The Modest Mansion

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This Sunny Yellow California Bungalow has been Updated – Just Enough

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East-coasters used to seeing Bungalows in the inner-ring suburbs might think this kind of house is a cold-climate exclusive. But no, the Bungalow movement began out west, where thousands of homes like this sunny yellow California Bungalow still delight homeowners every day. A front porch - big enough to sit on and enjoy the view - is one of the classic elements of a … [Read more...]

A Nicely Done Mid Century Modern Home Remodel in Portland Oregon

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My family lived in Portland, Oregon for a few years when I was very young, but I remember enough of it to know what a great place it is for outdoor activities. Portland also has great housing stock, including this really nice mid century modern home remodel. Not everyone's a fan of mid century style - this one falls into the category of California Contemporary, but it's … [Read more...]

Simple Clean Details in a Contemporary Lake Cottage Home

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Architects in the Great Lake states have thousands of miles of clear-water shorelines to inspire their designs for weekend getaway homes, and they often come up with inspiring interpretations of the classic contemporary lake cottage home.  This one, designed by A&H Architecture, is on a small island at the far western end of Lake Superior. They've taken a simple … [Read more...]

A Little Carmel California Beach Cottage with an All-White Interior

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Some Architects dream about working in a place like Carmel, California - Eric Miller Architects of Monterey is doing it. They're the Architects behind this first-class California Beach Cottage. Ok, "cottage" is a bit of an understatement - it's one the nicest "cottages" we've ever seen - but it's not very big, and that's one of things that make it a cottage in our … [Read more...]

Wonderful Marsh and Water Views from the Wrap Around Porch On This Low Country Custom Home

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With summer not too far away, we're looking forward to cool drinks on a shady porch - and if we could do that here, we would! This custom home is on James Island, just outside of Charleston, SC, and sits on a property surrounded by marshland. In the tradition of low country homes, it's set up high on brick pillars with a beautiful wrap around porch! This would be … [Read more...]

Rocky River Updated Dutch Center Hall Colonial Full of Original Charm

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Rocky River is a beautiful old suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, right up against Lake Erie. It's a very familiar place to us - close to where Karen grew up, and where a few of the custom homes I've designed are built. It's a small city of 20,000 people and it's filled with hundreds of classic early 20th-century homes like this updated Dutch center hall Colonial.  We saw this come … [Read more...]

A Pretty Yellow New England Farmhouse

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This isn't the first time we've featured Whitten Architects of Portland, Maine on The Modest Mansion. They're masters of Traditional residential architecture, and this pretty yellow New England farmhouse is proof. What a great idea to shoot pictures of this house with a heavy snowfall surrounding it - somehow it makes the house seem even more warm and … [Read more...]

An Updated Colonial Revival Home (no, it’s not a Victorian) in Minneapolis

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This handsome home in Minneapolis is the kind of house that a lot of people might call "Victorian" because of the multi-color paint scheme and steep center gable. But it's not - it's another example of the wide variety of Colonial Revival style, America's most popular house style. There are a number of clues that suggest this is an updated Colonial Revival home - the first … [Read more...]