Articles by Julie Sheer
Houzz Tour: California Canyon Home Pays Homage to a Beloved Coast (14 photos)
Nestled into a coastal canyon near Santa Barbara, California, this family retreat does its best to be one with nature. Surrounded by 100-plus-year-old oak trees, it is set deep within steep sandstone canyon walls with distant ridgeline views. The spec…
She Built a Chicken Coop and Was Surprised by What Happened Next (16 photos)
Michelle Chun took about six months to build the chicken coop in the backyard of her and her husband’s home in Alhambra, California. Chun, a consultant in the health-care industry, spent just a few hours each weekend on the project, squeezing it in between her work and her other activities, which include…
Cooperative Lifestyle Lives On at Twin Modernist Homes in L.A. (20 photos)
About a decade after the 1960s free-love movement, an idea for communal living by architect Peter de Bretteville came to life in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon, a hillside community sandwiched between the San Fernando Valley and Sunset Strip that was once known for free-spirited artists and musicians. In…
The Side-by-Side Homes That Friendship Built (20 photos)
About a decade after the 1960s free-love movement, an idea for communal living by architect Peter de Bretteville came to life in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon, a hillside community sandwiched between the San Fernando Valley and Sunset Strip that was once known for free-spirited artists and musicians. In…
Is a Backyard Chicken Coop Right for You? (31 photos)
Craving a daily supply of fresh eggs, perhaps you’ve decided to join the urban homesteading movement and get yourself a flock of chickens for the backyard. You’ll start indoors with chicks in a box and a heat lamp, but before long they’re going to need a permanent home with a place to sleep, lay eggs,…
Houzz Tour: Face-Lift for a Midcentury Modern Home (12 photos)
Updating a midcentury modern home can be a challenge. What was new and fresh has probably faded over time. Midcentury design’s trademark dark wood paneling and flooring can feel dated 50 years later. The goal for this Greenbrae, California, home built in 1963 was to replace the drab wood paneling and…
Houzz Tour: Face-Lift for a Midcentury Modern House (12 photos)
Updating a midcentury modern home can be a challenge. What was new and fresh has probably faded over time. Midcentury design’s trademark dark wood paneling and flooring can feel dated 50 years later. The goal for this Greenbrae, California, home built in 1963 was to replace the drab wood paneling and…
Before and After: 13 Stunning Room Transformations (36 photos)
A house that’s a hundred years old is bound to go through some design changes over the years. In the case of the 2017 Pasadena Showcase House of Design’s 1916 English Tudor, the rooms had been painted a variety of colors, ranging from pastels to bold shades. And someone was clearly a big fan of wooden…
Past Meets Present at 2017 Pasadena Showcase House (43 photos)
A mix of modern style and classic furnishings that honor this 100-year-old home’s heritage is on display at the 2017 Pasadena Showcase House of Design, which opens Sunday, April 23, and runs through May 21. The decorated rooms are not intended to create a unified interior but instead independently showcase…




















