A House For Sale
There’s a house for sale in Los Angeles – on a private street at the end of a cul de sac.
It’s a Tudor styled home, built in 1922 for Harvey Mudd. It’s listed at $10,975,000 and it is over 8,000 sq. ft with 7 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms.
It’s an historically significant house and it is on one acre of land. Close by neighbors are A-list celebrities, including singer/songwriter The Boss, Bruce Springsteen. These stone steps lead up to the front door.
The front door, the porch is slate. There are some plants that need to be put in the ground. Oh, and there is a new neighbor going in on the left – see, those trees on the left, looking kind of bare? Oy.
This is an aerial view of the property. The Tudor house for sale is inside the pink circle. The house going up next door visible through those bare trees is inside the turquoise circle. Yes, that IS a house. Owned by Michael Ovitz, Hollywood Mega Player, his house, over 4 years in the building stage alone, has the “world’s largest residential basement” and is 28,000 sq. ft. This “little” detail is not publicized on the real estate brochure. I’m sure that once it’s finished and landscaped, it will be beautiful and hardly noticeable from the charming Tudor for sale, but living next door to it during construction must be a little hard to tolerate. Wonder if that’s why the house is for sale? And one other thing – have you ever looked at your own house from the satellite? Go to www.live.com – it’s amazing!!!
OK, back to the house. Here’s the front dining patio, right outside the kitchen. I love how only in California, you can keep all your windows wide open to the cool breeze. Any ideas whose house this is yet? Would it help if I told you that the acting couple Martin Landau and his wife Barbara Baines lived here for years? No? OK, how about if I told you that Kelly Wearstler rented this house while her own house was being remodeled down the road? No?
OK, last clue. The front hall. Look familiar yet?
Does this help? Come on, I can’t give any better clue than this!
Yes, that’s right – The mega-watt, beautiful, and uber talented interior designer Mary McDonald is selling her home. Well, she and her boyfriend, John Bersci, are selling their home, I should say. Though this house sale has garnered masses of press (Real Estalker, etc.) – no one has named Mary as the lady of the house. Instead, her involvement isn’t noted. It takes the eagle eye of Cote de Texas to notice such things. You’re welcome! The only media that has tied Mary to the house is this month’s Veranda magazine. Here, McDonald takes full credit for the interior design of her landmark house, as she should. Designed by the noted architect Elmer Grey, the house is well known in Los Angeles. Grey is famous for designing many California landmarks including The Rose Bowl, The Beverly Hills Hotel, The Pasadena Playhouse, and the First Church of Christ, Scientist – later made famous by Jim Jones who used this church for his “People’s Temple” before they all left for their untimely deaths at Jonestown.
Inside the house: The front hall, two stories. The wood floor has been painted white with a black pattern. Notice the pattern on the floor – inside the middle section of the large room – the pattern goes into an oval shape – emphasizing that portion of the room. This entry/front room is paneled in oak and the walls and fabrics are persimmon colored.
Another view of the front room – a large buffet table is skirted with an Ikat fabric, while the center table is placed under the gorgeous, immense chandelier. Through the arches, twin Swedish Empire day beds are placed side by side.
Looking under the stone arches back towards the front door and stairway.
Looking right at the front door – you can see into the dining room, and further into the kitchen. Through the other door, on the left of the oil painting is the library. In this picture you can see the railings from the second story overlooking the entry room. Also, you can really see the shape of the painted pattern on the floor and how it relates to the room – it goes in an oval under the lower roofed, middle area – between the stone arches – inside the oval are the two day beds with the tiger rug between them. The design of the floor pattern is really quite ingenious and beautiful and adds effective contemporary drama to a room not really needing any drama at all.
Several years ago, the house was photographed for Town and Country magazine at Christmas time. The room has changed in many ways. There are no Empire daybeds under the arches. There is a white sofa that sits under the painting – where today two French chairs sit. In the area where there is now a round center table, Mary used a red sofa and a coffee table sitting on a coir rug. Today – this area is very open and has little furniture in it. I think I prefer the room as it is today, rather than here with all the sofas and cluttered furniture. (Thank you to Style Court for this picture and some of the other older ones used today.)
As it is today: The two Swedish Empire day beds. The large bay window looks out onto the back yard. Large blue and white vases are everywhere – a trademark of McDonald’s.
The front door is open to the right of the staircase. The large leaded window looks out on the front yard. Today, this area is very sparsely furnished as opposed to how it was a few years ago with lots of sofas and chairs in this space. In the Veranda spread, Mary placed a antique sofa in front of the grill – underneath the stairway.
The same area, styled and photographed for Veranda’s Christmas issue this year. The persimmon color on the walls is not nearly as vivid as it looks in the real estate pictures – not sure which is the true tone. On the left, is the antique sofa Mary placed here. Also, an oil painting was added high above the entry room. Most amazing is the floor – it is not painted!!!!!! Was it painted before and then changed for Veranda? Or, were these pictures taken so long ago and the floors have been painted since? Do you prefer the room with the white and black painted floor or without? Myself, I adore the painted floor!
Another picture from Veranda. Again, no painted floor. Additionally this console is new – it’s not in the Real Estate photographs. I like it and think it looks great under the beautiful oil painting.
Going up the stairs, which has a sisal runner, the landing overlooks the double storied entry hall.
The view from the second floor, overlooking the entry hall and the large leaded glass window that looks on the front lawn. I wonder where that chartreuse painted hallway leads to?
The dining room is a complete departure from the entry hall. This room is more typical of McDonald’s style. The floor is stenciled wood. The walls are a deep gray with crisp white trim. Through the door is the entry hall.
Another view of the very large dining room. The table seats 12 comfortably – amazing! This window looks out to the front yard. Both sides of the room are lined in a series of identically framed prints.
The power of styling. For the Veranda Christmas issue, McDonald changed out the dining room chairs to these gray painted caned chairs of her own design. I like these better than the one in the real estate pictures - but these chairs actually come from the breakfast room.
The back wall, decorated for Christmas for Veranda Magazine. I love the sconces, of course! Here, the floor is stenciled – unlike the entry hall which isn’t in the Veranda pictures. Again, the photography and styling of these professional pictures show the house is such a beautiful light! It’s a shame that real estate companies don’t hire professional photographers – I would think it would be to their advantage to show the houses looking their prettiest!
When Mary first moved into the Tudor house just a few years ago, she did another Christmas photo shoot for Town and Country magazine. The dining room walls look much darker here.
And in the same shoot, the curtains in the dining room appear dark green – as opposed to the white linen they are today.
The kitchen with it’s windows open to the outside front dining area. The kitchen was obviously never remodeled and looks as if it was last updated in the 80s. This room surprises me that it was never changed by McDonald, especially as her boyfriend is a real estate developer who specializes in fixing up houses and selling them. But, there is something to be said for leaving a historical home alone. Mary’s partner is most famous for rehabbing the Buster Keaton estate to great acclaim. And on the ceiling – is that piece of Manual Canovas’ melon wallpaper?
The breakfast room is utterly charming with the pink and gray curtains with black and white print blinds. Here are the gray chairs from the dining room Veranda pictures. The crystal chandelier is a pagoda. Again, this decor is so Mary! This room looks out towards the back yard.
The breakfast room connects to the library, which connects back to the entry hall.
The library – wood paneled and chartreuse green with red accents. Again – this is Mary McDonald all the way. This library appears to be very lived in and used on a daily basis. The light fixture is a trendy lantern. The pillows have square trim – another McDonald trademark. This room looks onto the back yard. What is interesting here is the obvious lack of styling done for the real estate photographer. The pillows and cushions need fluffing and the bookshelves could be straightened somewhat. A magazine would never let cushions go unfluffed! Whatever — I adore the color combinations here!
A close up of the mantel which appears to be hand carved stone.
Another view. Notice how the ceiling, the lampshades, the upholstery and the back of the bookshelves are all the same vivid shade of green.
On the left side of the entry hall, facing the side yard with the swimming pool, is the newly decorated sunroom. One pattern covers most of the upholstery. J’adore the tole chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The room is perfection!
This year, domino magazine featured McDonald’s newly remodeled sunroom.
Here, the very beautiful McDonald posed for domino magazine.
Upstairs, the master bedroom is Tiffany Blue – a shade Mary has said she is very much into lately. The wood floors are stenciled in deep brown – probably done the same time as the entry room. I love this stenciled pattern and think it really adds pop to this oversized room. Chinoiserie styled nightstands and four poster bed are Mary McDonald trademarks. Pink matted prints line the room.
The bedroom is large enough for a sizable sitting area. Built ins probably hold the TV. Wonder what the red wires are in front of the double doors?
A view of the bedroom’s fireplace.
Most likely the master bathroom. Like the kitchen, it has not been remodeled yet, but I’m sure, if Mary put her touch to it, it would be spectacular! It actually is quite charming even without the remodeling.
The Tudor house has seven bedroom, but only three are shown on the real estate brochure. This is one of them. Very traditional in feel and in keeping the house’s colors of blues and persimmon.
Interesting – the House Beautiful Showcase Home of 2005 featured this bedroom by Mary McDonald – it appears to be the same furniture in her guest room today. The red accents in the Showcase room have been changed to orange in her home.
And the last bedroom shown – this one has a mural on one side of the room and a large unusual canopy. Again, the orange color pops up on the two stools.
This bathroom, all marble and mural wallpaper, has not been updated, but again it suits the house perfectly. Most likely it next to the bedroom above with the similar looking mural.
Besides all the rooms published, there is also a conservatory, family room, wine cellar, and a gym among others. Here, at the back of the house - a gravel path leads past the rose beds.
Further down the gravel path, the large, windowed room is the pink and gray breakfast room.
Further along the back, past the breakfast room is the chartreuse library and then the persimmon drapes from the entry hall. This portion of the entry hall with the drapes looks like it might have been added on to the house at one point.
Outside the entry hall area, is a fountain and more plants waiting to go into the ground. In the background, projecting from the house, is the pink and gray breakfast room with a terrace above it.
Past the entry hall in the back of the house is the lawn area which leads to the pool. Past the pool is where Ovitz is building his mansion.
The yard terraces down to the pool. At the side of the house, overlooking the pool, is the sunroom.
Here is a clear shot to the massive construction project next door. I’m sure the end will not come soon enough!
Looking back to the house and the sunroom. The large room over the sunroom is the master bedroom. The pool area is not styled, as one would expect of McDonald after seeing her many magazine shoots of back yards.
For instance, in her former house, she built and decorated this charming cabana. Highly styled, with blue and white striped curtains, this is quite a departure from today’s pool area, which is rather plain in comparison.
Here is a picture of her former cabana, styled differently for another magazine shoot. This style of decorating appears to be the Mary of old, I’m afraid. The constants – red, white, and blue fabrics, blue and white porcelains, tickings, stripes, and checks, seem to have been left behind by McDonald. All designers move on – I just happened to love this particular stage of hers!
Here, another porch area, decorated in her signature red, white and blue with her beloved blue and white porcelains.
And again, an example of McDonald’s wonderful styling skills. Here, blue and white are the colors used. This is from the Buster Keaton property that Mary decorated.
McDonald’s ability to decorate and style are impeccable. For instance, in this magazine shoot from the Keaton mansion – highly styled by McDonald – everything is in it’s place and everything is looking beautiful!
A glimpse back: this is the former house McDonald lived in before she moved to the Tudor. This is the living room, cool and sedate – classic and timeless, it looks as if it was decorated yesterday. I loved this house of hers – it’s such a departure from the Tudor mansion which is so much more dramatic. Who can blame her though for moving the Tudor? What a wonderful experience it must be!
This is the dining room from the former home. I adore this dining room! It’s so inviting and beautiful in it’s classic simplicity.
The master bedroom from her former house. Again, classic McDonald – the crisp white trim against the gray-blue walls, the dark blue trim against the white curtain fabrics, the luscious canopy bed. The scale of this bedroom is smaller than the present master bedroom, and thus, it is cozier, imo. Again, this is a personal favorite of her designs.
Just recently, Mary McDonald snapped at the Veranda opening party for Greystone, the fabulous L.A. mansion decorated by scores of top interior designers. Here the beautiful Mary, with Nathan Turner and Ann Getty, stand in the garden she and Nathan decorated.
This month, besides being featured in Veranda magazine, Mary McDonald’s work is featured in the magazine Western Interiors – which didn’t seem to garner much attention in the blogs. Here – in all it’s glorious styling are the pictures of that work:
The house is in L.A. – with a very traditionally styled facade. Inside, Mary has stepped it up and made it youthful to match the owners. In a sitting room, black and white are paired with orange – very similar coloring to her Tudor’s entry hall.
The living room is pure symmetry. Matching chaises, chairs and ghost chairs are laid out in a mirror image arrangement. White trim and fabrics pop against the dark brown walls. The ceiling is an icy blue – a color repeated throughout the house.
McDonald again uses contrast in the sitting room of black and white with red accents. Weinrib rug. This house is the most contemporary design I have seen McDonald do. It’s very fitting for a young couple with its bright graphic fabrics.
The dining room – the rug is in a pattern that reminds me of her painted entry room floor with the center circle. The walls are icy blue contrasting with the bright orange.
The master bedroom is similar in feel to the rest of the house with its graphic grays and white. The blue shows up again in the canopy fabric. A Weinrib rug is again used here. This room is very masculine in feel, as is the entire house. McDonald is branching out, taking risks in design which she didn’t use to. It’s all very exciting to see the new directions she is taking and I’m anxious to see more!
I hope you’ve enjoyed looking at Mary McDonald’s work and in particular, her current house. If you are interested in purchasing the Tudor house, please go here.