To take full advantage of a far view of rolling hills, this jaunty little house was built 8 feet up in the air; and to tie it solidly to the ground, carport walls were built of native fieldstone, like the old dry stone walls of surrounding countryside. Glass window-walls open living room to view on two sides; and a broad sun-deck extends beyond, on south side. Roof has top surface of white gravel to reflect heat of sun's rays, and broad overhangs to shade house from high summer sun; surrounding trees also keep house cool. Walls are mahogany, stained natural.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | July 1955

Here is a completely unconventional house, the only one of its kind, but it solves problems common to most families. It was built as an experimental house by California designer Cliff May, and it has passed the crucial test of family life. Mr. May and his wife and three young children have lived in it for a year, and found the experience exhilarating and comfortable. It has no fixed floor plan, rooms can be arranged and rearranged as easily as the living room furniture. It has a skylight that opens automatically when the weather is warm and closes when it is cold. What Mr. May originally set out to do was to build a better house at a lower cost than ever before. To cut labor costs to a minimum, he practically did away with interior partitions. The house is actually one big room (1,600 square feet), with only the kitchen and two bathrooms partitioned off. The other inside walls are 7'-high storage cabinets on rollers which can be arranged to make as many or as big rooms as are needed at any given time: for example, an extra bedroom when a new baby arrives, or one less bedroom when a son or daughter goes off to college. As shown here, the May family has divided it into three bedrooms, a dining-family room, and a big living room that opens to a concrete-paved living terrace. Natural daylighting, the other big idea in this little house, comes in through a 22' x 8' skylight in the center of the roof. Its sliding glass panels are controlled by a thermostat; they close when the temperature drops, open when it rises; and canvas skyshades can be drawn across for protection against hot mid-day sun. But California weather permits the skylight to be open much of the time. As a result, the dining-family room below it is also a kind of indoor garden where a variety of plants flourish, and the whole house is bathed in daylight, moonlight and good fresh air. The only man-made glamour touch is spotlighting in the trees that tower above the skylight; any night, you can look up and see bright light filtering down through the branches.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | May 1955

This house is as pretty outside as it is inside, a happy state of affairs that comes as a result of careful attention to details. Its owners, Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Winter, first chose a wooded plot just under an acre, in Lake Forest, Illinois, and then worked out, with their archi- tect, a plan that would suit them both now and in the future. Outside, it is shrimp-pink brick, with blue-gray doors and shutters, and white wrought iron trim, and looks larger than it is because the garage ex- tends it in an L. Inside it has 2,425 square feet of space, without the second floor; there, two bedrooms and bath will be finished later.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | March 1953

Today, life in the average household with young children revolves around the kitchen. So the logical place for the kitchen is right in the center of the house. An outstanding example of this kind of planning is shown here: the kitchen is a center island between living room and family room. It is closed off from the living room, but opens to the family room over a table-height snack bar which can double for children's projects in- volving crayons and modeling clay. Besides this ingenious arrangement, the house has several other good ideas worth studying. The carport doubles as a covered entrance walk. There is a big storage room at the back of the carport to supplement closets inside the house. (This is less costly to build than such storage space inside the house.) The house is planned so that children can go in and out of their own rooms through the family room. (They can also be persuaded to make a habit of washing their hands, since a lavatory opens off it.) At $16,950 with air conditioning (or $16.260 without), this is a bargain house for in- formal living. It is one of a group of houses planned for young families, and built in Merrifield. Virginia, a suburban development near Washington, D. C. This new kind of real estate development leaves the trees standing. Lots are big enough (half-acre) to enjoy privacy outdoors. This gives each family the feeling that its home is not con- fined within the four walls of the house.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | September 1954

Unlike the ready-built house, which must be planned to suit the average family (and average needs), the custom-built house sums up the tastes and particular way of living of its owners. This one, which belongs to Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Ledder Jr., of Lake Forest, Illinois, is a good example of a house built to the specifications of the owners.

The Ledders are interested in traditional architecture. This can be readily seen on all sides of their one-story Georgian house. It is shrimp brick, set off by a slate blue door and white trim. The approach is through a delightfully landscaped garden and bluestone-paved terrace designed around a pair of stone statues. The recessed, double front door has traditional paneling, Colonial hardware. On either side of it are large floor-to- ceiling bay windows. At the rear, a screened porch is enhanced by New Orleans iron work. Inside, this house has what few small houses have today: i.e., a separate dining room, which is what the Ledders specified. Also planned as part of the house is the screened porch, strategically placed so it can be reached directly from both kitchen and living room. It is used for buffet suppers and cocktail parties in warm weather. The final result is a house easy to run with only part-time help, but which at the same time lends itself to large-scale entertaining.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | September 1954

In suburban St. Louis, on the two broad terraces that double the size of this small house, summer is a season that lasts eight months. The house, which belongs to Mr. William A. Bernoudy, shows how nature can be prodded to bestow southern California favors on the mid-west. It also shows how a compact plan and easy-upkeep materials (cork and tile floors, for example) make for carefree living. The combination leaves the owner with no doubts about where he wants to spend the summer: at home.

Since Mr. Bernoudy planned the house just for himself and his mother, it is smaller than many a vacation house, with only a living-dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms and two baths, plus the brick-paved terraces. These terraces follow the sun and the seasons. The south terrace is always sunny, always protected from the north winds, and can be used even in early spring and late fall. (It seems a part of the living room, is divided from it only by floor-to-ceiling glass doors which catch the prevailing summer breezes.) The west terrace is shielded from sun and showers by a 12-foot cantilevered roof, and is a pleasant spot for buffet lunches during the hot summer months. Besides the terraces for outdoor living and entertaining, there is an extra delight and final reason for spending summer at home: a small decorative pool for frequent dips.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | June 1954