General Discussion & Chat: House Pictures, 1 by kbads

kbads wrote:
Ok, now if you are still with me, and hopefully interested in my little oddball..... I am the second owner of this really COOL house, it was built in 1959, the first home in our subdivision, by a dude named Louis Baum. He bought the plans after he saw them in a 1958 Better Homes & Gardens, they were a "5 Star House Plan". Mr. Baum was quite the character, he knew the Delorian family, and actually had one of those Delorian cars! (They were the ones with doors that opened UP from hinges at the top of the door frame, hard to explain!) I found a full file of info on the house, very complete, with original house plans, correspondence with the contractor, and the original cost to build the house. They actually LEFT these papers to be thrown out, along with some other mildewy junk from the basement!

Anyhow, as you can see from the house, he must have appreciated modern design, and there are really no other houses of this type (very California ranch style) in our town of about 17,000. It sat empty in a disputed estate, and I was lucky enough to buy it after it was on the market 3 years. (For $45,000 less than the original price!) Yeah, it needs work, but it has some great features (his and hers side by side bathrooms with SKYLIGHTS!, and even the original electric range with starbursts on the top oven door. Very atomic!

Problem is this: The house was completely overgrown when I bought it, with lots of nasty cedar/juniper type shrubs. They were too close to the house to doze out of there, so I am dealing with stumps for a while. I am hoping to landscape the house according to that CA style, but I am in zone 5! SO, for now, I am just kind of throwing things in to have something other than stumps, growing some tropicals in pots, etc.

If someone wants to do me a HUGE deed, and offer some suggestions as to specific plants to use, or books to read/buy, I would be very grateful. I hate moving, it took me 3 years to sell my last house, and I am planning to have them cart me away to the funeral home directly from this place!

The neighbors put in a 6 ft. privacy fence (thank God!) do now I don't have to look at all of their kids' toys, and I have a new place to put shade plants. Here is what I have done with that fence border in one last pic. I don't have tons of money, just a divorced mom of 2 boys.....Email me if you have any ideas, ok? :)