Tag Archives: house

biggest.

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here is the biggest house in Charleston, South Carolina, USA

(in contrast to yesterday’s tiniest house)

The Williams Mansion is the largest private residence in all of Charleston.

Built in 1876 by George W. Williams, the mansion was his contribution to the reemergence of Charleston after the civil war. It took nearly five years to build, employing hundreds of local artisans and craftsmen and is more than 24,000 sq ft containing 35 grand rooms including the grand ballroom and the music room which boasts a 45 ft covered glass skylight. The home also holds 23 period fireplaces, numerous ornate chandeliers and beautiful plaster and wood molding.

It is known as the “Grande Dame” of Charleston’s great homes and was once dubbed “the greatest post civil war home on the eastern seaboard.” After the death of Williams in 1903 the house began to deteriorate and was eventually condemned in 1972. The mansion was eventually rescued by a Charleston native who spent 25 years and nearly five million dollars restoring it to its original grandeur.

‘ah, my friend, one may live in a big house and yet have no comfort.’

-agatha christie

on memory alone.

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Detroit is getting another home renovation series on HGTV and this one promises to tackle the toughest projects in the city.

“Condemned” is scheduled to premiere this summer on the cable network. The show, which will have eight one-hour episodes, will star a father-daughter rehabbing team, property investor Kristyn Patterson and her builder dad, Pancho Patterson, according to HGTV.

“Kristyn and Pancho have a tangible passion for Detroit and the necessary skills, grit and humor to renovate crumbling homes no one else will touch. Our cameras will follow the highs and lows as they grow their family business and prove that no home is too far gone,” stated HGTV head of content Loren Ruch in the announcement.

They will be facing what is being touted as the city’s “most blighted homes.” As the news announcement for the series puts it, the Pattersons “will stop at nothing to rescue The Motor City’s worst houses that are destined for the wrecking ball.”

Along the way, they will encounter financial pressures, people who have moved into the properties without permission, the challenges of a Detroit winter and more, as they set out on their reality-TV mission.

‘this house is standing on memory alone.’

-roberta brown 

 

 

 

source credits: Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, HGTV

start.

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not sure how this all works or fits together

but someone has a vision

 it’s interesting

one thing leading to another

 i’m guessing the project has grown over time and may still be in play.

 

“a building is not something you finish, a building is something you start.”

-stewart brand

returning.

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a return

to

la casita pacifica

my tiny peaceful house.

 

“why do you go away? so that you can come back.

so that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors.

coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”

-terry pratchett

home is where….?

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The investigation is ongoing and more arrests may occur.
What if you came home one night and your house was missing?
Michigan State Police troopers have made an arrest in connection with a cabin that was stolen from a county road in northern Michigan. Police said through tips, several search warrants executed on cellular devices, and interviews, troopers were able to locate the cabin only a few miles away.

The troopers said Jeremy James Knoll became a suspect when the cabin was found on his property. He reportedly attempted to hide the cabin by placing large pieces of sheet metal around it and altering its appearance, but troopers found matching serial numbers inside the stolen cabin.

Knoll was charged with receiving and concealing stolen property and was given a $20,000 bond. The investigation is ongoing and more arrests may occur.

“home is wherever you leave everything you love and never question that it will be there when you return.”

-leo christopher

 

source credits: Dane Kelly, WILX

art houses.

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the wizard house

the purple house with the sun

 

so many stories here

 

“every spirit makes its house,

and we can give a shrewd guess from the house to the inhabitant.”

-ralph waldo emerson

 

 

 

 

images: Ann Arbor, Michigan – Traverse City, Michigan

speed decorating.

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olive the cat not the oil

startled for no reason

(as often happens with both of us)

jumped off the ledge 

 right onto my favorite lamp

 startling both of us

(now for a reason)

I see it as her way

of not so subtly suggesting

a redecorating idea.  

“my personal decorating style is cozy,

romantic and a little rustic, with a sense of whimsy.”

 – k. schlapman

already home.

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when giving a friend my new address

she was surprised 

to discover

that she already was familiar with that address

and she could let herself in

as she already possessed a key. 

she used to care for a little black cat who lived there,

bonnie.

her client happened to be

the woman who sold me my condo

and now 

there is a new little black cat living there,

my olive. 

there must be something about the house 

that needs a little black cat living there

to feel like home

I think they would have liked each other. 

 

“I believe that life is chaotic, a jumble of accidents, ambitions, misconceptions, bold intentions, lazy happenstances, and unintended consequences, yet I also believe that there are connections that illuminate our world, revealing its endless mystery and wonder.”

-david maraniss

 

 

image credit: getdrawings.com

losing your head.

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some of us adapted to the move more easily than others.

 

 

“don’t let the good days get to your head, and don’t let the bad days get to your heart.”

-caroline ghosn

la casita pacifica.

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at last

I’ve moved into my new home

I’m going to call it

la casita pacifica

(the tiny peaceful house)

near the river, the flowers, the woods, the town, the family

“i’m really quite simple. i plant flowers and watch them grow…

I stay at home and watch the river flow.”

-george harrison