tile-lined shower with adjustable shower head and glass door, an electric bath wall heater, excellent plumbing fixtures, well-designed chrome hardware. Also a bay window fitted with a seat and with a view into the garden to enlarge one bedroom, deep linen storage, and a coat closet off the bedroom hall, door between bedroom hall and living room for privacy and to shut off noise from the rest of the house, an excellent water heater (Mission - 30 gallon), generous kitchen cupboard and drawer space, garbage disposer, corner kitchen windows in space reserved for breakfast table, an abundance of strategically placed electric outlets in every room, an outdoor living room with fire-place that is built at the rear of the house into the U that is formed by he jutting bedroom and service wings. This room has been designed and built with such proper beam strength and roof pitch that at some future time the room may be extended six to eight feet and enclosed. 

All of these particular features are the result of pre-planning but, too, the house has been given a booster shot of cost-free know-how. High bedroom windows are placed on the side next to neighbors, wall space was planned to accommodate specific furniture, kitchen cupboard shelves were built at the correct height for storing glasses, stacked plates, or lower dishes without reckless loss of space between shelves. Drawers are partitioned for silverware and kitchen tools, and a built-in counter for receiving food from the refrigerator is located on the side of the refrigerator next to the door handle. Conveniently locating a built-in counter at the right side of the refrigerator, planning wall space to fit furniture has nothing to do with the cost of a house, but they are features worth their weight in gold. Good taste also costs nothing. A wood-paneled fireplace wall can have a mellow driftwood stain and soft -wax finish at no greater expense than if it had been finished on the orange-fed side with a high gloss. It now has only two bedrooms, but if the outdoor living room is enclosed, the picture will change. The new room can become a sitting-dining room, in which case the present dining room can be turned into either a bedroom or into a den with a couch doubling as the proverbial emergency guest bed. If not that, the new room can be used as a den-sitting room with two built-in couches that will offer even more comfortable sleeping accommodations. This little house has many of the interesting features of a larger house, but is half the work! 

It's a small room, but bay window with garden view contradicts room measurements. Room and bay ceiling painted the blue that travels as an accent throughout house. Pink striped wallpaper. Pink chintz lounge chair, bed canopy, and dust ruffle of barred dimity