mid-century modern home tour ... psst it's an eichler

Okay, okay. Just one more.

I go a little bonkers for Eichlers.

home tour alert! eichler's in san mateo california

I may just hop up to San Mateo, California on May 3-4, 2014 for the Inside Outside Highlands Eichler Home Tour.

All my favorite things: art, decorating, landscaping and Eichlers.

eichler in orange sneak peak: virtually untouched from 1962

Lucky, lucky me. I was invited to a "Sneak Peak" opening party for an Eichler that isn't "quite" on the market yet.

And someone else is going to get really lucky. This beautiful piece of classic Eichler real estate shows signs of being gently loved with the prior owners keeping their power tools in the garage. (Exactly where I think they should be, if you must own any at all.)

pristine eichler on the market in fairhaven orange tract

Orange, California is known for three Eichler housing tracts. I keep an eye on them since I am a bit gaga for Eichler who was a well-known mid-century modern developer.

The pictures from the listing looked suitably colorful and the lines looked right. I decided to pop up the freeway and take a look for myself.

remodel research: trespassing and open houses

Come on. Admit it. Do you skulk around construction sites?

View from an "under construction" lot in a neighborhood near our home a few months back
Balboa Island, CA with Christmas lights

Much to my husband and son's horror, any construction fence ajar is simply seen as an invitation. And I brake for all open houses. Now that I am in full remodel planning mode, my sleuthing has gone into over-drive.

save this eichler, ferndale ave., orange ca

Eichler. Oh how I love an Eicher. I was trolling our local real estate listings, and I found an Eichler that is hard even for a mother to love.

814 E. Ferndale Ave., Orange Ca 92865

What would Eichler himself say to this?  The over grown tree gives you a bit of a clue.

artistic eichler exactingly embellished

Another Eichler for sale in the coveted Orange Fairhaven tract. This one is a real beauty. What I love about it, almost more than the fact it is an Eichler, is the decor. The owners really know their mid-century modern. These pictures are courtesy of EichlerSoCal who holds the listing. Take a step inside ...

You are typically greeted by a rather plain front entry in an Eichler home. Honestly, these homes don't look like much from the outside.

an eichler in orange?

What self-respecting mid-century modern fan doesn't love an Eichler? I have often harbored dreams that our house is an Eichler because whoever designed it certainly ripped off all the elements: the central courtyard, plank ceilings, flat roof, and wood floors.

Looks kind of like an Eichler? See the window strip on the right?
The post and beam construction, the plank ceiling, blah blah, I could show you more.

Alas, I have never gone done to the Newport Beach City Building Department to inspect the original plans to see exactly who the mystery plagiarist is. Maybe I will, when the building department moves to their new Taj Mahal location just down the street.