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O-14 Tower by Reiser + Umemoto

O-14, a 22-story tall commercial tower perched on a two-story podium, broke ground in February 2007, and comprises over 300,000 square feet of office space for the Dubai Business Bay. O-14 is located along the extension of Dubai Creek, occupying a prominent location on the waterfront esplanade. With O-14, the office tower typology has been turned inside out structure and skin have flipped to offer a new economy of tectonics and of space.

The concrete shell of O-14 provides an efficient structural exoskeleton that frees the core from the burden of lateral forces and creates highly efficient, column-free open spaces in the buildings interior. The exoskeleton of O-14 becomes the primary vertical and lateral structure for the building, allowing the column-free office slabs to span between it and the minimal core. By moving the lateral bracing for the building to the perimeter, the core, which is traditionally enlarged to receive lateral loading in most curtain wall office towers, can be minimized for only vertical loading, utilities, and transportation. Additionally, the typical curtain-wall tower configuration results in floor plates that must be thickened to carry lateral loads to the core, yet in O-14 these can be minimized to only respond to span and vibration. Consequently, the future tenants can arrange the flexible floor space according to their individual needs.

The main shell is organized as a diagrid, the efficiency of which is wed to a system of continuous variation of openings, always maintaining a minimum structural member, adding material locally where necessary and taking away where possible. This efficiency and modulation enables the shell to create a wide range of atmospheric and visual effects in the structure without changing the basic structural form, allowing for systematic analysis and construction. As a result, the pattern design is a combination of a capillary branching field, gradients of vertical articulation, opacity, environmental effects, a structural field, and a turbulence field.

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Visit the Reiser + Umemoto website – here.

Photography by Imre Solt, Reiser + Umemoto, and Sebastian Opitz

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Every Monday I feature the sets from some of our favorite movies and TV shows. During the month of March I thought it would be fun to focus on four sitcoms that have memorable houses in them, starting with the charming old inn from “Newhart.”

The comedy ran on CBS from 1982-1990, fueling my fantasies of moving to Vermont and running a B&B someday while writing books in my spare time, just like Dick Loudon (Newhart) did.

In fact, when I was on vacation in Vermont back in the ’90s, I was determined to track down the real inn that the Stratford was based on. It’s called the Waybury Inn, in Middlebury. Here’s the photo I snapped of it from the car window:

The inn had been repainted tan with green shutters by the time I saw it, and I was disappointed that it didn’t look the same, but it was still a thrill to see the real thing. The Waybury has been a fixture of Middlebury for over 200 years, having begun as a boarding house and tavern serving stagecoach passengers at the gap in the Green Mountains.

In the pilot episode of the sitcom, Dick and Joanna Loudon walk into the empty inn with a real estate agent and decide to buy it on the spot.

In the beginning, the show was videotaped, so the picture quality of those episodes isn’t great. They switched to film later in its run.

Tom Poston played handyman George Utley. In real life, Poston was married to Suzanne Pleshette, Newhart’s wife in “The Bob Newhart Show.”

The Front Desk:

Dick’s Office, where he writes his how-to books:

He later became the host of a TV show called “Vermont Today,” and Peter Scolari played his yuppie producer. Julia Duffy was cast as the new maid, and Peter Scolari was her love interest.

The Dining Room:

I was always hoping they’d show us the kitchen, but as far as I know, they never did. Does anyone remember seeing it?

This is a terrible picture of Mary Frann, who played Dick’s wife Joanna, but it provided a rare glimpse of that wall behind her:

Joanna had fallen through the ice in the pond, so they lead her upstairs to her room:

The Loudon’s (Very Blue) Bedroom:

The Inn at Night:

Here’s how the Waybury Inn looks today (source):

You can learn more about the Waybury Inn’s history and see the rooms they have available (with names like “The Robert Frost Suite”) on their website. There are all kinds of interesting facts, like how the local paper mentioned that it had “an attached bowling alley” back in 1866!

You can watch the famous series finale here, in which Dick wakes up next to Suzanne Pleshette, his wife from “The Bob Newhart Show,” and realizes it was all a dream.

He tells her, “Nothing made sense in this place. The maid was an heiress. Her husband talked in alliterations. The handymen kept missing the point of things. Then there were these three woodsmen, but only one of them talked!”

More Sitcom Sets Coming Soon: Cougar Town, Modern Family, and Mad About You!

Click Here to See All of the TV Shows I’ve Featured So Far. Did Your Favorites Make the List?

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Description from Mim Design:

This project distinguishes between old and new with a clean, timeless interior renovation melding with a classic Victorian character.

The Victorian features throughout the home have been simplified to a clean, fresh palette whilst maintaining all of the existing elements.
The requirements of a modern family home are demonstrated through the simple extended height and open feel of the renovation.

The interior furnishings work in conjunction with the space to create an elegant, timeless, fresh feel.

Visit the Mim Design website – here.

Photography by Peter Clarke

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Johnny Depp & Vanessa Paradis Reportedly Plunk Down Millions for a 17th-century Palazzo in Venice as a Holiday Retreat: Daily Mail.

A Former Artist’s Studio Becomes a Great Space for Entertaining: Lookiloos.

How to Make Your Own Terrarium: Design Tree.

Ever Wanted to Live in a Cave? Here’s Your Chance! Cave Palace Ranch For Sale.

A Kid-Friendly Loft in Chinatown: CalFinder Blog.

A Bright and Colorful Bed & Breakfast in the Netherlands: Shelter Pop.

How to Pretty Up Your Plain-Jane Walk-In Closet: Centsational Girl.

Or Dress Up Your Once-Cluttered Coat Closet: CasaSugar.

They surprised the world with the announcement that they have a new baby girl (Faith Margaret), which may be why so many of you were searching for pics of their house this week: Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban’s House.

Build Your Own Farmhouse with Wraparound Porch: The Plan Collection.

Have a Wonderful Weekend, Everybody!

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The River Road House by Hughes Umbanhowar Architects

When morning breaks in the small residential community of Sewalls Point, the house is cloaked in light that is reflected and refracted from the faceted Mahogany framed windows of this regal residence. Home for a young family, the structure is reverent in its embrace of the outdoors, both the two-acre waterfront lot it occupies and the landscape beyond. Ensconced in the hillside which overlooks the water, the structure is a series of expansive and intimate courtyards and cantilevered decks, which architectonically echo the diaphanous volumes of the interior, spaces which seem to defy gravity, even while embracing the solidity of Italian limestone and stucco facades. Views to the southwest encompass the dynamic activity of the marina in an inland waterway and track the movements of sun, wind and water.

The 12,300-square foot house, completed in 2008, is a complex composition, reminiscent of the canvases of Georges Braque, in which geometric forms appear and disappear in a constant dance of illusion and materiality. The house comprises a series of distinct, yet interlocking rectilinear volumes conjoined by a transparent longitudinal axis. Positive volumes are balanced atop negative creating a heightened tension and intrigue. A glass-skinned throughway connects and distinguishes the two dominant volumes, or towers, capturing light and adding to the sense of interior capaciousness. Exterior glass, limestone, stucco and mahogany outline, augment and anchor what otherwise might be a cacophony of disparate forms.

Whether allegro, andante or largo, the varied rhythms of the internal structure are adroitly composed. Denizens move with leisure or efficiency, depending on need and mood. Interior spaces are carefully orchestrated to conceal and reveal dramatic views to the water. Surprise and delight are amplified by skillful interior and exterior framing. In the same way, the arrangement of program and use moves inhabitants through a logical gradient from public to private space, from activity to slumber, from conviviality to introspection. At either end of the longitudinal axis that connects the two domestic partitions, separate stairways enhance circulation and provide discrete access to the three-storied parapets.

The gracious interior is highlighted by the use of Mahogany, Minnesota Limestone, and plaster finishes. Afternoon sun is mitigated by aluminum louvers and astute structural arrangement. The bulthaup kitchen is enhanced by a sliding window wall which opens to an exterior courtyard, further collapsing the distinction between exterior and interior space, and thereby underscoring the sense of spontaneous yet calculated arrangement.

Visit the Hughes Umbanhowar Architects website – here.

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These were the 10 Most Popular Celebrity Houses on my blog in 2010. Click the links to see any you missed. Did your favorite make the list?

#10. Gwyneth Paltrow’s Tribeca Penthouse:

#9. Alan Jackson’s “Sweetbriar:”

#8. Nick Lachey & Jessica Simpson’s “Newlyweds” Love Nest:

#7. Sheryl Crow’s Cross Creek Farm in Tennessee:

#6. Marilyn Monroe’s Brentwood House:

#5. Elizabeth Edwards’ Home in Chapel Hill:

#4. Larry Hagman’s “Heaven:”

#3. Meg Ryan’s Spanish-Style Home in Bel Air:

#2. Halle Berry’s Beverly Hills Hideaway:

#1. Sandra Bullock’s New Orleans Victorian:

You can see all of the Celebrity Houses HERE. Do you have a favorite? I loved this celeb’s vacation cottage, even though it didn’t make the list!

P.S. Check out the Top 10 Celebrity Houses of 2009!

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Description from Paul McClelland:

This love seat is made from hot rolled steel round bar. It’s been hand forged and welded. The fittings are machined steel and stainless steel with rubber bushings.

It’s one of those items that really should be used in order to understand how it feels.
The cold molded plywood seat and back change position as you move around the chair because of the rubber bushings.

Two people fit on it easily and comfortably.

The steel has a clear gloss lacquer finish and the plywood has clear satin lacquer finish.

Visit Paul McClelland’s website – here.

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One of the first movies I featured on my blog, back in 2008, was The Holiday, starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, and several really great houses. But that was before I had learned how to lighten photos from movies that were too dark, or get the ones I really wanted by taking screenshots.

So I’m calling a do-over. I’m featuring the movie sets again but with more–and better!–photos for you this time.

Today I’m featuring Iris’s cottage. Next Monday I’ll feature Amanda’s contemporary home in California. Oh, and I already updated my post about Graham’s house, which you can see here (I replaced all the dark and fuzzy photos with clearer, lighter ones–makes it easier to ooh and ahh over the fairytale tent in the girls’ room now!).

This is the ad that Cameron Diaz’s character Amanda sees online for the cottage. It’s part of a “house swapping” program, where you stay free at someone else’s place while they’re at yours.

The Entry:

Living Room:

In this photo, the mantel seems to be decorated for summer:

And here you can see it decorated for Christmas:

The Kitchen:

Lovely stills of the sets courtesy Columbia Pictures. They’re wonderful because they show us details in the rooms that weren’t shown in the movie itself, like the raised beamed ceilings in the bedroom.

Looking from the Kitchen into the Book-Lined Library:

This may be my favorite room in the entire cottage, but we see very little of it in the movie:

Iris’s Bedroom:

From this angle, we can see that the stairs lead straight up to the bedroom and are open to it:

It was written and directed by Nancy Meyers, who always delivers sets that we can drool over. Thanks to her movies, we also have the memorable houses from Baby Boom, It’s Complicated, and Something’s Gotta Give (click those links to see photos of them).

The Bathroom:

It looks charming, but it isn’t very practical–at least not for someone as tall as Cameron Diaz!

Producers chose the picturesque streets of Shere (in Surrey) for the village scenes:

They wanted snow so it would look more like Christmas time, so they added it:

Sadly, Iris’s cottage isn’t real. A fake exterior was built within 2 weeks in the middle of an empty field (photos via the DVD’s Special Features):

They did extensive landscaping around the cottage, even though little of it is shown in the film, and most of what you do see is covered in (fake) snow:

The film crew created everything that you see in the movie, down to the stone wall that seems to have been there forever:

Here’s how it looked in the movie:

Cottages don’t get much cozier than this!

Come back next week to see photos of Amanda’s beautiful contemporary house in L.A. You can see photos of Graham’s Mill House now, though–no waiting!

Visit TV/Movie Houses to see more, like the ones from A Christmas Story and The Family Stone.

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Sheryl Crow Hasn’t Been Able to Sell Her Cross Creek Farm in Tennessee, so She’s Putting It Up for Auction: House Pics.

Former Home for Unwed Mothers Gets Elegant Remodel: Lookiloos.

How to Set a Pretty Table for Thanksgiving: The Design Tree.

Gorgeous New Book About Houses in New Orleans: Stealing Magnolias.

Got a Decorating 911? Get Help: My Design Guide.

Ideas to Steal from the November Anthropologie Catalog: CasaSugar.

Top Celebrity-House Search of the Week: Charlie Sheen & Brooke Mueller.

Top TV Show Search of the Week: “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.”

Thanks for all the great advice you guys gave me on yesterday’s post. I appreciate your help and will keep you posted on what I decide. Have a great weekend, everybody!

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Description from the designers:

Fousse is an archaic word for the state of childlike wonder upon experiencing something remarkable. And that’s what Fousse aims for in its designs. The first piece of furniture in Fousse’s collection is the ZzZen, a loungechair without a single straight edge, enabling it to rock back and forth, but also sideways. This fun chair provides optimal comfort while remaining small and nimble. The ZzZen is constructed out of hightech plastics, making it light and suitable for outdoor use. It can be stacked and has a handle for easy storage and transport.

Visit the Fousse website – here.

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