Table of contents for Summer 2019 in Atomic Ranch

THE 1954 MASTERPIECE SEEN HERE IS AN EXQUISITE MID MOD DESIGN, CALLED A “VISION-AIRE HOME.” What’s a vision-aire home, you may ask? It’s the brainchild of celebrated architect Glenn Q. Johnson, who created about a dozen of the homes, then branded as “Vision-aire.” Now affectionately known as “vision-aire” homes, a few of these airy specimens remain today. You’ll know a vision-aire home by Johnson’s use of raised living areas, which allow the breeze to circulate, as well as the use of abundant windows and generous porches. Johnson also designed the St. Petersburg Beach Library and North Shore Pool, among many other commercial and residential homes in the area. Eileen Bedinghaus, a fan of midcentury design and a realtor, first came across the vision-aire style in 2001, and it was love at…

Inside Scoop! Before & After Dive into the year-long renovation process with before and after photos from the house on page 38. Summer Essentials Patio furniture, travel must-haves, outdoor dining basics—our shopping guides have you covered. Inside an Eichler Want to tour more rooms from the innovative house on page 72? Explore the restored exterior, office space, bedrooms and more! What’s on Your Bookshelf? The books we can’t put down and the ones you’ll want on your coffee table. Cool Stuff…

In the early 1950s, the barrier islands off Sarasota, Florida, offered an ideal setting for seasonal residents to build an affordable second home suitable for holiday weekends and winter retreats. To meet the growing demand, devotees of the Sarasota School of Architecture, the bastion of Sarasota’s modernist movement, crafted simple, horizontal houses that channeled ocean breezes through courtyards and sliding glass doors, and blended with the level seaside landscape. Central to their efforts was the development of Sandy Hook, an area just south of Siesta Key, where architect Mary Rockwell Hook set out to explore the possibilities of modern architectural design. Over the next decade, several of her contemporaries joined in the effort. Paul Rudolph, Ralph Twitchell, Victor Lundy and Edward “Tim” Seibert, among others, collectively populated the area with…

Golden Glow, page 22 Custom cabinetry : Able and Baker Inc., (805) 946-1646 or ableandbakercabinets.com. Backsplash: Modwalls, (877) 439-9734 or modwalls.com. Globe pendant light fixtures: Original to the home. Window: My Window Solutions, (805) 499-9111 or mywindowsolutions.com. Living History, page 28 Cocoon House tours: Sarasota Architectural Foundation, sarasotaarchitecturalfoundation.org. Interior design: Ellen Hanson Designs, (212) 888-8108 or ellenhansondesigns.com. Exterior refurbishment: Ball Construction, (941) 955-7096 or ballconstructionfl.com. Custom living room bench: Wood Street Studio, (941) 915-4668 or woodstreetstudio.com. Front door paint: “Blazer” from Farrow & Ball, (888) 511-1121 or us.farrow-ball.com. Furnishings: FLOYD, floydhome.com. Mattresses: Leesa, leesa.com. Vintage accessories: Braden River Antiques (941) 750-0707; and Canned Ham Vintage, (941) 313-1280. Sea Breeze Renovation, page 38 Sofa, love seat and coffee table: B&B Italia, bebitalia.com. Marble side table: Stephanie Odegard Co. Ltd., (603) 397-2705…

THE 1954 MASTERPIECE SEEN HERE IS AN EXQUISITE MID MOD DESIGN, CALLED A “VISION-AIRE HOME.” What’s a vision-aire home, you may ask? It’s the brainchild of celebrated architect Glenn Q. Johnson, who created about a dozen of the homes, then branded as “Vision-aire.” Now affectionately known as “vision-aire” homes, a few of these airy specimens remain today. You’ll know a vision-aire home by Johnson’s use of raised living areas, which allow the breeze to circulate, as well as the use of abundant windows and generous porches. Johnson also designed the St. Petersburg Beach Library and North Shore Pool, among many other commercial and residential homes in the area. Eileen Bedinghaus, a fan of midcentury design and a realtor, first came across the vision-aire style in 2001, and it was love…

The smooth-glide sliding cabinet doors have no bottom track, eliminating a tough-to-clean area where crumbs can gather. design MUST-HAVES: • Durable, midcentury-style cabinetry that complemented the home’s existing wood paneling. • Integrated lighting in the shelves. • More storage. REAL HOME 101 TYPE OF HOME: 1964 single-story ranch with clerestory windows BUILDER: Joseph Eichler BACKGROUND: The previous owners had replaced the original kitchen cabinetry with contemporary pieces that weren’t aging well and didn’t fit the home’s midcentury aesthetic. COLOR SCHEME: Warm wood tones and bright color pops to complement wood paneling found elsewhere in the home. INNOVATIVE IDEA: The smooth-glide sliding cabinet doors have no bottom track, eliminating a tough-to-clean area where crumbs can gather. Looking to reintroduce that “Eichler feel” into her 1964 Eichler home in Thousand Oaks, California,…

In the aftermath of the World Wars, drastic shifts occurred in the structures that architects designed and the manner in which those structures interacted with their environments. This guiding principle in midcentury design is clearly observable in Sarasota, Florida, where a group of architects, including Paul Rudolph, Ralph Twitchell, Tim Seibert and more, created new structures for a new world. Carl Abbott is a part of the Sarasota School, a term coined by architect Gene Leedy, and he studied under famed architect Paul Rudolph at Yale. From his perspective, the work in Sarasota is a melding of the international, or Bauhaus style, and the organic style. “That’s what the Sarasota School was all about,” says Abbott, “combining the two and making them work with their present environment.” CLIMATE INFORMED The…

For many, treehouses conjure up delightful childhood memories of rope ladders and leafy overhead ceilings. For others, treehouses are more than just afternoon forts. They’re overnight spaces with cozy quarters, fully operational homes or even company headquarters. One of these more elaborate builds, the Urban Treehouse in Berlin, Germany, includes cooking and dining spaces, several terraces and a living room. Jane Field-Lewis explores the surprising midcentury-inspired dwelling in her book The Anatomy of Treehouses: Stylish Hideaways and Retreats. INNOVATIVE ARCHITECTURE The Urban Treehouse may not actually be built in a tree, but that doesn’t stop it from looking like one. Situated in “a 7,000-square-foot garden bordering the forest in the immediate vicinity of two lakes,” the treehouse is surrounded by trees. Plus, Jane adds, it’s lifted off the ground “high…

Architect Paul Rudolph served his country as a ship builder at the Brooklyn Naval Yard during World War II. Soon after the war, in his new role as an associate in Ralph Twitchell’s Sarasota, Florida, design firm, Rudolph was tasked with designing a home that would draw on knowledge he had gained at the shipyard. Built between 1948 and 1951 for a member of Twitchell’s family, the Healy Guest House is located on Siesta Key in Sarasota. It’s known among students and enthusiasts of midcentury design as “The Cocoon House.” UNEXPECTED BEGINNINGS “The roofing material—a plastic, spray-on substance called ‘Cocoon’—was the same material used by the military to store ships mothballed after the war,” explains Ellen Hanson, founder and creative director of New York City-based Ellen Hanson Designs, the firm…

Transform your backyard into an oasis inspired by the bliss of a summer getaway. These two yards, both located in the vacation destination of Palm Springs, California, offer up clever solutions and stylish ideas. CLEAN & SIMPLE Keeping things sleek, designer and homeowner Sally Julien focused on three main features in her backyard design: the pool, patio furniture, and drought-tolerant landscaping. In planning the space, the designers, who also happen to be the homeowners, balanced aesthetic with utility. “We wanted it to be simple and clean and with defined areas,” Sally explains. "We also wanted to be sure it didn’t feel like the entire thing was concrete,” she adds, “so it was important to integrate a planter into the patio area.” At the same time, the yard embraces the comfortable…

A striking example of the marriage between innovation and style, the San Mateo steel-frame Eichler “X-100” was built by the firm Jones & Emmons for Eichler Homes in 1956 as an experiment in home design. Marty Arbunich—publisher of the Eichler Network and CA-Modern magazine—bought the home in 2003 with two partners, who were fellow preservationists. After becoming sole owner in 2013, he began planning a thorough restoration and eventually partnered with interior designer Lucile Glessner to bring the X-100 back to life. FURNISHING REFRESH “I would say the overall goal, while using preservation and restoration as guides, was to bring back the luster and vibrancy to the [living] room that had dimmed over the years,” states Marty. Playing with warm tones, natural materials and metal, Lucile and Marty carefully curated…